We think grilling, like wine, should be easy to enjoy. Here are our best tips for making your next backyard barbeque a breeze:
- Preheat your grill on high and season it with pepper and salt before grilling. Make sure you clean and oil the grill after each use to prevent sticking.
- Keep the lid on while you grill. Your meat will cook more quickly and evenly.
- Add color and flavor to your meats by grilling over a wood fire or placing wood chips or twigs in a vented metal smoker box on top of your gas grill. Be sure to soak wood chips, herbs and wood skewers in water for 30-60 minutes before use.
- Choose from an array of smoking woods, including alder, hickory, mesquite, cherry, apple, pecan and oak. Beef and lamb taste great over mesquite; salmon and other fish grill well over alder. Woody herbs (think rosemary, thyme, basil and oregano) impart their own delicious qualities to grilled meat.
- Remember to let cooked meat rest for 5 minutes after coming off the grill. It'll retain moisture and continue to rise to temperature.