Grilling Tips

Everything you need to know to master the art of grilling.

Grilling Basics

Successful grilling is as easy as following these tips!

• Direct Grilling:  Food is cooked directly over the heat source.
• Indirect grilling:  The grill is set up with a hot side and a cooler side.  With a gas grill, this means keeping one or more burners at medium-high heat and one at low heat.  Charcoal grills heat indirectly when coals are arranged so one part of the fire is hotter than the other.  You can achieve this by banking most of the hot coals to one side of the grill or at the outer edges of the grill.
• Indirect vs. Direct Grilling: Foods that cook in less than 25 minutes are best grilled over direct heat. Foods that need more than 25 minutes cooking time are better when grilled indirectly.
• Make sure your grill is clean before cooking.  Optimum flavor and a nonstick surface are possible only with a clean grill grate. To clean, scrub a hot grill grate with a wire brush. Or use tongs to rub an old rag or crumbled up piece of foil over the grate.
• Gather your tools and do all prep in advance. You don’t want to leave your pork tenderloin unattended or miss the window of perfect-temperature fire because you’re looking for tongs or slicing a mountain of vegetables.
• Don’t crowd the grill.  Leave enough room around each piece of food for air to circulate properly and allow the fire the air it needs to flame.
• Don’t move food too often.  Yes, it’s tempting to check for doneness, but sticking problems are minimized when the food sits long enough to sear. Most foods need to be turned only once.
• Brush on barbecue sauces and sweet glazes towards the end of the grill time.   They will burn if brushed on right away.
• Pay attention.  You’ll get the best results by keeping a close eye on how quickly your food is cooking.

Grilling Tools

• Squirt bottle for flare-ups.  When flare-ups happen, move food to a cooler spot on the grill or temporarily cut off the air to the grill by covering it or shutting the air vent.
• Long-handled spring-loaded tongs and a large spatula.  Using forks to turn food will pierce holes, allowing flavorful juices to escape.
• Hot pads.  Dedicate one or two hot pads to grilling, as they tend to take a beating.
• Long-handled pastry brush for sauces and mops.   The newest silicone brushes withstand high grilling temps. Even better, they don’t lose bristles to the food and they are dishwasher-safe.
• Bamboo skewers for kabobs.  Bamboo skewers won’t get hot like metal skewers.  Be sure to soak them in water for 30 minutes before grilling.
• Wire-bristled brush for cleaning the grill grate.
• Aluminum foil for wrapping veggies and delicate pieces of seafood.
• Foil drip pans to catch juices from roasts.
• Instant-read thermometer and oven thermometer to test doneness and grill temperatures.

Grilling Safety

Food safety is especially important when working with raw meat, poultry, and seafood.

• Thaw frozen meats, poultry, and seafood in the refrigerator, not at room temperature.
• Wash hands well with hot, soapy water before and after handling raw meat.
• Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood away from all other foods during prep.
• Wash all cutting boards and utensils with hot, soapy water.
• Keep meat, poultry, and seafood refrigerated until grilling time. Grill times are given for foods taken directly from the refrigerator.
• Don’t reuse plates and utensils that were used with raw foods.
• Refrigerate leftovers promptly.

Rotisserie Grilling

A rotisserie can be a great grill accessory. It slowly turns the meat on a spit above the surface of the cooking grate for slow, even browning. Its advantage over traditional grilling? Meat juices roll over the outside of the meat as it turns, rather than drip and disappear into the flames. The result is a juicy, flavorful bird or roast. Some things to consider if you’ll be grilling on a rotisserie:

• Height of the bird or piece of meat. Will it fit? Always make sure you have at least one inch between the meat and grill lid before you load the meat on the spit.
• Know your temps. For rotisserie grilling, use indirect high heat for small pieces of meat, direct medium for whole chickens and medium-size meats, and indirect medium for whole turkeys.

Grilling Thicker Cuts of Meat

Indirect grilling is the best method for cooking thick cuts of meat, which benefit from long, slow cooking. For indirect grilling, the grill is set up with a hot side and a cooler side. With a gas grill, this means keeping one or more burners at medium-high heat and one at low heat. Charcoal grills heat indirectly when coals are arranged so one part of the fire is hotter than the other.  Bank most of the hot coals to one side or at the outer edges of the grill.

Grilling Tips for Beef

• Medium to medium-low temps ensure even cooking. Too-high temperatures can char beef, which is undesirable from both a taste and health perspective.
• Trim excess fat from steaks and roasts to avoid flare-ups.
• Long-handled tongs are best for turnings steaks; spatulas are best for flipping burgers.
• Marinating longer than 24 hours will result in mushy meat.

Optimum Marinating Times

Determining Doneness

• Burgers—160ºF
• Steaks—at least 145ºF for medium-rare

Recipes

Burgers: All-American Burgers

Filets: Peppercorn Beef and Blue Salad

Steaks: Beef Tenderloin Steaks with Blue Cheese Topping

Grilling Tips for Pork

• Fully-cooked hams only need to be grilled to an internal temperature of 140ºF—just enough to warm them through. Spice rubs and glazes are especially good on grilled hams.
• Sausages such as bratwurst and Italian sausage are ideal grilling fare. They grill quickly.  Direct medium heat for 15 to 18 minutes is all it takes.
• Today’s leaner pork dries out easily when overcooked, so it’s important to keep an eye on pork when grilling. Rubs and pastes help create a flavorful crust, sealing in the juices, on both small and larger cuts.
• For the juiciest kabobs, cut pork chunks into 1- to 1- 1/4-inch cubes. Anything smaller can dry out too quickly.
• Grilling pork chops? Use chops that are at least 1-inch thick for best results.

