UNITED STATES—I will be the first to admit I love to cook on the grill. There is nothing more satisfying than firing up the grill and placing a piece of meat on the grill. Why? The taste is unlike anything else. You’re not going to have the same tasting chicken in the skillet, the air fryer or oven, compared to the barbeque grill. On top of that, you can cook veggies, fruits and a ton of other things on the grill people. That is something I have learned in recent years.
Corn is always a great staple on the grill, but you know what else is tasty on the grill? How about lettuce, zucchini, carrots, root veggies, potatoes, salmon, apricots, peaches, pineapples (of course), apples, and any fruit or produce that can withstand the heat of the grill. If you are frustrated about items falling thru the grill, get that grill basket that holds all of your items and you don’t have to worry about spillage.
The big question I hear time and time again is rather gas or charcoal is better? There is no question, charcoal is better. The problem with a gas grill is that it can be quite dangerous. How so? Well, you’re using gas, and propane is the item used by so many Americans. Propane is dangerous if you do not know what you’re doing people and can cause a dangerous situation if the grill is not properly lit or the wrong item strikes or ignites near the grill when the gas is just running. You don’t get the grill marks on a gas grill the same way that you do with charcoal and that smoky smell that screams BBQ.
The same is echoed for charcoal. How can I best say this: never grill right next to the home or the garage! Have some space from wherever it is that you grill. Why? You don’t want a potential fire to erupt. With propane that flame can spread or rise quite high. With charcoal when you utilize lighter fluid before igniting the match you could ignite flames that plummet into the air.
Not smart and it’s not something you want to have to endure. As a result, once you have the grill going, reminder you have to clean the grill. Look, I know it is not fun or exciting to do, but it has to be done people. You cannot just place a slab of meat on that grill with all that residue of the previous meal you cooked on the actual grill. Not good for the body people. Also when it comes to charcoal, you have to allow the flames to simmer down a bit to burn off the smell of lighter fluid and to ensure your food does not overcook.
Yes, I’m speaking from personal experience, where that one time I place chicken breasts on a very hot grill and the chicken was cooked thoroughly to the point that it was so dry it was the worst thing I have ever cooked. You learn from your lesson when you grill. It is a trial and error thing. The only way to become skilled is to practice. I like charcoal because there is nothing like the smell of grilled food, which you only get with charcoal and the various types of wood chips that you utilize as a result for smoking or slow cooks.
That transpires when you are cooking items like ribs, brisket, pork butt and heavy cuts of meat. Low and slow is the process to properly cooking the meat thoroughly and ensuring it does NOT overcook, undercook or burn in the process. You never want to place any form of meat directly on an open flame unless you want it charred or quickly burned. Let’s just say no one wants a dry piece or overcooked piece of meat. It is a killer on the grill.
Let the fire mellow a bit before you start putting your items onto the grill. Once the flames have died down a bit, especially if you’re utilizing charcoal, you can place that piece of meat on indirect heat. So it cooks at a steady pace and it doesn’t overcook if you’re not paying attention. That is the thing about grilling it does require a bit of work, you can’t just turn your attention away completely. If you do that you find yourself in a situation with bad food.
Also there are plenty of pros to grilling like not cooking indoors during the hot summer months. You save energy as you’re not in the kitchen and you’re not utilizing the gas or electric stove or the oven. You’re not causing the heat in the home to elevate because of the cooking. When you grill you do that outside, so if the weather is decent, you’re comfortable, you’re not worried about grease splattering, you don’t have to worry about people in your personal space, grilling comes with a lot of pros and not that many cons. Also to be honest, food cooks a bit faster on the grill than it does on the stove and oven.
Also when you grill you get to bond with family, you can host a cookout and enjoy the outdoors which so many people at times are not keen to doing inside their homes. Grilling bonds people more than you know, and having tasty food is always a plus America. Fire up the grill and start to enjoy the outdoors the next several months while you can.
Written By Jason Jones
