Bring the whole family together and fire up the grill – it’s National Grilling Month! Summer is now in full swing and there’s nothing better than outdoor cooking. Celebrate and entertain with the best kinds of summer food. We’ve got some great ideas for impressing your guests along with advice from our Marple Friends & Neighbors Experts and Sponsors.
Let’s talk grills. Ray Magness, manager of Scott’s Fireplace Products, is an Expert on how to make grilling literally push-button easy. “Compared
to charcoal grills and wood fire pits, gas grills are not messy, and can start with the push of a button,” Ray said.
Scott’s Fireplace Products, conveniently located at 3137 West Chester Pike, has been a staple in the community for nearly 15 years. They exclusively carry Broilmaster grills and offer models with multi-level cooking grids, separate burner controls, stainless steel griddles and Smoker Shutter – which doubles the grill’s versatility by allowing backyard chefs to slow roast and smoke game, vegetables, poultry and other large cuts. If you’re in the market for a new grill, Scott’s is offering a 15% discount on all of their grills this month.
A variety of foods can easily be prepared on a gas grill because temperatures can be controlled and you can set your grill to have a hot side and a cooler side by simply turning different knobs. How about some grilled veggies? In mid-late summer, all sorts of vegetables are coming into season, and it’s too hot to turn on the oven. Peppers, summer squash, onions, mushrooms and corn are great vegetables to grill.
Instead of burgers and hot dogs this summer, why not literally raise the “steaks” and grill some filets? When it comes to quality cuts of meat, your local butcher is the place to start. Popular picks for tender, juicy steaks are ribeye, New York strip steak and filet mignon. One of Ray’s tips for cooking a perfect steak is reverse searing. “It’s a technique where steak is slowly cooked at a low temperature until it reaches its desired internal temperature, then finished with a high-heat sear for a beautiful crust,” he said. “I’ll never cook a steak another way.” Ray explained that this method, in contrast to traditional searing where meat is first seared and then cooked, helps ensure even doneness and a juicy, tender result. Serve your steak with the
grilled vegetables!
If you’re looking for a lighter alternative, grill some fish like tuna and salmon. Chris Posse, Head Chef over at Casey’s Public House, gave us some advice on serving up tender, flaky fish. “I like to marinate tuna filets in a little bit of olive oil and vinegar,” said Chris. “Then I’ll heat up the grill to 500° and cook them for three to four minutes on each side and serve them medium-rare.” In the summer, Chris likes to slice the filets and serve them on top of a healthy green salad.
Chris explained that salmon is a little tricky because it’s much more fragile than tuna. Make sure you oil up your grill first so your filets don’t stick. He explained that he also cooks salmon on a 500° grill, but for one minute longer on each side. Chris said that he loves to serve salmon in the summer with seasonal fruit salsas such as watermelon salsa and pineapple salsa.
Sounds delicious!
Your next backyard bash can be fun and healthy, leaving room for the occasional guilty S’more. This month, fire up the grill, enjoy some delicious food, great company and get into the true American spirit!