Cooking Tip-Grilling Tips and Times

Grilling Tips

Now that the weather is nice and summer is almost here, it's a great time to share some grilling tips. So dust off the grill, clean it up and get ready for some great grilling. At our house we prefer grilling over coals or wood chips so some of these tips work better for a kettle style grill than a propane grill. 

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Grilling With Coals

Preparing The Grill:

• Open the top and bottom vents.
• Make sure your charcoal is dry, wet charcoal won't burn as well. So, if it is stored outside keep it in a closed container.
  
• Arrange charcoal on the bottom grill, never directly on the very bottom of the barbecue bowl. For direct cooking, pile charcoal in the center of the grill bottom. For indirect cooking, place a drip pan in the bottom center of the grill. Arrange equal amounts of charcoal on either side of the drip pan. 
• If you use a liquid lighter fluid allow it to soak into the coals for a few minutes before you light the coals. If lighter fluid accumulates at the bottom of the grill pan, carefully ignite it with a flame and burn it off before cooking your food.
• Allow 25-30 minutes after you light the coals before you clean the grill and begin cooking. The coals should have a coating of ash when they are ready.
• Clean the grill when it's hot. Carefully brush the grate with a wire brush to remove the bits of food that stick to the grill after you remove the cooked food this will keep your grill clean and keep critters away.

Cooking on the Grill:

• Bring food to room temperature before grilling. This helps the food to cook evenly.
• Use direct cooking is for thin uniform cuts of meat or vegetables (Steaks, chops, sliced vegetables). Indirect cooking works best for thick or uneven meats and vegetables. (chicken, whole bell peppers, eggplants)
• When using a marinade for chicken or chops make sure the sugar content isn't too high because the sugar burns quickly. If using a high content marinade or barbecue sauce, brush it on toward the end of cooking.
• Apply oil directly to the meat before grilling to prevent food from sticking to the grill, unless using a dry rub. Then oil the grill before cooking your meat. 
  
• When searing steaks, wait 2 to 2-1/2 minutes before turning.
• Searing food for a few minutes at the end of cooking that was cooked with an indirect flame will give it that nice grilled look.
• Use tongs not a fork when turning over the food. You don't want to poke holes in the meat.
• Cover the grill. Grills cook food best when covered do to the heat circulation. Use the bottom vent to regulate the heat.
• Check for doneness using an instant thermometer. Using a thermometer on the top of the grill is also a good idea so you know what temperature you are cooking at.
• Always let your food rest after grilling. 5 minutes for thin cuts and up to 10 minutes for thicker cuts. This helps stabilize the juices and allows the heat of the food to become more evenly distributed.

Grilling Times: All times are approximate

Steak 
For recipes click here
(cooking times) 

Thickness
1- inch
2-inch

Rare (140 degrees)
2 minutes - 3 minutes
7 minutes - 8 minutes

Medium (160 degrees)
4 minutes - 4 minutes
9 minutes - 9 minutes

Well-Done (170 degrees)
5 minutes - 6 minutes
10 minutes -11 minutes

Burgers 
For recipes click here
(cooking times) 

Thickness
1/2-inch

Rare 
3 minutes per side

Medium
4 minutes per side

Well-Done
5 minutes per side

Hot Dogs & Sausages 
(cooking times)

Hot dogs- 6 minutes turning every 2 minutes
Sausage, fully cooked- 10 to 15 minutes
Sausage, uncooked- 20 to 30 minutes

Fish and Seafood 
For Recipes click here and here
(cooking times) 

Fish Fillets-10 to 12 minutes per pound
Fish Steaks-10 to 12 minutes per pound
Whole Fish (up to 1 pound)-10 to 15 minutes
Whole Fish (over 1 pound)- 10 to 12 minutes per inch of thickness
Clams, in shell- 5 to 8 minutes
Crab (about 2-1/2 pounds)- 10 to 12 minutes
Lobster, Whole- 18 to 20 minutes
Lobster Tails- 8 to 10 minutes
Shrimp- 5 to 10 minutes (using a grilling pan)
Scallops-4 minutes per side (using a grilling pan)

   Poultry, Pork & Lamb
(check for internal temperatures)
 for recipe click here and here

Whole Turkey unstuffed-(10 to 18 pounds) -180 degree-3 to 4 hours
Turkey Breasts-170 degrees -10 to 15 minutes per side
Turkey Dark Meat- 180 degrees
Whole Chicken (3 to 4 pounds) -165 degrees- 60 to 75 minuts
Whole chicken (5 to 7 pounds) -165 degrees- 18 to 25 minutes per pound
Bone-in Breast -165 degrees -10 to 14 minutes per side
Boneless Breast-165 degrees -6 to 8 minutes per side
Chicken Leg or Thigh -165 degrees -10 to 15 minutes per side
Duckling (4-1/2pounds)- 165-170 degrees - 2-1/2 hours
Pork Ribs -Well Done-170 degrees - 1 hour and 40 minutes
Pork Chops (3/4 to 1-inch thick) -Well Done-170 degrees -25 to 30 minutes

Vegetables (Whole) 
for recipe click here

Turn vegetable packet over 1/2 way through cooking.

Asparagus- 5 minutes
Bell Pepper, whole-10 to 15 minutes
Corn, in husks-25 minutes
Onions, whole-40 to 50 minutes
Potatoes, whole-45 to 60 minutes
Tomatoes, cut in half- 4 minutes
                                             
                                     Vegetables (Sliced in Foil Packets)
                                                             For recipes click here

Turn vegetable packet over 1/2 way through cooking.
Beets (1 per packet) 30-40 minutes
Broccoli (1 cup)-15-18 minutes
Brussels Sprouts (1-1/2 cups)-18 to 20 minutes
Cabbage (1/4 head)- 40 minutes
Carrots (1-1/2 cups)- 15 to 20 minutes
Cauliflower (2 cups)- 20 to 25 minutes
Eggplant (1/2 eggplant)-10 minutes
Green beans (about 30)- 30 to 35 minutes
Mushrooms (1-1/2 cups)- 8 to 12 minutes
Zucchini (1-1/2 cups)- 6 to 10 minutes