Don’t you just love it when the aroma of steaks or burgers cooking on your neighbor’s grill fills the air? It reminds you that it’s time to get your grill out and prepared for your own backyard BBQ. Where is your grill? Is it out on your deck, covered up and protected? Is it in your shed behind the lawn mower, snow shovels, snow blowers and trash cans? Or did you just leave it out there to fend for itself in the weather all winter? Wherever it is, there are some things you’ll need to do and some tools you’ll need to get.
The first thing you’ll need to do is clean the grill. If you are one of those extremely organized BBQers you probably did this before storing the grill away. Good for you! The rest of us hate you and we will be spending our day catching up to you. A good steel brush will help get any leftover, cooked on food particles. For the “Tim the Toolman Taylor” type you can even get a motorized grill brush! And for grease, a dishwashing liquid that breaks down grease and some warm water will work wonders. Next, you should check your gas connection if you use propane. Tighten it up with the appropriate wrench. Left loose, the propane could leak out causing a fire danger. Put your grill back together and you should be all set to go.
Before you start grilling, do you have all the cooking tools you are going to need? Do you have a BBQ spatula, tongs and fork? What about a basting brush to apply BBQ sauce? These are the essentials every griller needs. Another item that comes in handy is a basket for grilling small pieces of food in. Grilled vegetables are delicious, but don’t stay on the grids too well. The basket allows vegetables and the like to be grilled easily. You also might need skewers if you are considering making kabobs. They even help you roast a mean marshmallow.
The list of grilling tools goes on and on. There are special pans for grilling fish. There are spits you attach to your grill to grill a roast or chicken. You might want an apron to wear and mitts to handle the hot pans. And believe it or not there are grill lights if you want to grill in the dark. Yes, if you need it, it’s out there. Now light up the grill and let’s get cooking!
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