4 large Portobello mushroom caps
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp parsley
1 tsp dried thyme
4 slices of Provolone cheese

How to Make It:

Spray the grill grates with a non stick cooking spray and heat the grill to medium high heat.
Sprinkle the salt and pepper evenly over both sides of the mushrooms.
Brush the mushrooms on both sides with the vinegar.
Sprinkle the thyme evenly over the stem side of each mushroom.
Place the mushrooms on the grill and grill for 3 minutes.
Turn and continue grilling 3 minutes or until the mushrooms are tender.
Sprinkle the parsley over the mushrooms and add a piece of cheese to the top of each one.
Tent foil over the mushrooms and cook 1 minute or until the cheese melts.
Remove and place on buns before serving.

Makes 4 servings

The vinegar and thyme are what give these mushrooms their vibrant taste. Grilling mushrooms gives them a caramelized look. Serve these burgers with a side salad of all your favorite veggies for a great summertime lunch or dinner.

Preparation Time: approximately 10 minutes
Cooking Time: approximately 7 minutes
Total Time: approximately 17 minutes

4 baking potatoes
2 onions, halved and sliced thin
4 tbsp of butter, cubed
1/4 C of celery, chopped fine
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper

How to Make It:

Heat the grill to medium high heat.
Make slices 1/2 inch apart in the potatoes, cutting three quarters of the way through the potatoes and leaving the bottoms intact.
Carefully fan the potato slices apart.
Place each potato on a piece of aluminum foil big enough to fold completely around the potato.
Fill each slice in the potato with onion slices and a cube of butter.
Sprinkle the potatoes evenly with the celery, salt, oregano, garlic powder and pepper.
Wrap the potatoes up in the foil and seal the foil tightly.
Place the potatoes on the grill and cover the grill.
Cook for 40 minutes or until tender.

Makes 6 servings

These potatoes are a change of pace from those everyday baked potatoes. The seasoning gives these buttery fans a lively taste. To cut down on grilling time microwave the potatoes for 6 minutes before making the slices and filling them full of all the goodies.

What an exciting way to grill up those hot dogs! Grab the family head out to the back yard and enjoy that time with each other. When you use a fire pit everyone is actively involved. It a great bonding experience and can produce some delicious meals.

The Smoker

Ah smoked meat is the icing on the cake for some people. With a smoker, like the name says, it lets the smoke cook the meat. It’s not so much the fire that makes the food melt in your mouth. It’s that brilliant design that enables the grill to hold in smoke well enough to cook foods thoroughly.

The Electric Grill

Are you looking for a way to have that outdoor cooking experience without any of the hassles of charcoal, gas or wood? Are you looking for a way to do that and keep your money in your pocket? Well then an electric grill is going to be your right hand man. You can cook outside, enjoy the weather and save money all at the same time. There is nothing needed but an outlet and a hungry crowd.

Is grilling for everyone? Now there is always going to be pros and cons with any situation. There are few things to remember when it comes to grilling. First grilling can get messy. It can also take longer to cook foods than it would in a conventional oven. If you don’t like being outside then grilling might not be your thing. If cooking for a large group of people, grilling would be ideal but if it’s just a quick dinner for the family then you might want to think twice before lugging out that heavy grill.

Grilling brings people together and creates backyard memories as well as some great tasting foods. So as you can see there are downsides but all in all grilling is a bonding, fun relaxing way to prepare that family meal. Gather up family and friends and head outside to enjoy the day and the grub!

1/2 C of soy sauce
1/2 C green onions, chopped and divided
3 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/8 tsp hot sauce
1 garlic clove, minced
2 lbs. boneless sirloin steak, 1 inch thick
2 oranges, peeled, sectioned and chopped
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp lemon, chopped
1 tbsp lime, chopped
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cilantro
1 tsp jalapeno pepper, minced
1/2 tsp lemon peel, grated
1/2 tsp lime peel, grated
1/8 tsp salt

How to Make It:

Place the soy sauce, 1/4 C of green onions, the lime juice, brown sugar, hot sauce and garlic into a sealable bag.
Seal the bag and shake to combine.
Add the steak, seal and turn to coat the steak well.
Chill for at least 2 hours or overnight, turning the bag occasionally.
Heat the grill to medium heat.
Remove the steak from the marinade and discard the marinade.
Grill the steak for 5 minutes then turn.
Continue grilling for 5 additional minutes or until the steaks internal temperature reaches 160 degrees for medium done.
Place the remaining ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.
Allow the steak to cool enough to slice across the grain.
Serve the salsa over the slices of steak.

