The easiest way to grill vegetables on the grill is in a foil packet, because you don’t have to worry about anything burning or falling through the grill. The other advantage of grilling your vegetables this way is that you can flavour them as desired.

Here are simple directions for you:

• Cut double thickness 24-inch length of heavy duty foil and fold in half crosswise
• Unfold foil, mound your vegetables (see vegetable guide below) on one side, close to fold. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of melted butter or extra virgin olive oil. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs and about 1/4 teaspoon of salt and pepper. Fold foil over; fold in sides and seal to form packet. You can prepare this ahead and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
• Place your vegetable packet over medium-high heat, close lid and cook, turning once until vegetables are tender.
• To serve, shake gently to distribute seasonings.Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice if desired.

Vegetable and Time Guide:

1. Asparagus - 1 lb. – Cook time – 10 minutes

2. Potatoes (new,mini,halved) – 2 lbs. – Cook time – 18 minutes

3. 3 cups of corn, peas or other frozen vegetables – Cook time – 6-8 minutes

4. 12 oz. of green beans,trimmed and 1 cup of fresh sliced mushrooms – Cook time – 12 minutes

5. 4 cups of carrots and 1 small onion,sliced – Cook time – 15 minutes

6. 4 cups of broccoli florets and half red sweet pepper, chopped – Cook time – 9 minutes

Hope you will enjoy preparing your vegetables this way – your comments and suggestions are as always very much appreciated!

Chicken drumsticks are an inexpensive and are always favourite – especially with kids. Try this recipe – chicken drumsticks smothered in homemade barbecue sauce.

Old Fashioned Barbecued Chicken Drumsticks:

1 cup of tomato sauce

1/3 cup of tomato paste

1/4 cup of packed brown sugar

1/4 cup of cider vinegar

1/4 cup of Dijon mustard

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoons of molasses

1 tablespoon of Cajun seasoning or chili powder

1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce

8 chicken drumsticks, skinned

In saucepan, bring tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, vinegar,mustard,onion,garlic, molasses, Cajun seasoning and Worcestershire sauce to boil, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium-low, simmer for 10 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Pour into blender; puree until smooth.

Place chicken on greased grill over medium heat. Close lid and grill, turning once, until juices run clear when chicken is pierced – about 30 minutes. Add to the bowl of barbecue sauce, toss to coat. Return chicken to grill; grill until slightly crusty but still saucy – about 5 minutes.

Serve with reserved sauce.

Hope you enjoy this Old-fashioned Barbecued Chicken recipe – your comments on how it turned out for you along with any suggestions or experiences are always welcomed!

Grilling Chicken

Chicken meat is definitely one of the favourites and it can be done number of ways on the grill. If your barbecue has a rotiserie, it is possibly the easiest way to prepare the meat – but there are some great recipes for grilling chicken parts, such as breasts.

You can grill chicken with or without the skin, but removing it not only cuts the fat to one-fifth of the original, it also reduces flare-ups when fat drips into the fire. When barbecuing chicken with skin on, you will need to turn it more often to prevent scorching.

Grill over medium high heat as follows: bone-in chicken breasts and leg quarters for 45 minutes, bone-in thighs for 20 minutes, boneless breasts for 10-12 minutes and boneless thighs for 12-15 minutes.

Chicken is cooked when the white meat is no longer pink inside and juices run clear when the thickest part of the dark meat is pierced.

Citrus Sesame Chicken

Citrus Sesame Chicken:

1 each orange, lemon and lime

2 tablespoons of soy sauce

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon of hot pepper sauce

6 chicken breasts, skinned

1 tablespoon of sesame seeds

1 tablespoon of sesame oil

1 tablespoon of liquid honey

Finely grate rinds of orange, lemon and lime into large bowl. Squeeze our juices and add to bowl. Stir in soy sauce,vegetable oil and hot pepper sauce. Add chicken and turn to coat. Let stand for 20 minutes. If you are making the marinade ahead of time, you can refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

Reserving marinade, place chicken, bone side down  on greased grill over medium heat, brush generously with marinade.

Meanwhile, combine sesame seeds, sesame oil and honey. Brush over both sides of chicken, Grill until no longer pink inside – about 10 minutes.

Chicken and Mango Kabobs

Grilled Chicken and Mango Kabobs:

1 teaspoon of grated line rind

1/4 cup of lime juice

1 tablespoons of vegetable oil

3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 teaspoons of chili powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

3 boneless chicken breasts (about 1 lb.)

2 teaspoons of liquid honey

2 mangos

1 sweet pepper

1 small red onion, cut in 1-inch chunks

In small bowl, whisk together lime rind and juice, oil. garlic, chili powder, sale and cayenne pepper.

