These 13 Hacks Will Significantly Improve Your BBQ Game

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    by
    Nick Wray
    by Nick Wray

    BuzzFeed Motion Pictures Staff

    ,
    Hannah Mars
    by Hannah Mars

    BuzzFeed Contributor

    1. Take your meat out of the fridge for about 15 minutes before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature.

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    This way it will cook more evenly, and the outside is less likely to burn before the middle is cooked to your liking.

    2. Use half an onion to clean your BBQ before cooking.

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    Heat up your grill so it's nice and hot, then scrub it with half an onion to remove any residual grease and grime. You can skewer the onion with a fork so that your hands aren't too close to the heat as you do this.

    3. Check how much gas your BBQ has left by pouring a cup of hot water gently down the side of the tank.

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    Feel the side of the tank - the point at which it is noticeably cooler is where the gas is full to.

    4. Use your burger buns to make a note of how people like their meat cooked.

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    Using your sauce of choice, write "WD", "M", or "R" according to whether your guests would like their meat cooked well done, medium, or rare.

    5. Attach a bottle opener to the handle of your esky so that you never have to worry about forgetting to bring one.

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    6. Marinate your meat in apple juice before cooking.

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    As well as adding extra flavour, the acid in the juice tenderises the meat.

    7. Don't push down on your meat whilst it's cooking.

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    Don't continually flip and turn your meat, as this prevents a nice caramelised crust from forming. Also, don't press down on it with your spatula or tongs, as this causes the juices to run out, leaving you with dry meat.

    8. Use the palm of your hand to tell how cooked your meat is.

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    Feeling the softness, or firmess, of the ball of your palm in each of the following positions indicates how cooked your meat is.

    For rare steaks: Make a circle with your index finger and thumb.

    For medium-rare steaks: Make a circle with your middle finger and thumb.

    For medium steaks: Make a circle with your ring finger and thumb.

    For well done steaks: Make a circle with your little finger and thumb.

    Lightly poke your meat when you think it's ready to see if it matches your hand.

    9. Cover your meat with foil and rest it for about 10 minutes after cooking so that it stays juicy.

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    10. Wrap veggies up in foil, for faster cooking, flavour, and burn prevention.

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    When cooking veggies on the BBQ, wrapping them in foil seals in heat, allowing them to cook faster, as well as better flavour, and preventing delicate produce from catching on the grill and burning.

    11. Soak your skewers in water for 10 minutes before BBQ-ing so that they won't burn too badly.

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    12. Use two skewers so that your food is less likely to slip off on the grill.

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    13. Use a muffin tin to organise your condiments.

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    This makes it easier to carry everything to the table.