One of the simplest ways to enhance your grilled food is to use herbs. Whether youre marinating chicken with lime juice and cilantro or adding a hearty squeeze of fresh lemon and dill to your salmon, citrus and herbs add an instant boost of flavor to grilled dishes. As an added bonus, they require little to no skill and are one of the easiest grilling hacks out there. Try this recipe for Cilantro Lime Grilled Chicken from Foodie Crush, which delivers a ton of flavor thanks to its simple seven-ingredient marinade. We love the addition of honey for a bit of sweetness and the spice of the cumin. Once your chicken has marinated for 30 minutes, its ready to make its journey to the grill. Pair this entree with a summer salad, like this Black Bean Quinoa Salad, which has its own hints of lime juice and cumin.
Timing is always the thing that seems to stress folks out most about grilling and handling the BBQ. When it comes to charcoal grilling tips, the best advice we can give you is to know when the coals are ready to be used. Many of the best grillers out there swear by the trick that youll know the charcoal fire is ready when the coals are grey and ashy. With a wood fire, the coals should be red, hot and have no smoke. Give yourself time when lighting a fire, as it could take between 30 minutes to one hour to be ready to throw your food onto the grill. No entertainer wants a crowd of hungry people standing around the grill asking when the food will be ready. Give yourself plenty of time so you can get the perfect temperature.
One secret grilling hack from some of the best grilling masters we know is to spray your meat with 100% apple juice as it cooks. This not only will make it taste good, but it will improve its color and tenderness, too. You can also incorporate a bit of apple cider vinegar and water, too, as Food and Wine does in this recipe for Cider Mop Spray. You can make this spray ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to one week. Make it before the big barbecue, then pull it out to wow your guests and become known as the ultimate grill master.
When grillers mention heat zones, theyre talking about direct and indirect heat. Direct heat means that whatever youre grilling is being grilled directly above the open flames on high heat. This is the hot part of the grill and is what youll want to use to get those signature barbecue grill marks. Direct heat is excellent, but you have to be very careful not to burn your food. Indirect heat is still hot, but with no flames below the grill grate, which means youll have better temperature control. You can move between direct and indirect heat to get your piece of meat or your veggies cooking exactly how you want it!
