How To Master The Grill

Grilling is a cooking method that most people do at some point in time, but not everyone can do it perfectly. We will share some tips and techniques that will increase your knowledge and help you to become a better outdoor cook.

First of all it is important to know the temperature of the grill chamber and coals. This will help a great deal because like cooking in an oven, different foods require different temperatures to be nicely seared on the outside and done on the inside while still keeping it moist and juicy. If you don’t have a thermometer built into the grill, hold you hand about two inches above the fire, if you must remove it within two seconds, it’s hot; three seconds, it’s medium-high; four seconds, it’s medium; five seconds, it’s medium low; and if you can hold your hand over the coals for six seconds, the heat is low.

When you decide to light up the grill, build a stack of coals (if using charcoal) that resembles a small mountain. Soak the coals with lighter fluid, and let it sit for about five minutes so the coals can absorb the liquid and not burn off of the surface when lit. Light the fire starting at the very bottom on all sides of the coals so the fire moves up to the other coals. Heat rises so it is faster when the fire starts at the bottom. When the coals are white, you are ready to start grilling!

First, rub the grill grates down with vegetable or some type of oil, this will prevent food from sticking to the grill and since oil conducts heat better than dry metal, it will provide better grill marks (searing) on the food.

Remove the food from the refrigerator about fifteen minutes before grilling, this will allow it to not have such a chill, thus searing it better. Dry the food off with paper towels or a cloth rag prior to cooking because dry meat sears and wet meat will basically have to boil off the liquid before the meat can begin to brown. Not drying will yield a grayish chewy flesh that is not as desirable as a nicely browned final product. Once the food goes on the grill, leave it alone. Don’t poke, prod and flip it just to feel like your doing something, after all, the grill is really cooking the food.

Continuous flipping drains the meat of the juices that rise to the surface during cooking and will make it very dry. After about three minutes on a hot grill, rotate the meat forty five degrees, this is what gives the cross hatch marks on the flesh. After another three to four minutes, flip the meat over and walk away. Three minutes later, rotate it forty five degrees and let it go another three to four minutes, after that, remove the meat from the grill to a plate, pan, or cooling rack. This will yield a perfect “medium” result. If you like it more done, cook it about five minutes per position, or less done, two minutes per position. I would suggest using a meat thermometer to fine tune the final temperature you desire. When doing this, remove the meat about five degrees before the “target temperature is reached because the meat will continue to cook slightly for a few minutes. See our final temperature chart. It important not to cut into the meat as it is on the grill because all of the juice will drain out and cause a dry result. Allow the meat to rest for about five minutes before cutting into it. This will let the temperature rise to the final desired doneness and allow the juices to recirculate through the food and give a juicier product.

If you want to slow smoke something such as a pork shoulder, ribs, or a whole chicken, build a fire on the side of the grill opposite to the vent or smokestack. Place a drip pan under where the food will be sitting to catch the drippings. After the coals are ready place the food on the grill and use the vents to regulate the temperature. The grill chamber temperature should be between 250 and 300 degrees. You will have to add more coals to the grill as the time goes on. Use a chimney starter so they will be ready when you need to add them. Meanwhile soak hickory or mesquite wood chips in water and add them to the coals to give a smokey taste. Ribs should be cooked until meat falls from the bones, about four hours. A whole pork shoulder will take anywhere from six to ten hours depending on the temperature of the grill, and the size of the cut of meat. When you can easily pull it apart it is done, remove it to a roasting pan to serve from. Whole chickens should be cooked to 175 degrees (about 1 ½-2 hours) using a thermometer inserted into the thigh not touching bone. Slow smoking is time consuming but you will be rewarded with very tender, smokey meat.

When cooking sausages, cook to an internal temperature of 160 degrees flipping twice. After the outsides are charred, move the sausages to the cool side of the grill so the inside can continue cooking without burning the skin.

If these few simple rules are followed, you will be on your way to mastering the grill!