Dos and Don"ts of Grilling

There is nothing more rewarding than grilling out on a perfect summer night.
It's the perfect time to get the family together to enjoy the activities.
It is almost unheard of a family going an entire summer without grilling out.
Over 90% of American families attend at least one cookout a year.
It's important to understand the dos and don'ts of grilling to make your experience twice as nice.
Never start with a dirty grill.
The delicious fish that you fixed last week won't be very tasty on your bratwurst.
You have to clean your grill before every use.
Not only is it a sanitary practice, it also removes all of the leftover sediments from the last meal.
There is a misconception that cleaning your grill while hot is a better practice.
The truth of the matter is you want to wait until your grill is cool so you can clean the surfaces with grease fighting soap and water.
Next, always spray your cooking area with nonstick cooking spray.
This helps prevent your food from sticking or tearing when you turn it over.
If your meat sticks or tears you will lose a large amount of juice and your meat will lose flavor as well as moisture.
Never place any food on the grill until it is at cooking temperature.
The different temperatures that your meat is exposed to might cause it to burn while losing flavor.
If you use coals to do your cooking make sure you wait until all the coals are grey.
This allows the temperature to even out while eliminating any lighter fluid that may have been used.
Never cover your meat in the sauce you wish to serve it with.
Always cook your meal to about 80% and then add BBQ or Marinate to your meat.
Otherwise your food is likely to burn because of the sugars and fats in the sauces.
Remember that whatever meat your cooking has its own natural flavors that can only be brought out by barbecuing and you don't want to take away from that by drowning your food.
Never poke your meat while it is in the cooking process.
This only makes the juices leak out and makes the bottom of the grill dirty and harder to clean.
Your meat will also become much drier and may even ruin the entire meal.
Lastly, never place the meat that is cooked on the same plate when it was raw.
This could cause the spread of many unwanted diseases.
With that said, never handle cooked meat with the same utensils that you used when it was raw.