BBQ and Grilling Tips for Your Next Cookout

Whether you're cooking chicken, beef, or pork, marinating is the most important thing you can do. Whether you use a dry rub, or some sort of a marinade, let the meat soak in the flavors for a while before putting on the grill. I usually will marinate the meat the night before I am going to cook it. Make sure you set the meat out for a while, before putting on the grill, to get up to room temperature. This allows the meat to cook more even when you throw it on the grill.

Check out the links below for some marinade and dry rub recipes.

Cooking on low heat is the best way to get your steak, chicken or pork to be juicy and tender. Especially when you're dealing with ribs, brisket, or other heavier meats. The best way to do this is by keeping your meat away from the direct flames or it will cook quickly and make the meat dry and tough. Just simply place the meat away from the flames or use a heat shield. It may take longer for the food to get done, but it will be well worth the wait.

There are a ton of people who will poke and prod what they are cooking, or flip the meat over and over. This is not good for the meat. In fact, the more you do this, the more chances you have for having some bad tasting meat. Depending on what you're cooking, you only need to flip it over a few times at the most. If you're worried about the meat sticking to the grill, it may need a bit more time, or you're cooking on too high of heat. The less you flip, the better your steak, ribs or whatever you're cooking will taste.

If you don't have a smoker, and use a propane grill, you can still get that good smoky flavor by using 'smoke bombs' on your grill. To do this, all you need is some wood chips (like mesquite or hickory) and some foil. Once you wrap the chips in foil, simply poke holes in it to allow the smoke to come out, set it on the heat, and then get to cooking. You will want to use low heat with this method. Check out the video below for a better idea of what I'm talking about.

Above everything else, safety must come first. No matter what type of grill you are using, accidents can happen. Here are some things to consider:

• Keep a fire extinguisher close by
• Know how to cut off the fuel to your gas grill
• Keep a water hose close by in case some flames accidently spread out on your lawn
• Never leave grill unattended
• Maintain your grill and keep fuel lines clean