Grill TipsGrills, Barbecues & Food

Its summer and we all love to grill. Lots of us grill in the winter as well, thats how much we love it. Now we hear cancer researchers are snooping around our love affair with grilling foods. If you are like most of us, when you hear the word cancer your ears perk up. So are grilling those beloved hamburgers and hotdogs a threat to your health?

From what I understand, cancer researchers have found that grilling red meat, poultry, and fish causes the formation of carcinogenic compounds called HCAs (heterocyclic amine). And, when fat from our grilling cuisine drips onto hot coals, another group of cancer-causing substances is formed. These are PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon) which are deposited onto the food through the smoke and flames.

The good news is, that researchers actually strongly disagree whether or not eating grilled foods actually pose a significant health risk. HCAs have been linked to increased risk of cancers of the breast, colon, stomach, and prostrate, however, most of the evidence is based only on animal studies not humans.

So what should we do when the experts dont agree? Maybe it makes the most sense to take some extra precautions when grilling rather than to give up one of the greatest gifts of summer. There are a few things we can do to minimize our exposure to carcinogens. The most effective way would be to marinate foods before grilling. Even brief marinating helps. In some studies, marinades have been found to reduce the amount of HCAs formed by as much as 92 to 99 percent. Marinades may act as a barrier keeping flames from directly touching the meat. The ingredients within the marinade may also offer protection. Lots of marinades contain vitamin C, vitamin E and naturally-occurring compounds in herbs and spices that have cancer-fighting properties.

Some other ways to limit the formation of carcinogens would be to try grilling foods that pose less risk. Try foods like vegetables, fruits, veggie burgers, tofu, quesadillas and even pizza. You could also precook meat, poultry, and fish in an oven or microwave and then grill just for flavor. Chopping foods up into small pieces or making kebabs speeds up the cooking process so that the food spends less time on the grill. Also cooking food at a lower temperature by raising the grill rack a few inches might be helpful. New research suggests that flipping foods once per minute speeds up the cooking process, keeps meat from burning, and still effectively kills bacteria. If you punch holes in foil to either wrap food or cover the grill food will drain but will inhibit contact with the flame. Be sure to trim fat, which can drip into flames and cause flare-ups. Before eating, remove all charred or burnt pieces.

So while the researchers are busy researching, lets enjoy our summer and grill using precautions. It just wouldnt be right to have to give up grilling. Here are some formulas to make a quick marinade adding flavors of your choice. Makes 4 servings.

1 tsp to 1 Tbsp oil
liquid, like vinegar or juice
1 tsp dried herbs or 1 Tbsp fresh chopped
1-2 cloves crushed garlic

Asian: Sesame oil, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic
Italian: olive oil, red wine vinegar, ginger, garlic
Southwest: oil, lime and orange juice, chile powder, garlic

Remember you want vitamin C, vitamin E and the naturally-occurring compounds in herbs and spices that have those cancer-fighting properties. Also keep in mind that enzymes are present naturally in raw foods that we eat. When we cook food we often destroy these enzymes. Enzymes break down food into basic components so that the body can absorb nutrients necessary for building cells, tissues, and organs. Thats why it is so important to provide the body with vital enzymes.

Happy Grilling!

About the Author

Sources: American Institute for Cancer Research, Cell Tech International

Melinda Kempenich is the mother of three children and the wife of a State Representative from the great State of North Dakota. Her summers are often filled with many outdoor activities and great grilling affairs. If you would like to receive free The Importance of Enzymes Booklet please check out her website: Health So Serene at http://www.healthsoserene.info to request a copy, or e-mail her at mybabies58623@yahoo.com, shed love to hear from you! You are also welcome to send your request to her at: Melinda Kempenich, 9005 151ST Ave SW, Bowman, ND 58623

Written By: Melinda Kempenich

Great, easy ideas for healthy grilling options!
Summer is a great time to break out the barbecue grill and lighten up your diet! Grilling season doesn’t have to only mean hamburgers, bratwurst, and steaks. There are many great choices for the grill that will keep you in great shape for all those fun summer activities. Rather than fatty hunks of meat or sausages, try grilling:

– Chicken breast

– Turkey breast or tenderloin

– Ground turkey, chicken or lean hamburger (add great seasonings)

– Veggie/grain/soy burgers

– Vegetables

– Turkey hot dogs or sausages/brats

– Light smoked sausage or turkey polska kielbasa

– Fish (salmon, swordfish, shrimp, catfish, trout, red snapper, tuna, etc)

– Or, if you choose beef, select a high-quality but small portion

Marinades are easy to make and allow you to use some creativity in your cooking! If you’re making your own marinade, plan on about a half cup per pound of meat. There are usually 3-4 components to a marinade. You’ll definitely need an acid such as citrus juices, vinegars, or wine. This acid will serve to break down the protein tissues in the meat, which serves to tenderize. For flavor, you also need to include some oil (canola, olive, sesame, or other) and seasonings (salt and pepper, dried or fresh herbs, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, ketchup, mustards, garlic, gingerroot, onion, chili peppers, etc). You also might want to add a sugary ingredient like honey, jam, or molasses to add a touch of sweetness and caramelization to your grilled food. About a quarter to a third of the marinade should be the acid, a few tablespoons should be oil, about a tablespoon of your sugar ingredient, and seasonings can really be however much you’d like.

Make sure to always marinate in the refrigerator. Large ziploc bags are great for marinating. Otherwise, use a shallow glass or plastic container. Avoid metal which will react with the acid in the marinade. The longer you marinate, it will also cut down a little bit on cooking times. Depending on what you’re marinating, the times will vary. Here are some general rules to follow:

– Large cuts of meat (over 4 pounds) – 8 hours to overnight

– Smaller cuts of meat – 1/2 to 3 hours

– Whole fish – 3 hours to overnight

– Fillets of fish (depending on size) – 1 hour to overnight

– Fruits and vegetables – 1 to 3 hours

Don’t use leftover marinade for basting or as a sauce, unless you first boil it for 5 minutes to kill any bacteria. To prevent food from sticking to the grill, lightly coat your grilling surface with a small amount of cooking oil or spray. Some companies now make nonstick sprays specifically for the grill.

To ensure proper doneness, it helps to keep a meat thermometer handy at the grill. Here are temperature guidelines for different types of meat.

1. Poultry: 165-170 degrees F

2. Fish: 130-135 degrees F (fish will begin to flake and turn opaque)

3. Beef, lamb, pork:

Rare – 140 degrees F, red center. Fine for steaks and lamb. Pork should not be eaten rare.

Medium rare – 145-150 degrees F. Red center. Medium rare is fine for all beef.

Medium – 155-160 degrees F. Pink center. Medium is good for pork, beef and lamb. Hamburgers should be cooked to 160 degrees.

Medium well – 165 degrees F. Light gray warm center. Pork will be all white at the center.

Well done – 170-180 degrees F. Hot gray center; no pink.

With these ideas and guidelines, you will easily be able to put together dozens of delicious and healthy grilled meals this summer – or whenever you feel like using your grill. Whether you’re craving Italian, Tex-Mex, Asian, or plain old American – you can create a wonderful taste on your grill.

About the Author

Erin Rogers, a work-at-home mom of two, is the founder of Health-E-Meals.com, providing practical healthy living resources for busy people. She’s also the author of the Healthy Express Cookbook: 101 Fresh, Light & Quick Dinners (http://www.health-e-meals.com/ebook.html). Visit her website (http://www.health-e-meals.com/DOTD.html) to sign up for her FREE electronic newsletter, ‘Dinners on the Double’ – offering a quick and healthy, no-recipe dinner idea and more each week. Erin can be reached via email at erin@health-e-meals.com.

Written By: Erin Rogers

‘I like grils’
‘Don’t you mean girls?’
‘And just what’s wrong with us grils?’

Well, it doesn’t really matter much what you call it, it’s a simple device for applying heat to food. I’m going to call it a grill, because it takes less time to type.

While grills come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, there are really only two types.

