Learn How to Thrill with Your Grill
May 12th, 2010 by Kathy
Right now, millions of people are preparing for summer, and their upcoming backyard parties, by setting up their outdoor furniture, picnic tables, and patio umbrellas, and making their yards, gardens, and outdoor décor look spectacular. While that may seem like an awful lot of work, in many cases, it’s the easy part. After all, once porch swings, patio chairs, outdoor sofas, and accent tables are in place, they’re good to go.
Grills, on the other hand, are a different story, because cooking on them – safely and successfully – requires some know-how, and even a degree of finesse. No matter how fantastic a grill is, or how many wonderful features it has, if the person who is cooking does not know how to use it correctly, the food can still turn out to be, well, disappointing, to say the least.
The first thing to be aware of is that all grills are different; so, if you’re getting a new grill, whether it’s your first, or your fifth, read and heed the manual that comes with it. Actually, the more experienced you are, the more you realize how important it is to become acquainted with your grill’s specific characteristics, and that it takes some time to do so. For example, only after using it for awhile will you find out whether it has hot spots, where they are, and how long it takes to heat to proper cooking temperature, especially on windy or chilly days.
Indeed, weather is another factor, as it will affect cooking times, not only on charcoal grills, but on electric and gas grills as well. While your manual may offer tips for using your particular grill in various climates and conditions, there are some general rules that apply in every situation.
For one thing, even though you should never use the grill indoors, it should be placed where it will be shielded from the wind; otherwise, neither it, nor the food, will stay as hot as necessary. Food will cook faster on charcoal grills on warm, calm days, than it will on windy and/or cold days, when you will need more coals, which will take longer to heat. Even gas grills will take a bit more time to heat, and you may have to use higher heat settings.
Like everything else, in order to obtain top performance from it, you must keep your grill clean. One easy way to do this is to prevent foods from building up on the grill rack, by coating it with a non-stick cooking spray, or brushing it with vegetable oil, before you use it. After cooking, remove any remaining bits of food from the grill rack with a wire grill brush, or a piece of aluminum foil (unless your manual says otherwise).
Usually, you can clean the racks in electric and gas grills by closing the covers and turning the burners on to a high setting for about 15 minutes. If you line the bottom of the firebox with heavy-duty aluminum foil, shiny side up, it will catch any drippings (and, if it’s a charcoal grill, ashes), and act as a heat reflector. Then, after everything has cooled off, you can just bundle up and discard the foil.
Truly, there are dozens of fine points to learn about outdoor cooking; and I will be touching on many of them in upcoming entries. So don’t worry; before you know it, you’ll be able to thrill with your grill!
Yours Outdoors,
Kathy
