Summer is finally here for owners in Minneapolis Lakes area homes and downtown Minneapolis condos. For the few months that provide respectable grilling conditions outdoors below is a handy info graphic to review prior to getting into the swing of things.
Here's a helpful list of the correct equipment you will need to grill outside:
- A gas or charcoal grill. You can use both, and each one has its advantages. Gas is easy to light, control, and clean. Charcoal is a lot more work, but it gives food a smokiness that gas can never imitate. If you use charcoal, you also need a starter: don't even think about lighter fluid! And of course, whatever grill you use, the grates should be reasonably clean and alway oil before use.
- A pair of tongs. Extra-long grilling tongs can be hard to use - I feel like the food is too far away from me. So I use regular kitchen tongs for picking up, turning, and moving just about everything. Exceptions are quesadillas and whole fish, which are best turned very gently with a wide spatula.
- Brushes. I use good-quality paintbrushes from the hardware store and replace them often, since after a while it's hard to get them clean. Pastry brushes are fine but pricey.
- A work space. Don't underestimate the importance of having enough room to work. Grilling is much more relaxing when you're not trying to hold a whole collection of plates and bowls as you do it. If your grill doesn't have enough workspace (and they almost never do) set up a table right next to your grill.
- The right recipes -don't take them as instruction manuals that need to be followed down to every last detail. Feel free to combine the sauce from one recipe with the fish from another, or change a lemon butter to a garlic butter to fit with the menu you want. Grilling is not an exact science: fires, tastes and cooks are always different. Trust your own eyes and hands over what’s written on the page – only you can see, feel, taste, and smell what’s happening on your grill.
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