The Well-Equipped Guide to Grilling
Grilling is summery and fun and carefree, right? Right.
But that's only if you know what you're doing.
For new and/or trepidatious grillers, there's doubt involved. Doubt about the kind of grill to use. Doubt about the kind of charcoal. Doubt about which tools are necessary, and which are just gimmicks. And after all that, then you have to settle on the actual food you want to grill.
If any of this stressed you out, relax. This guide is for you. Read on and you'll find the right grill to buy...how to turn that grill into a smoker (and oven!)...and even how to grill cherry tomatoes without watching them fall into the fiery depths.
So grillers, start defrosting your steaks now—you'll be outside cooking in no time.
Photos courtesy of Julia Turshen and Elise Kornack1/8Gas Versus Charcoal: The Definitive Debate
Let's get the big question out of the way first. Propane or charcoal? is a question that has divided families, destroyed friendships, and defined reputations for decades. But we found a pair of good friends and grillers-at-odds to let us listen in while they calmly, respectfully discussed the merits of their backyard cooking rig of choice. Sure, one loves gas, and the other prefers charcoal. But at the end of the day, their shared love of grilling trumps all.
Photo by Salvador Burciaga / EyeEm. Courtesy of Getty Images.2/8Buy the Best Grill
Once you've decided whether you're Team Gas or Team Charcoal, it's time to make a purchase. To help, we called on a few outdoor cooking experts: Steven Raichlen, most recently the author of Brisket Chronicles, and Paula Disbrowe, author of Any Night Grilling and Thank You For Smoking. Please don't hate us when we tell you their advice is, uh, fire.
Photo by Travis Rainey, Styling by Joseph De Leo3/8Take Your Grill to Go!
When it comes to portable grills that you can haul to the beach, take for a picnic, or bring to your vacation rental, Weber has the market cornered. That became abundantly clear when we loaded six grills into the back of an Uber and brought them from Lower Manhattan to a Brooklyn rooftop (as good a portability test as there ever was), and examined how they stood up to the demands of a cookout.
Photo by Joseph De Leo4/8Find Your Fuel
So you've decided you're into charcoal? Cool. Now you just have pick which kind of charcoal. Do you want a charcoal that gives you a quick, hot sear, or a lower, slower cook? Do you want your charcoal to leave your food pure, or infuse it with a smoky depth? These are not necessarily simple questions to answer—so we went ahead and answered them for you.
Photo by Joseph De Leo5/8Get the Tools You Truly Need
Grilling can be a gear-heavy endeavor. But should it be? Some tools are necessary, while others are silly, pointless, or redundant. We waded through the sea of grilling gear and found the items that actually make the job easier.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Simon Andrews6/8Hack Your Cooling Rack into a Grill Basket
There's nothing more disheartening than watching smaller grillables—asparagus, green beans, snap peas, even shrimp—slip one-by-one through the grates and into the fire below. Luckily, Epicurious editor Anna Stockwell has a fix for that. And all you need is an old stainless steel cooling rack to pull it off.
Photo by Joseph De Leo7/8Grill It With a Skillet!
A grill isn't always just a grill—it can be a stovetop, and it can be an oven. A cast iron skillet helps you get there. Use it correctly and you can sear fish, make vegetable sides, and even bake your dessert on the grill. And that means you can turn on your actual stovetop and oven much less this summer—and maybe not at all.
Read more about how to use your cast-iron skillet on the grill.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Kate Buckens8/8Brush It Off
A grill brush (or scraper) isn't the sexiest grilling tool, but without one you'll have a dirty grill—and all that charred-on debris is packed with potential carcinogens that make food unhealthy and cause it to taste like a fireplace. So which brush is best? We had a grilling expert test a variety of them to find out.
