Top Grilling Tips | How to Get More Flavor when Grilling
Folks, we’re heading into grilling season- well for me and hopefully a lot of you that’s all year long! But I’m sharing some tips to give y’all great flavor from your grill!
Time to Tenderize
To get meat tender, my biggest trick is to use limes and lemons. I like to use lemon juice on Fins and Feathers (Fish or Chicken) and lime juice on pork, beef an/or wild game. Generously run in some lime/lemon on both sides of the meat and then season. The least amount of time I like to let this marinate is about 3 hours, but for courses meats like flank, etc. I like to go about 6 hours.
Spice Things Up
One of the biggest mistakes in prepping meat is under seasoning and over cooking!
A More Tender Yard Bird
When grilling chicken breasts I like to cover them in plastic wrap (or place in a plastic sack) and pound it down slightly with a rolling pin. What this does is break down that thin membrane around the chicken which will help it season better. This also flattens out the chicken so it will grill more evenly.
Quick Tip for Pork
For thicker pork chops, wrap them in foil first and then place on the grill and steam for about 4 minutes per side. Then you can take them out and place directly on the grill to finish cooking. The steam will help the pork evenly cook and retain moisture and then you can throw it on the grill to finish it up with some good flavor.
Get The Fire Hot
Light the fire naturally! I can’t stress this enough- do not use lighter fluid! It doesn’t burn off completely and can flavor the food poorly. I suggest natural methods like a propane torch, chimney or fire starters like Fogo Fire Starters. Check out some fire starting tips HERE.
If you want to use lighter fluid, don’t even light it… just order yourself a pizza.
Are The Coals Ready?
Make sure your hardwood or hardwood lump is white and ashy before starting to cook on it. Too often folks don’t wait for the coals to be right which doesn’t give you maximum heat and flavor. For more ideas on cooking with woods be sure to check out our other video. Best Cooking Woods
The Cool Side of Hot
Typically when grilling I like to have two sides of the grill- a hotter side and a cooler side. The hotter side is great for getting a good sear and then you can move it to the indirect side of the heat to slow down your cooking or set on the grill longer for more smoke flavor. The cooler side is also a great spot to keep meat warm while you finish grilling.
Got Gas?
Y’all know I’m a live fire man! But, gas grills have their place because they are quick and convenient. But I’ve got a trick to give you more flavor from that gas grill. Take small discs of wood about 1 inch thick and soak them in water. Then place them over the hot side of the grill and allow that wood to get good and smokey right before cooking.
You can watch our how-to video HERE.
Keep It Clean
Cleaning and keeping a grill clean is pretty simple. It’s easiest to do this when it’s hot. So, right after grilling be sure to give it a good brushing.
An onion is a great way to clean and season your grill too. Take an onion, cut it in half and run it up and down that grill.
For those who don’t like to use brushes to clean, you can get a grill sponge/stone for cleaning.
Keep It Greasy
This tip is especially helpful when grilling fish. First, make sure your grill is well oiled before grilling and have a large enough spatula to get under and flip whatever you’re grilling. Before flipping, grease the spatula well which will help that fish from sticking when turning.
For more tips and tricks check out our full Grilling Tips playlist on our YouTube channel.
You don’t need fancy frills- Just good friends and hot grills!
