It’s begun! Grilling season has begun and your local hardware stores are frantically rearranging their  floors to accommodate to the new home owners itching to show off their green yard with grills, pits, and smokers. Here are couple of tips to hone your outdoor culinary skills with a few right tools, a little preparation, and a couple of techniques from the gurus.

Charcoal vs. Briquettes vs. Gas Grill

According to the Virtual Weber Bullet: The general consensus is that lump tends to burn hotter than briquettes, but not as long or as consistently. Some lack of consistency is to be expected, given that the content and piece size varies within an individual bag and between bags.

Personally, I’m a briquettes kind of guy. The time waiting for the grill to heat up can be spent socializing, drinking your cold beverage, and munching on snacks. For the after-work grilled dinner, a quick and easy propane blast can save a couple hours for crucial rest time before tackling the next work day.

The Tools
Grilling tool set. Get one.

Food Preparation
Clean your grill. A metal brush does wonders to clean that extra “flavor” left over from your last session. In a pinch, wad up some aluminum foil and scrub away. When all else fails, send the grill into the oven and bake that stubborn stickiness off.

Timing is Everything
BBQ Chicken – oil the grill, cook the chicken off direct heat and don’t add sauce til the end!

Burgerlicious – Let meat come to room temperature. Don’t press on the grill and a little seasoning never hurt.

Steaks and Mistakes -  Salting your steak an hour before cooking will break down many of the tough proteins and hold flavor much better.

Sit back and relax – the food will need to sit for a few to soak up all those juices. Don’t cut it open immediately!

Cooking Temperatures and Time
Kalamazoo put together a little food temperature chart for your different cuts and preferences.

The Secret Ingredient
Have fun! Food disasters and missing condiments are nothing compared to good quality time with fun and friends. Get out there and fire up those grills.

Have a great Memorial Day!

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