Basic Grilling Techniques

How To Basic Grilling Techniques Charcoal Grills Direct Cooking Gas Grills Judging the temperature of a fire without a thermometer

Indirect Cooking When Is It Done? The real challenge to successful grilling is to make the often unpredicta le! predicta le" #ometimes learning a few simple facts! techniques! and a little equipment know$how can pre%ent flare$ups! o%ercooked meats! and a grill disaster" To impro%e &our chances for success! keep these tips in mind the ne't time &ou fire up for fla%or" Gas Grills In terms of con%enience and dependa ilit& man& people like gas grills" (lthough a gas grill is consistent! deli%ering the same results da& in and da& out! gas grills are roughl& three times more e'pensi%e than charcoal" It is howe%er necessar& to carefull& shop for &our gas grill and make sure that it has at least two urners for indirect grilling" When it comes to BT)s more is not alwa&s etter" BT)s are a measurement of the %olume of gas a grill can urn so a well engineered grill will actuall& use less BT)s ut cook food more efficientl&" Important Tips for Gas Grillers: Preheat &our gas grill to ensure good searing action" *ewer gas grills are powerful! ut with older gas grills preheating is most important" Turn all the urners on high! close the lid! and allow plent& of time to preheat" This will ensure that the grates are nice and hot when &our meats hit the grill surface" Purchase a grill thermometer if &ou gas grill is not equipped with one" +ou can use an o%en thermometer or our More burners mean more options for grilling" ( gas grill with ,$- urners allows &ou the option of roasting meat on one end of the grill o%er low$medium heat while grilling %egeta les o%er direct heat on the other end Direct Cooking .ethod is similar to roiling and requires foods to e cooked directl& o%er the heat source" /oods should e turned onl& once during the cooking process a out halfwa& through the grilling time" The direct method is est for foods that require 01 minutes or less" #teaks Chicken pieces2 reasts 3egeta les #ausages 4a o s

We also used the direct method when searing meats such as steak" This creates a nice crisp outside with good fla%or and when mo%ed to indirect heat the meat can continue cooking with out urning" Direct cooking on a charcoal grill requires the coals to e e%enl& spread across the charcoal grate" (gain! we recommend alwa&s lea%ing a portion of the grill with little or no coals incase &ou ha%e flare ups and need to quickl& mo%e the foods awa& from the direct heat source" Direct cooking on a gas grill requires preheating the grill to high with the lid closed so &our grill grates get nice and hot" 5nce &ou ha%e placed the food on the grates! reduce &our temperature according to the recipe" 4eep the lid closed e'cept when turning the food halfwa& through the cooking process" Indirect Cooking .ethod gi%es foods the delicious grilled fla%or and te'ture! ut is similar to roasting" The grill acts as an con%ection o%en and roasts the foods on all sides so there is no need to turn the food" The indirect method is est for foods that take longer than 01 minutes to cook" 6oasts Whole chickens 6i s Turke&s 7ork loin Indirect cooking on a charcoal grill - arrange hot coals on one side of the grill or on the left and right side and lea%e the middle without charcoal" The food should go directl& a o%e the area with no charcoal" 7lace a drip pan 8aluminum disposa le pan9 in the area with no coals to catch an& drippings from the meats" Indirect cooking on a gas grill $ preheat all urners on high and once the food is placed on the hot grill grates turn off the urner that is directl& under the food and lea%e the surrounding urners on the temperature suggested in the recipe 8usuall& around medium to medium high depending on what &ou are cooking"9 If &our gas grill onl& has 0 urners then &ou will lea%e one urner on and turn the urner directl& under the food to off" ( drip pan 8disposa le aluminum pan9 ma& e necessar& to place :ust elow the meat to catch an& drippings"

udging the temperature of a fire !ithout a thermometer )sing &our hands and e&es &ou can generall& :udge how hot a charcoal fire is"

Hold &our outstretched palm ,$1 inches a o%e the grill grate and count the num er of seconds &ou can comforta l& lea%e it there" ;$0 seconds the grill is H5T $ perfect for searing a steak or cooking shrimp and scallops <$, seconds the grill is .=DI). H5T $ great for fish and urgers 1 seconds the grill is .=DI). $ chicken! %egeta les! and fruit lo%e this temperature > seconds the grill is ?5W $ delicate %egeta les! and slow cooking meats "hen Is It Done# Temperatures in this chart reflect our opinion with regard to est taste" .eat should come off the grill when it is 1 to ;@ degrees sh& of the desired final internal temperature! as the temperature will continue to rise for se%eral minutes *ote that the )"#" Department of (griculture recommends cooking ground meat to ;-@ degreesA roasts! steaks! and chops to ;,1 degreesA and poultr& to ;>@ degrees to eliminate potential food$ orne pathogens 6(6= 6ed .eat 8B==/! ?(.B! 3=(?9 7ork Chicken 8D(64 .=(T9 Chicken 8WHIT= .=(T9 ;01B C C .=DI).$6(6= ;<@B C C .=DI). ;,@B ;,1B C W=??$D5*= ;-@B ;-@B ;-@B

;-1B

/ish 8Check for doneness & either nicking the flesh with a paring knife or using the finger testCA most fish should e opaque at the center" Tuna and salmon can e cooked until :ust translucent at the center"9 C*ot recommended

Charcoal Grills Grilling o%er charcoal pro%ides e'ceptional rowning and searing that a gas grill simpl& cannot pro%ide" 7ut quite simpl&! a properl& uilt charcoal fire gets much hotter than a gas fire" (nd! esides all the ad%antages of a hotter fire! charcoal adds another dimension D smoke fla%or" Grilling o%er charcoal does require a little more finesse and knowledge" Important tips for Charcoal Grillers: ( chimne$ starter is the est wa& to start a fire if using a kettle grill" The large starters work est" To use! simpl& fill the lower compartment with crum led newspaper and the top canister with charcoal" 6emo%e the grill rack and set the starter inside the grill" )sing a match! light the newspaper inside the starter" The flame is sucked up the canister and the charcoal gets lit" When the coals are well lit and co%ered with a la&er of gra& ash 80@$<@ minutes9! dump them into the grill" 7ut the grill grates ack on and gi%e them enough time to heat well efore grilling"

%atural &ard!ood Charcoal is the est choice for grilling ecause it urns hot and fast! while slower urning riquettes are optimal for grill$roasting and ar ecuing" Delicate foods such as chicken! fish! and %egeta les grilled o%er fires started with lighter fluid or lighter fluid infused riquettes ma& result in harsh! unpleasant fla%ors" We prefer natural lump charcoal from Big Green =gg or 6o&al 5ak"

T!o-'e(el )ires are important since charcoal fires urn so hot" 7ile &our hot coals on one side of the grilling and lea%e the other side empt&" This gi%es &ou a hot surface for direct grilling! ut if the food egins to flame is cooking too fast then mo%e it to the cooler side of the grill" This also allows &ou to sear meats on the hot side and mo%e them to the cooler side to finish cooking and a%oid a urned outside" This technique works reall& well with steaks and pork tenderloin"