With the right set up, you can spend maximum time sipping beer and manning the flames, and minimum time running back and forth from the kitchen.

1) Grill clean. Start with a clean grill and end with one.

2) Grill hot. Always preheat your grill until nice and hot! No matter what the recipe. You can turn it down before you add food.

3) Don’t poison anyone. Raw meat should not touch anything that is not going to be heated. (See that photo above? Smart set up.)
•    Use a large rimmed baking sheet lined with foil for the raw meat, then remove the foil so you can put the cooked meat right on the sheet.
•    Bring two tongs. One for raw and one for cooked. Once food is turned over, switch tongs.
•    Start basting once meat is cooked. If you baste raw meat then dip the brush, you are spreading germs.

4) Oil your grill. You oil your pans right, so why not your grill? Bring a small bowl of oil and some folded paper towel to the grill. Just before adding the food, rub the oiled towel lightly over the grates. (This is not meant to turn into a torch, oil lightly and quickly.)

5) Use Tessemae’s Grill Pack! (Sorry, we had to sneak that in SOMEwhere.)

6) Don’t rush it. If (despite your hot and well oiled grill) your meat is sticking, don’t force it! Just wait for the meat to release before you turn it over. Trust us.

7) Let it rest. Don’t slice your meat right off the grill. Depending on the size, let it rest a solid 5-10 minutes

8) Grill clean. While that meat is resting, blast your grill on high and cover it for a few minutes. Then, use your grill brush to scrape off the debris. Periodically remove and clean the other parts of the grill after it’s cool.