Get ready to wrestle a big hunk o’ meat onto the grill. No wimps allowed this Labor Day.
When you’re fixing to feed a crowd, a 5-pound roast makes more sense than a pile of teeny tidbits, especially if the cooking will be done outdoors.
Although grills are used most often for steaks and hamburgers, they cook a mean leg of lamb, an awesome turkey breast and to-die-for Cornish game hens–with less work.
Heat and smoke do wonderful things for a big turkey roast, turning the skin golden-crisp while leaving the interior juicy. A boneless leg of lamb, grilled and glazed with a honey, wine and ginger sauce, turns a shiny mahogany brown. The slices are crusty around the edges and juicy and pink inside. Cornish hens are real winners.
When deciding which meat to grill, stay away from tough cuts such as eye of round roast that require long, moist cooking to make them tender.
All poultry and many cuts of red meat are prime candidates for cookouts. Pork tenderloins and loin roasts grill up nice and juicy. So do prime rib of beef, rack of lamb, beef filet and, if cooked medium-rare, sirloin beef roasts.
Most large cuts of meat are cooked by the indirect heat method. (Exceptions are large but relatively thin pieces of meat, such as pork tenderloin and butterflied leg of lamb, which cook fine when placed directly over the heat.) Indirect cooking is best for cuts that require a long cooking time. If these cuts were placed directly over the coals, they would burn before they cooked through. To grill by indirect heat on a charcoal grill, a pile of coals is placed on one side of the grill base and allowed to burn until the coals completely ash over. The meat is placed on the grid on the opposite side of the grill, and the lid is closed. For pieces of meat that require longer than 30 minutes to cook, new coals must be added occasionally.
If using a gas grill, light the entire heating element and heat for 15 minutes or according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Then turn off the heat on one side of the grill and place the meat over the unlighted element.
Grilling with indirect heat produces moist meat that is permeated with smoky flavor. If cooked long enough, meat such as chicken and pork will turn almost pink inside and have a tender but resilient texture. That’s real barbecuing, Carolina style.
Direct heat is the cooking style used for hamburgers, steaks, chops and thinner roasts. Direct heat produces a crusty exterior, but the meat cooks through before the outside can become burned.
Wood chips add great flavor to almost any cut of meat. Go easy, though. Use just a scant handful at the beginning of the grilling time, and add a few more chips midway through the process if an especially smoky flavor is desired.
Stay away from mesquite chips or use a very small amount for larger cuts of meat. Mesquite is so strongly flavored that during long, slow cooking the mesquite would give the meat an acrid flavor. Hickory is a fine choice for just about anything you grill.
Wood chips can be soaked in hot water for 15 minutes or so before adding to the coals. Soaking allows the chips to smoke more and burn more slowly. The chips should be added just before the meat is placed on the grill and the lid closed. When the lid is closed, the smoke builds up inside the grill and penetrates the meat.
Wood chips may be used with gas grills too. A chef friend recommends making a 3- to 4-inch “boat” from aluminum foil and placing soaked wood chips in the boat. The boat is placed over the lava rocks or coals. The proximity of the heat causes the chips to smoke.
One last piece of advice: Pay attention to the vent holes on your grill (both underneath and on the lid). Adjusting the vents makes the fire burn hotter or cooler. The fire is hottest with wide-open vents, and coolest with vents that are one-fourth open (don’t close the vents entirely or the fire will go out). For a medium fire, good for most purposes, open the vents halfway.
Marinades add flavor to the cuts of meat in our recipes, but marinating times may be reduced or eliminated if you’re pressed for time. Even without the fancy additions, the blissful marriage of meat and smoke will win you over.
GRILLING FOR A CROWD
Here are grilling instructions for large cuts of meat and poultry.
All cuts should be cooked in a covered grill.
