Here’s some tips you’ll want to try out next time you do a BBQ for guests.
Marinate All Your Ingredients
No matter what you’re planning on putting on the BBQ, always marinate your food. While it’s not essential, it can help to make the flavors dramatically more intense.
Think about it: when you’ve had marinated veggies in the past, it’s always tasted so much better. When you combine smoke to the mix, it takes it up a notch, combining with all the herbs and ingredients in your bowl in a delicious way.
The best way to marinate is overnight. However, you can do it in as little as 10 minutes if you are in a hurry.
Don’t Over-Char
Charring veggies is a great way to bring out their flavor. But what you don’t want is black and raw sections alternating with each other. That’s not good.
Say, for instance, you want to cook some aubergines on the BBQ. When done correctly, they taste great. But if the grill is too hot, you’ll wind up with something that really disappoints. That’s because the sections of aubergine in contact with the grill will burn, while those not in contact won’t have time to cook.
The solution here is to set the temperature of the grill so that it’s just right. If you’re using charcoal, don’t be afraid to let it cool a little before you start cooking.
Prepare Sides
While all your main dishes will come from the BBQ, you’ll also want to prepare non-BBQ sides that you can have with it. Cookout sides are a great way to add variety to your guests’s plates and get them eating a wider variety of foods. Corn on the cob, potato salad and bean stew are all must-have dishes.
Improve Your Tools
Many people try to cook on the BBQ using standard kitchen implements. But that’s a recipe for disaster - if you’ll excuse the pun. The best approach is to get tools actually built for this method of cooking. You’ll want a full-metal burger flipper, a pair of tongs and perhaps a fish grill if you want to cook BBQ fish.
Make Your Own Burgers
We’re used to the idea that we have to go to the store to get burger patties. But, actually, you can make your own. And they taste way better than anything you might get from the store.
When making your own burgers, always choose mince with a lot of fat. Otherwise, you might wind up with something that tastes a little dry.
Also, be sure to cook on a relatively low heat. This allows time for heat from the BBQ to get into the core of the patty and cook it through thoroughly. Make a small indentation in the middle of the patty before you start cooking, as they tend to swell when you apply heat.