Cut chicken into 1-inch cubes, place in separate bowl. Pour half of the marinade over top and toss to coat; let stand for 20 minutes. Stir honey into remaining marinade; set aside.

Meanwhile, cut off mango flesh from each side of the pit. Cut grid pattern of 3/4 inch squares in flesh of each side down to (but not through) skin. Gently push skin to turn inside out; cut off flesh. Chop any flesh left on pit.

Core, seed and cut red pepper into 3/4 inch pieces. Onto each of 4 or 9 short skewers, alternately thread mango,red onion and red pepper pieces; brush with the reserved honey marinade.

Place kabobs on greased grill over medium-high heat; close lid and grill, turning and basting chicken with remaining honey marinade, until fruit is softened and chicken is no longer pink inside, about 8 minutes.

Hope you enjoy these recipes – let me know how they turned out for you – your input is always welcomed!

Summer means barbecuing. Although we can grill just about anything, the favourites are still the basics: steaks being one of them. Here is a guide to picking your steaks, cooking guide and even a few great recipes. Enjoy!

There are two categories of steak cuts suitable for grilling: tender grilling steaks and less tender marinating steaks.

• Grilling steaks and the smaller grilling medallions are ready to cook right away, although you may want to marinate or coat them with a rub for flavour.
• Marinating steaks and marinating medallions need 12 to 24 hours in an acid based mixture to tenderize them. Grill marinating steaks until rare or medium-rare, beyond medium doneness they become tough.

Grilling Steaks:

• Bottom Sirloin Tri-tip Grilling Steak
• Rib Eye Grilling Steak
• Rib Grilling Steak
• Strip Loin  Grilling Steak
• T-Bone Grilling Steak
• Tenderloin Grilling Steak
• Top Sirloin Grilling Steak
• Wing Grilling Steak

Grilling Medallions:

• Bottom Sirloin Tri-Tip Grilling Medallions
• Rib Eye Grilling Medallion
• Strip Loin Grilling Medallion
• Top Sirloin Grilling Medallion

Marinating Steaks:

• Eye of a Round Marinating Steak
• Flank Marinating Steak
• Full Round Marinating Steak
• Inside Round Marinating Steak
• Outside Round Marinating Steak
• Sirloin Tip Marinating Steak

Timing:

1/2 – 3/4 inch thick steak – 3-4 minutes for rare; 4- minutes for medium

1 inch thick steak – 4/5 minutes for rare; 6-7 minutes for medium

1-1/2 inch thick steak – 8-10 minutes for rare; 10-14 minutes for medium

2 inch thick steak – 10 – 14 minutes for rare, 14 – 18 minutes for medium

Grilled Sirloin Steak

Best Grilled Sirloin Steak:

Note: Ask the butcher to cut the steak 2 inches thick – especially if you like to cook it rare!

2 tablespoons of chopped fresh rosemary or thyme

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil

2 tablespoons of wine vinegar

4 cloves of garlic, smashed

2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper

1 top sirloin grilling steak, 2 inches thick

In large shallow dish, whisk together rosemary, oil, vinegar, garlic,Worcestershire sauce,salt and pepper.

Trim fat around edge of steak to 1/8 inch thickness. Slash fat just through to flesh at 1-inch intervals. Add to marinade, turning to coat; marinate for 20 minutes.

You can make the marinade ahead and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

Grfilled Rib Eye Steak

Grilled Rib Eye Steak with Ginger Butter:

2 tablespoons of rice or cider vinegar

2 tablespoon of soy sauce

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

4 cloves of garlic, mashed

4 rib eye steaks (about 6 oz. each)

Ginger Butter:

1/3 cup of minced fresh coriander,parsley or green onion

1/4 cup of butter, softened

2 teaspoons of grated ginger root

1 teaspoon of hot pepper sauce

In small bowl, stir together coriander, butter, ginger and hot pepper sauce until smooth. Spoon onto plastic wrap, shape into log and wrap tightly. Refrigerate until firm. To make this ahead, refrigerate or freeze for up to 2 weeks.

In large shallow glass dish, whisk together vinegar, soy sauce oil and garlic. Add steaks, turning to coat; marinate for 20 minutes.

reserving marinade, place steak on greased grill over medium-high heat,brush generously with marinade. Close lid and grill until desired doneness – about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer to warm plates, tent with foil and let stand 3-5 minutes. Slice butter into rounds and place on steaks.

Hope you enjoy this simple guide and the recipes! Let me know it you tried them – your comments are always very welcomed!