Tis the season for outdoor grilling and fun in the summer sunshine. Good food, friends, and family make memories and smiles, but safety should always be your first concern.
There are a few general grilling tips that will help you to provide a safe and healthy meal for the whole family, and we are here to share the news. Take a moment to read through (and consider) these helpful, healthy tips for safe and delicious outdoor grilling.
Cook more fruits and veggies
Grilling fruits and veggies saves you the risk of any harmful carcinogens that are typically present when grilling meats. The best way to enjoy the pleasures of both meats and veggies is to make kabobs.
You only use half the meat when making kabobs, which significantly lowers the risk of consuming any harmful HCAs (heterocyclic amine) and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) present in the juices and fats of many meats.
Marinate the meats
Marinating your meats in spicy mixtures can decrease the amount of HCAs present in the food. Do not be afraid to spice up your life a bit with cracked peppers and cajun seasonings.
Some spices are even packed full of healthy antioxidants that also work against the formation and survival of HCAs. Rosemary, thyme, sage, and garlic are some of the best additions to explore when creating a new and unique marinade mixture.
Precook meats before tossing them on the grill
Yet another way to effectively battle against the presence of HCAs and PAHs is to pre cook your meats in the microwave before tossing it on the grill. Not only is it safer, precooking meats requires less charcoal on the grill.
Cooking the meat in the microwave for around two minutes on medium power will reduce the presence of harmful substances by up to 90 percent. Toss out the juices created by pre cooking the meat, as they are the primary source of HCAs and PAHs.
Cook meats at a lower temperature
If you take our advice and pre cook your meats in the microwave before tossing it on the grill, then you will not need to keep the grill so hot to adequately cook the food. When meats are cooked at a high temperature, there is more of a chance of charring.
Charring the food adds carcinogens. Also, grilling slowly and at a lower temperature will keep the flavor of the meats strong.
Trimming the fat is healthier for more than the obvious reasons
Not only is it just healthier to cut the fat off the meat for obvious reasons, it helps reduce the health risk when grilling. Fat on meats causes dripping that can flare up the coal flames on the grill and char the meat.
The same concept applies to the skins on fish and chicken. Removing the skins is healthier when grilling.