The Big Mistake That's Ruining Your Food On The Grill

According to Christie Vanover, owner and pitmaster of Girls Can Grill, as well as the grand champion of Season 4 of Food Network's "BBQ Brawl," the top grilling no-no that many folks commit is messing with the lid on their grill when checking on the food inside. The thing to keep in mind, she notes, is the difference between direct and indirect heat. With the former, "the fire is directly under your food and the cooking is primarily happening from the bottom," Vanover explains. Think of grilling burgers — the best temperature on your grill for that is medium to medium-high — where the flame comes close to kissing the meat. With direct heat, "it's actually okay to cook with the grill lid open," she says.

On the other hand, indirect heat, which is when "your grill acts more like an oven and you're relying on the overall heat inside the grill to cook your food," needs containment. Indirect heat cooks at a lower temperature, away from the source of the heat, so opening the lid will allow that precious warmth to escape. If you know how to grill lobster tail, for instance, you may already know that sometimes resting the lobster on its shell on the opposite side of the grill from the flames is the best way to keep the meat tender and juicy. In situations like that, keep the grill-opening to a minimum

Understanding what grilled foods benefit from direct versus indirect heat will save you a lot of frustration when it comes to cooking, since you will understand whether to keep the grill lid closed as opposed to letting air circulate over the food. Vanover specifically calls out kebabs, those delicious skewers of chunked meat, veg, and fruit, as a prime candidate for direct heat — meaning you can keep the grill lid open. In a similar way, expert tips for grilling veggies like potatoes, peppers, eggplant, and corn advise that you cook on direct heat for those luscious deep grill marks while also getting things nice and tender.

On the other hand, large cuts of meat like whole poultry, leg of lamb, and racks of ribs all benefit from indirect heat and the oven-like effect that it causes. Indirect heat encourages the inside of the meat to cook through (important with a big, fleshy protein), as opposed to cooking from the outside with direct heat, in which case the high temps may not penetrate to the innermost meat without overcooking the outside. Similarly, any food covered in glazes or marinades will do better with indirect heat, so that the coating doesn't char and impart a bitter flavor to your meal.