Searing

Searing quickly browns food over high heat. This happens easily on a grill, and is often recommended for meats as it may seal in juices, making food more tender. Searing also develops a slight crust, adding flavor and texture to a cut of meat.

• Chops benefit from a good searing. Six minutes per side over direct high heat is perfect.
• Roasts are better when seared first.  The exception is a roast with excess fat, which can drip and cause flare-ups over the high heat required for searing.
• Hams are fully cooked, so searing is unnecessary.
• Pork tenderloins cook quickly and need just the slightest outer crust to provide contrast to their tender centers.  Searing isn’t important.
• High heat also cooks tougher cuts such as ribs and shoulder so quickly they don’t have time to tenderize.  Cook these cuts over indirect medium or low heat.

Determining Doneness

• Chops, roasts, tenderloin, or ground should be cooked to 160ºF. Note that temperatures continue to rise for a short while after removing food from the grill, so tender cuts such as loin roast and tenderloin can be removed when they reach an internal temperature of 150ºF. to 155ºF. A 10-minute rest will bring the temperature up to 160ºF.

Recipes

Chops: Cajun Style Spiced Pork Chops

Loin filet: Grilled Honey Lemon Pork Medallions

Ribs: Backyard Barbecue Ribs

Sausage: Bratwurst Ruebens

Tenderloin: Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Plum Sauce

Grilling Tips for Poultry

• Food safety is especially important when grilling poultry. Raw poultry can harbor potentially dangerous bacteria.
• Flipping is only necessary for boneless poultry pieces, kabob meat, and burgers. The grilling time is so short for these cuts (less than 25 minutes) that all sides need to be exposed to the heat for even browning, grill marks, and thorough cooking. One flip halfway through grilling time is all that’s needed. Bone-in pieces do not need to be turned. They are best grilled slowly over indirect heat.
• When grilling poultry pieces from a whole bird, it’s best to start the thighs and legs first and add the breast halves and wings ten minutes later. This ensures everything will be cooked through at the same time.
• Chicken fat tends to melt quickly, so it’s especially important to trim excess fat on chicken pieces before grilling to avoid flare-ups.
• Whole turkeys weighing 16 pounds or less are best for grilling.

Whole Turkey Grilling

Determining Doneness

• Poultry is thoroughly cooked when the juices run clear and the meat is no longer pink at the bone.
• With a whole chicken or turkey, look for 180ºF when the thermometer is inserted into the meatiest part of the thigh.  Make sure the thermometer tip isn’t touching bone or fat.
• Chicken and turkey breasts are thoroughly cooked at 170ºF.
• Ground poultry is fully cooked at 165ºF.

Recipes

Chicken breasts: Greek Chicken Sandwich

Cutlets: Grilled Turkey with Pineapple-Citrus Relish

Ground: Grilled Meatloaf

Kabobs: Bangkok Chicken Kabobs

Tenderloin: Corsage Turkey Salad

Turkey breast: Indian Spiced Roast Turkey

Grilling Tips for Fish

• Always use oil.  Fish is lean enough that it needs an extra layer of oil to keep it from sticking to the grate.
• Test fish doneness with a knife.  It’s less destructive than using a fork.
• When marinating fish, keep the soaking time under an hour. Any longer will create a mushy texture and an overpowering flavor.

Determining Doneness

• Fish is perfectly grilled when it is just opaque throughout. With practice, you can determine a perfectly cooked piece of fish by pressing down on it with your finger, testing for firmness.

Recipes

Grilled Red Snapper Veracruz

Herbed Pecan Crusted Scallops

Chipotle Grilled Shrimp

Grilled Fish with Avocado Salsa

Grilling with Marinades and Rubs

Marinades are seasoned liquid mixtures that add flavor and, in some cases, tenderize meat cuts. Tenderizing marinades contain an acidic ingredient such as lemon juice, yogurt, wine, or vinegar. Natural tenderizing enzymes are found in fresh papaya, ginger, pineapple, and figs.

• Marinate all meat, poultry, and seafood in the refrigerator, not at room temperature.
• Allow 1/4 to 1/2 cup marinade for each 1 to 2 pounds of meat, poultry, or seafood.
• Marinades used later for basting or as a sauce should be set aside at the start. Any marinade that comes in contact with uncooked meat, poultry, or seafood should be brought to a full rolling boil before being served.
• Marinate in a food-safe plastic bag or a nonreactive container such as a glass baking dish. Use dishes that will fit the meat, poultry, or seafood snugly while allowing the food to lie flat. Turn or stir the meat occasionally to expose all of it to the marinade.

Recipes

Chili Lime Sauce

Citrus Rosemary Marinade

Lemon Basil Marinade

Savory Steak Marinade

Southwestern Marinade

Rubs are a blend of seasonings such as fresh or dried herbs and spices. Unlike marinades, they are used only to add flavor. Paste-type rubs often include a wet ingredient such as oil, crushed garlic, or mustard. Rubs should be applied to all surfaces of the food to be grilled. Though a rub’s flavors will penetrate the surface of the food to a small extent, rubs are fine applied just before grilling.

Recipes

Chipotle Crusted Pork Loin

Herb Marinated Chops

Herb Pecan Crusted Scallops

Rosemary Citrus Herb Rub

Holiday Herb Roasted Turkey