Makes 4 servings

The citrus salsa adds a little zing to this delicious grilled steak leaving you with no need for that heavy steak sauce. The marinade leaves a steak that is moist and full of flavor. To grill the steak to medium rare the meat thermometer should read 145 degrees and for well done it should read 170 degrees.

If you like being outdoors then cooking on the grill will be an enjoyment. Have you ever heard anyone say that grilling food takes away the flavor and juices? That statement couldn’t be more wrong! Grilling is how many professional cooks prepare their meals. It helps to release the natural juices the food holds making what you eat a mouth watering delight.

There are so many different foods that can be cooked on the grill, from that thick pork chop to those healthy vegetables. Let’s take a look at some food options for tasty treats from the grill.

Meat options include steak, beef, pork, veal and fish. Vegetables taste great from the grill. Squash, zucchini, potatoes, broccoli and carrots can all be grilled with ease. Even cucumbers and apples make a tasty addition to meals cooked on the grill.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many options for things you can cook on the grill. Pretty much everything you cook inside can be grilled.
Another benefit of grilling is the change of flavor. Grilling can completely change the flavor depending on which type of grill, charcoal or propane, you use. There are so many options and ways to improve your meal on the grill. But what some people may not know is just how many options there really are.

The Charcoal Grill

This is the most common type of grill. It’s the sliced bread of the grilling world! The old school, always affective method of grilling’ them jaw dropping dishes. It’s quick and is always sure to bring fun and laughter to whatever  your hosting. A few negatives about charcoal is that the actual coal takes a little while to get to the right temperature, it can sometimes get messy and if you’re not a fan of the charcoal taste then a gas grill may be more up your alley.

The Gas Grill

Another wonderful effective method of preparation! The best part about gas grilling is its simplicity. Instead of fiddling around with charcoal just turn a knob, preheat and throw on the food. There are no more cleaning ashes up or buying heavy giant bags of charcoal. Replacing the need for coal with let’s say propane, is going to be a little bit cheaper. It’s cheaper only because charcoal will run out before a propane tank will. With gas you get to keep your money and keep those friends coming back for more tasty treats. If you like that charcoal taste then the gas grill may not be your preferred grilling partner. But if you’re a gas grill lover, turn that knob and you are well on your way to a for sure talked about meal!

Have all of your utensils and marinades ready and waiting beside the grill. The one thing to remember when grilling is that you have to man the grill for the entire time you are cooking. It is not like an oven that you can walk away from and come back in fifteen minutes.

A grill that is working at its optimum temperature will cook the food faster than you think. Closing the lid also increases the heat and decreases cooking time.

So, prepare your area ahead of time. Don’t forget to bring along your favorite drink and maybe even a snack to nibble on, since you will be the happy gourmet griller for the day.

Try to have someone who can run back and forth and help you, and perhaps put things in the oven to keep warm until everyone is ready to eat.

Learning to grill can be a lonely job, but one whose product will be greatly appreciated by everyone when it comes time to eat.

Remember, the more you grill, the better you’ll get at it, so cook out as much as your heart desires this summer.  Learn about your grill, the correct times for the meats and vegetables and fish, with foil, or without (with is very handy for quick clean ups, and you can still get the BBQ’d smoky taste if you prick holed in the foil.

Your network of family and friends will grow once the word starts spreading that you are the king (or queen) of the neighborhood grill.

If you use a charcoal grill or a smoker, know where the temperature is the hottest on the rack, and start your meat out in that area. When it is close to being done, move it to the cooler side to finish cooking more slowly, or even to rest the meat and keep it warm.

