Grilling Season is Here!
Thank goodness grilling season is finally here. The weather is warming up and people are starting to come out of hibernation. I love this time of year when the flowers start blooming, the birds are chirping, kids are outside riding their bikes and generally everyone seems to be in a better mood.
Of course if you live on the west coast or on some tropical island you never have to deal with the cold frigid weather we have in the midwest or on the east coast, so you have no idea what I’m even talking about.
I grill year round regardless of the weather unless there’s a massive downpour of rain. However, during the spring and summer I, like most people, tend to grill the most. If you’re just uncovering your grill for the season there are a few important things you will want to keep in mind.
Follow these rules whenever you grill steaks, chops, fish, chicken breasts, vegetables, and basically any small or slender food. They’re designed to minimize sticking and maximize flavor and grill marks:
The Three Essential Rules for Great Grilling:
1. Keep it hot
Preheat your gas grill to high or build a “2 to 3 Mississippi” fire in a charcoal grill. (For the latter, place your hand about a half beer can high over the grate. Start counting: “1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi,” etc. By the time you reach “2 or 3 Mississippi,” the intense heat of a properly lit charcoal grill will force you to snatch your hand away.
2. Keep it clean
Brush the bars of the hot grate with a stiff wire brush. This dislodges any debris and minimizes sticking. If you don’t have a grill brush (and you should), use a crumpled ball of aluminum foil.
3. Keep it lubricated
Fold a paper towel into a small pad, dip it in oil, and using tongs, rub it over the bars of the grill grate. Or lift the grate off the grill and spray it with spray oil. (Never spray oil directly onto a lit grill – you’ll get Vesuvian flare-ups.) Oiling the grill helps prevent sticking and it gives you killer grill marks.
If you follow these tips you should have perfect grilling everytime.
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