Consider the indirect method for foods that require longer than 20 minutes to cook, such as whole chickens, boneless turkey roasts, and pork ribs. If you’re using charcoal, spread the briquettes around the edges of the grill and place the protein in the center with a drip tray underneath.

Prepare Your Food

Always use one set of tongs for raw food and another for cooked food. Mark the tongs to avoid cross-contamination (or, like me, use a blue-handled set for raw food and a red-handled one for cooked).

Always discard used marinade once meat is placed on the grill. It’s not safe to ingest.

Lightly oil the food or the grill before cooking. You can use cooking spray or olive oil and a brush to do this.

If you want to get really fancy, use hickory, alder, or mesquite wood chips to add extra flavor to your cooking. Soak the chips in water for one hour, then add them directly to the charcoal or place them in a smoker box on the grate in your gas grill. Adding chips to your grill is less expensive (and more likely to be okay with your landlord) than building a wood fire.

A meat thermometer is a great way to check whether your food is done without cutting into it. Remove the meat when it’s about 5 degrees below the desired serving temperature (approximately 5 minutes before it’s done), and then cover it tightly with foil and allow it to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. The meat will continue to cook during this time, so it will be perfect when you’re ready to serve it.

Once the food is cooked, platter it up, set it out, and let the hungry masses eat. Oh, and don’t forget to turn your grill off (or put out the fire) when you finish cooking. Once you’ve had two or three glasses of sangria, it can be easy to forget, so do it before you get tipsy.