One is a rack which is exposed to fierce heat, and you can include the barbecue in this, and the other is basically two metal plates which are in contact with the food during the cooking time.

There has been a great upsurge in sales recently of the second type, thanks to some very acute marketing, much of it fronted by a former professional boxer. The main sales pitch has been that using a particular type of grill gets rid of the fat from food.

Let’s put that to bed right now. All grills cause the fat to run out of whatever it is you’re cooking. Just ask anyone who has had to deal with a flare up in a barbecue, or clean the tray of a conventional grill.

You might also like to consider that the boxer concerned was a heavyweight!

The point is that fat runs out of fatty foods. It does that under the grill, or in a frying pan and even in the oven. The idea that it becomes more healthy to eat just because you use a particular type of grill is a nonsense.

Which type you use depends on the result that you want. The results you get from a barbecue when cooking steak, for example, will be different from those achieved under an open grill, and different again to those produced by the metal plate type.

In other words, feel free to use which ever method you like, but don’t get caught up in the marketing ploy that one is more healthy than the other.

You need heat

The single biggest mistake made by inexperienced cooks is that they do not get the grill hot enough.

It doesn’t much matter what type of food you are cooking, under the grill it needs to be cooked quickly or it will dry out. This applies equally well to delicate foods such as fish as it does to sausages and bacon.

So the first thing to do is to get the grill has hot as possible. Yes, that’s right, up to the maximum.

Don’t be afraid of this. You can always adjust your cooking temperature downwards if you feel it is necessary, either by using the controls on your cooking device, or (and this is a much better way) moving the food further away from the heat source.

You would want to do this, for example, if you were cooking a chicken breast and you wanted to ensure that it cooked all the way through. You might start off close to the heat in order to inject some color and flavor; then move the breast further away to maintain its temperature, when it will virtually cook itself.

Personally I would rarely cook chicken in this way. My preference would be to start the process in a dry pan on top of the stove, and then finish it off in a medium oven.

I treat most foods that would normally be grilled like this, apart from steak which I only ever cook over (or under) a very fierce heat.

Don’t be afraid of this. Buy your steaks at least 1 inch thick and cook them rapidly and evenly, without disturbing them (apart from turning them once) until they are done to your liking.

This applies just as much to steaks of fish as it does to prime beef. The only difference is that you need to wipe some oil over the fish (or marinade it) before exposing it to the inferno you have prepared for it, or it may burn before it’s cooked.

You don’t need to do that with red meat, although of course you can if you want to.

And that’s pretty much all I have to say on the subject of grilling. I think you will find that’s all that needs to be said. It’s a simple way to cook, it’s very effective, but as we have seen it has its limitations.

The best advice I can give you is, don’t get caught up in all the hype and don’t spend your money unnecessarily. The grill on your cooker is probably all you will ever need, apart from your barbecue if you have one.

A note on the Barbie

The type of barbecue you use is so much a question of personal choice, that I am reluctant to say too much about it.

The earliest form was simply a metal plate suspended over an open fire. In fact, you will find plenty of these in backyards all over Australia. We even have them in some of our rest areas on the highways.

But for all practical purposes, by far the best in my view is one that is fuelled by charcoal, and the king of these is probably the kettle type as made by Weber .

The point is that it can be used as a conventional grill, or as a field oven and it produces terrific results with a variety of foods thanks to its versatility. I have even baked cakes in mine!

Whatever you do decide on – and there are chrome monsters costing squillions which do everything bar the washing up – make sure you buy one with a hood.

Meat roasted in a barbecue has a flavor all its own and it’s so simple to do that it would be a shame for you to miss out on such a treat.

You can always improvise, of course. I have a little pot-bellied, cast-iron grill that I picked up for next to nothing in a garage sale, and I have successfully roasted meat on it using the lid off a wok as a cover.

Do something like that and you really feel as if you’re getting into the pioneering spirit!

About the author:

Michael Sheridan is an acknowledged authority and published writer on cooking matters. His website at http://www.thecoolcook.comcontains a wealth of information, hints, tips and recipes for busy home cooks.

Written By: Michael Sheridan

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