Edward Brown
Executive Chef, The SeaGrill

Grill Tips

Great outdoor grilling means managing the grill properly and that takes no talent at all, just a little practice.

Choose your fuel carefully. I prefer hardwood charcoal to briquettes--the flavor the hardwood coals impart is truer.

Pile the charcoal in your grill to make a layer that's about 6 inches thick over the entire surface. If you are using liquid starter, you should douse the charcoal thoroughly with it.

Next, mound all the charcoal in the center of the fire bed and douse it again. This charcoal mountain ensures even starting. Now ignite the charcoal carefully from the bottom of the pile.

Allow the charcoal to burn until you've got glowing, ash-covered embers. Then, using a large barbecue spatula, redistribute the embers evenly across the firebed.

Put the grate on the grill as close to the fire as possible and let it get very hot. When you're ready to cook--and only then--adjust the grill to the proper height. Wipe the grill with an oiled cloth and you're ready to go.

Remember--never grill over flames; embers are hotter than flames. To avoid flare-ups, make sure that any marinated seafood has been well drained before grilling.

Mollusks (clams, mussels, and oysters) grill well when wrapped in foil and steamed in the coals.

Check seafood doneness every 5 minutes or so.

Grilling fruits and vegetables: almost any fruit or vegetable can be grilled with delicious results. I love the idea of grilling several components of a meal at once. Your grill gets a good workout and you produce a complete meal with a minimum effort.