Remember that meat will continue cooking once it is left to stand, so keep it warm and it will be just right when it comes time to eat.

While we are speaking about temperature, let your grill get good and hot before putting anything on it. Some people think that you don’t have to preheat a grill, but meat cooks better when it has reached the correct grilling temperature.

You wouldn’t put your roast in a cold oven would you? The same goes for the grill. If you want, use a thermometer to gauge the temperature before grilling your meats. You should have a meat thermometer ready as well to help you gauge how well done your beef is.

It is also handy for chicken, because you sound always cook a chicken with a bone in it to a minimum internal temperature of 160 F.  Anything else is unhealthy and puts you and your family and friends at risk of salmonella.

Chicken takes a long time to cook depending on the parts of the bird you are grilling, and especially if you are cooking it with the bone still in. 

One good way to be sure that your chicken is cooked just right is to pre-bake your chicken in the oven as if you were going to eat it roasted, and then put it on the grill to reduce the cooking time.

Or, you can roast it, and just add BBQ sauce, so that way your whole grill is not being taken up with chicken when others are waiting for burgers and hot dogs. And so you don’t have to worry about how to keep all the chicken warm while the other food cooks.

 
Grilling properly is something that you learn over time. It is like anything else in life. You get better with practice. To learn how to grill a chicken breast or a steak properly, you will have to cook more than one or two a season.

No two grills are the same, so you will have to learn how to deal with the heat of your grill, and its material, which will produce varying results depending on what it is made from, size, type of rack, and so on.

In the summer, most people have barbeque on the brain and there’s no stopping them. So, here are few quick tips to make this summer’s backyard barbecues the best yet.

The first thing to do is to start out with a clean grill. No one wants to put fresh cuts of meat on a grill that is crusted over with pieces of pork or chicken from the last time you used the grill (a year ago-ick!).

Besides the fact that it’s unhealthy, you don’t want that hamburger to taste like a chicken burger. Clean the grill after each use while it is still warm so the charring comes off easily.

 
6 TBSP olive oil

Juice of a fresh lemon

Zest of a fresh lemon, grated

1 TBSP fennel seed, crushed

2 TBSP fennel, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 (2 lbs each) bass

2 fennel bulbs, sliced

1 TBSP brandy, optional

Salt and pepper to taste

How to Make It:

Stir together in a large mixing bowl the oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, fennel seed, fennel and garlic. 

Place the fish in a shallow container that has a lid.

Score the fish four times on both sides.

Pour the lemon mixture over the top of the fish.

Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

When you are ready to grill, remove the fish from the marinade, and discard the marinade.

Place a slice of fennel bulb in each scored area on the fish.

Heat the grill to high.

Grill the fish 12 minutes turning after 7 minutes.

Remove the fish and place on a heatproof dish.

Pour the brandy over the fish.

Light the brandy and allow it burn out.

Serve with fresh lemon slices, and salt and pepper to taste.

This dish not only tastes good, but is fun to cook.  Lighting the brandy removes the alcohol content and gives your dish a flare. 

 
8 TBSP unsalted butter, melted

Juice from 1 whole fresh lemon

2 tsp rosemary

2 tsp thyme

2 tsp marjoram

2 tsp pepper

4 garlic cloves, minced

20 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined

Fresh lemon slices

How to Make It:

Mix together in a large bowl the butter, lemon juice, rosemary, thyme, marjoram, pepper and garlic. 

Pour the mixture into a large zip lock bag.

Place the shrimp in the bag and seal tightly.

Turn the bag over a few times to make sure the shrimp are covered well with the marinade.

Allow the shrimp to marinate at room temperature for 1 hour.

Remove the shrimp and discard the marinade.

Run the shrimp on a wooden skewer.

Heat the grill to medium high.

Cook the shrimp about 6 minutes turning over after 4 minutes.

Serve with a fresh slice of lemon.

Grilling with a skewer can make for faster grilling and tasty meats.  Bamboo skewers are great for grilling seafood, but should be soaked in water for 30 minutes to keep them from burning on the grill.  Always remember to oil your skewers so food won’t stick.