BBQ Grilling Tips & Techniques

Make your grilling experience the ultimate

Barbecuing is meant to be a delightful way to feed a family or a gathering of guests. If you're a novice outdoor chef or want to try other methods of outdoor grilling, there are tips from experts that can help you enhance the experience. Simply find techniques that appeal to you and fire it up!

Some general outdoor grilling guidelines

It's a smart idea to use marinate for enhanced flavor and more tenderness when cooking burgers, steaks, seafood, or chicken. Make sure the temperature isn't too hot, or you could scorch the steak or poultry. Keep meat more moist by brushing on butter or, preferably, olive oil. Pressing meat or chicken with a spatula only serves to squeeze out the juice into the bottom of the Weber grill.

Use of a meat thermometer is a must when testing for doneness. Undercooked meat and chicken is unsafe. Avoid putting salt on meat while on the charcoal grill, because the salt could soak up the juices inside the meat. It's a good idea to allow the food stand for five or 10 minutes to avoid burning your tongue or the roof of your mouth.

Hamburgers are one of the most common meats cooked on an electric grill, but if not cooked properly, they can turn out dry. Making a small indention in the middle of the burger before cooking will allow room for swelling. Using ground beef that has 20 percent fat will result in juicy and tasty burgers.

Steaks and grills are the perfect match, but cooking steaks can be tricky. Take the meat from the refrigerator and let it warm up for a few minutes for more even cooking. Some, but not all of the fat should be trimmed. Fat provides the flavor. If you want to add salt, do it at the end.

Grilling tips for barbecuing chicken and seafood

There are numerous ways to cook chicken. It's best to pick chicken that still has skin so you can rub seasoning underneath the skin. That will ensure that the seasoning doesn't fall in during cooking and turning.

Skinless chicken is best for times when marinade is used. All fat should be trimmed before cooking. Unlike steak, fat does nothing to make chicken juicier. Chicken - especially boneless, skinless breast fillets - needs to be watched closely, because overcooked poultry turns very dry.

Seafood on the grill is a healthy choice. Never cook frozen seafood; make sure it's completely thawed. Thin fish fillets should be wrapped in foil or placed on top of foil to keep the fish from falling apart.

Salmon is excellent on the outdoor grill, and it takes just a few minutes per side to cook. Shrimp, on the other hand, is more difficult, because there's a risk of overcooking it. Jumbo shrimp or precooked shrimp needs just to be warmed up. To find out if fish is done, check the middle for an opaque color and you'll get your answer.