BEEF RIB ROAST
Size: 4 pounds or less
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 18 minutes per pound
BONE-IN LEG OF LAMB
Size: 4 pounds or less
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 20 minutes per pound
BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB
Size: Any weight
Heat source: Direct
Grilling time: 20 minutes
RACK OF LAMB
Size: 2 1/2 pounds
Heat source: Direct
Grilling time: 24 minutes total
PORK LOIN
Size: 4 pounds
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 22 minutes per pound
PORK TENDERLOIN
Size: Any size
Heat source: Direct
Grilling time: 8 to 10 minutes per inch of thickness
WHOLE DUCK
Size: 5 pounds
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 1 hour, 50 minutes
BONE-IN TURKEY BREAST
Size: 5 pounds
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 1 1/2 to 2 hours
WHOLE CHICKEN
Size: 3 1/2 pounds
Heat source: Indirect
Grilling time: 1 1/2 to 2 hours
WHOLE CORNISH HENS
Size: Any size
Heat source: Direct
Grilling time: 50 to 60 minutes
BARBECUED TARRAGON TURKEY BREAST
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Marinating time: 4 hours
Cooking time: 1 1/2 -2 hours
Yield: 6 servings
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon dried tarragon
Salt, freshly ground pepper
1 bone-in turkey breast half, about 2 1/2 pounds.
1/4 cup soaked hickory chips, optional
1. Combine garlic, wine, oil, tarragon, salt and pepper to taste; mix well. Place marinade and turkey breast in plastic bag; seal. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight, turning occasionally.
2. Build charcoal or gas fire in half of the grill. Add hickory chips, if desired, when charcoal is coated with white ash or gas grill is heated. Place turkey breast skin-side up on grid opposite fire.
3. Close lid; cook 1 1/2-2 hours, turning occasionally, or until internal temperature of meat registers 170 degrees and juices run clear. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ……….. 175 Fat …………. 1 g Saturated fat .. 0.3 g
% calories from fat .. 5 Cholesterol .. 105 mg Sodium ……… 65 mg
Carbohydrates …… 0 g Protein …….. 39 g Fiber ………… 0 g
HONEY-GINGER LEG OF LAMB
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Standing time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
1 piece (1/4-inch thick) ginger root, peeled, minced
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons each: olive oil, white wine
1 butterflied half leg of lamb, about 2 1/2 pounds
Salt, freshly ground pepper
1. Combine ginger, honey, oil and wine in lidded jar; shake well. Let stand at room temperature at least 30 minutes to blend flavors.
2. Prepare medium charcoal or gas fire. Season lamb on both sides with salt and pepper. Brush one side with honey glaze. Sprinkle fire with soaked wood chips, if desired. Place lamb on grill, glazed-side down. Brush meat with glaze. Grill about 20 minutes for medium-rare, turning occasionally and basting with glaze.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 160 Fat ………… 6 g Saturated fat .. 2 g
% calories from fat .. 35 Cholesterol .. 80 mg Sodium ……. 60 mg
Carbohydrates ……. 0 g Protein ……. 25 g Fiber ………. 0 g
GARLIC-MINT GRILLED HENS
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Marinating time: 4 hours
Cooking time: 50-60 minutes
Yield: 4-6 servings
1 1/2 cups fresh mint leaves
10 cloves garlic, peeled
1 dried ancho chili, seeded, stemmed, torn into pieces
1/4 cup each: olive oil, orange juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
4 to 6 Cornish hens
1. Place mint leaves in food processor fitted with metal blade; pulse until minced. Drop garlic through feed tube with motor running. Add ancho chili pieces; pulse until minced. Turn off motor; add oil, orange juice, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Process until pureed.
2. Rub Cornish hens inside and out with mixture. Place in large plastic food bag. Seal; marinate 4 hours or overnight.
3. Prepare charcoal or gas grill for direct heat. Place Cornish hens, breast side down, on grill over medium heat. Cover; grill, turning occasionally, until meat reaches internal temperature of 170 degrees, 50-60 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 485 Fat ………… 28 g Saturated fat .. 8 g
% calories from fat .. 53 Cholesterol .. 180 mg Sodium …… 640 mg
Carbohydrates ……. 0 g Protein …….. 55 g Fiber ………. 0 g
