Who doesn’t love an outdoor barbecue? But aside from the traditional backyard barbecue you can also grill indoors using a grill pan on your cooktop or an electric char grill (just make sure your kitchen is well ventilated).
If you plan to grill frequently, you will need tools to help you keep your grilled food moist and evenly cooked. Here are some of the things you may need.
Herb brushes
To avoid melting a normal kitchen basting brush, use a bunch of herbs tied with string to dip in the cooking oil and brush the grill or the barbecue. To reduce the amount of smoke from the grill, especially if you are grilling inside, brush the food and not the grill. Use sturdy herbs like rosemary, thyme, lemon thyme, oregano or marjoram.
Tongs
If you are grilling a substantial amount of food over high heat, use long handled tongs for flipping sausages, steaks, fish and burgers. (Read our tips on cooking fillet mignon.) Avoid leaving tongs on a hot surface as they heat up quickly.
Barbecues
These come in many different varieties. Some are grills and flat plates combined with volcanic rocks, heat beads or coals. Woodchips or smoking chips are great for home smoking in covered barbecues. Barbecues are handy for cooking large fish and covered barbecues are great for roasts. It’ll keep the heat out of the kitchen in the summer.
Grill pans
These are great for indoor use and are sometimes more convenient than outdoor barbecues. Grill pans come in flat plate and fry pan varieties for use on the stove top. Flat plate grills often cover two elements on the stove top so check the size before purchasing one. They are mostly available in cast iron but a few are made of lighter steel with a non stick coating.
Photo from pittsburghhotplate.com