It’s that time of year. The time of year when we take our RVs out for a long weekend (or longer) and enjoy being away from the daily grind. For a lot of us, that also means cooking outdoors with our trusty grill. Everyone knows that a steak tastes better when it’s been cooked outdoors and on a fiery grill. Even chicken tastes better when prepared and cooked over a hot grill. Whether it’s hamburgers, steak or chicken, it’s always a great time to fire up the grill. Here are a few tips to make sure your next foray into grilling is a success.

Hamburgers

Hamburgers are always a crowd-pleaser. If you’re entertaining a couple of people and need to whip something up for dinner, you can’t go wrong with a burger.

  • Choose the best meat. Stay away from lean hamburger meat. It may sound healthy, but the flavor suffers. A good burger needs some fat on it.
  • Cook them using high heat. Cooking it at high temperatures ensures that it is cooked how you want it and retains the flavor of the meat.
  • Resist the temptation to squeeze. Squeezing the patty while it’s on the grill means 2 things. First, you’re creating a fire hazard. That grease is flammable and could easily flare up. Second, you’re getting rid of all the flavor!
  • Pay attention to the meat! By keeping an eye on the burgers, you’ll keep it from overcooking and being forced to eat a burned, crispy meat patty.

Steaks

There are few things that taste as good as a well-cooked and well-prepared steak. There’s a reason why we make it an event when we go to a steakhouse. If you’re like me, you can even remember just how great the best steak you’ve ever had was and where you got it.

  • Pick a good piece of meat for steak. Top loin, filet, or T-bone are all great choices to throw on the grill. Don’t be cheap when it comes to good meat. You get what you pay for.
  • An hour before grilling, marinade your steak. Salt and pepper, seasonings, oil, take your pick, but don’t overdo it. You don’t want to overpower the taste of the meat.
  • For a medium-rare steak, cook on medium-high heat for about 4 minutes per side. If it’s thicker than 1.5″, up it to 5-6 minutes per side. Flip it over only once or you risk losing the juice of the steak.
  • Once it’s close to being cooked how you like it, move your steak to a cooler part of the cooking area to fine tune it to your liking.

Chicken

There’s just something about a well-cooked piece of chicken. Juicy, tender and flavorful. There’s a reason why chicken wings are so popular.

  • Start with a coat of non-stick spray, otherwise your chicken will fall apart and stick to the grate.
  • Medium-high heat is a good temperature. If it’s too high, you run the risk of burning the skin and barely cooking the inside.
  • Don’t flip! Letting your chicken cook on the same side for a few minutes helps to cook it all the way through. If you keep flipping it over, you never really get a good, even cook.
  • Check the temperature. Carry a meat thermometer in your RV’s kitchen so you can make double sure that you cook it to 165 – 170 degrees. Once it reaches that temperature, it’s safe!
  • Slather it with sauce. If you’re like me, you like to cover it with barbeque sauce. Wait until they are almost done to cover your bird with sauce. If you leave it on too long, you’ll get a bitter taste and most of it will drip off and potentially cause a flare-up.
  • Clean your grate afterwards.

What are some of your RV grilling tips for hamburgers, steaks and chicken?