50 Grilling Recipes That'll Cover All Of Your Summertime Needs (2024)

FAQs

What is to cook by direct heat such as grilling? ›

Direct heat grilling is cooking food directly over the heat source, usually a hot fire, throughout the entire cooking process. It's good for thin cuts (less than two inches thick) of meat, seafood or vegetables and perfect for burgers. If using a gas grill, turn on all valves to the same level.

If you are doing 2 meats and sides you can figure about 1/4lb per serving on both the meats. So for 100 people. You will need 25lbs of cooked pork butts and 25lbs of cooked brisket. Both have about 50% yield, so 50lbs of raw pork butts and 50lbs of raw brisket is what you would start with.

Adults. In general, each pound of BBQ feeds 3 to 4 people, especially if you're serving sides. You can expect most adult guests to eat ¼ to ⅓ pounds of meat each during your event.

Chicken is the go-to option and holy grail of any grill experience. If you are looking for the best and easiest meat to grill—chicken thighs are just the meat cuts you need. Talk to experienced grillers and they will tell you that this part of the chicken, especially with the skin left on, is superior to any other cut.

Beans, chips, macaroni salad, grilled veggies, slaw, potato salad and watermelon are just a few examples of BBQ side staples that are budget-friendly crowd favorites.

Look to direct heat grilling when preparing quick-cooking foods like burgers, hot dogs, kabobs, vegetables and most seafood (especially shrimp). It's also the ideal cooking method for thin foods like steak, boneless chicken breasts or pork chops.

Virtually all cooking on gas and/or charcoal grills can be divided into three cooking methods: direct, indirect or combo. As the names imply, the difference between the methods is determined by where the food is placed in relation to the fire. The DIRECT method cooks foods with the direct heat of the flame.

¦ Indirect heat (also called indirect grilling) means there is no heat source under the food.

For a plated meal, you would typically need around 140-170 grams of meat or fish per person. So, for 50 people, you would require approximately 7-8.5 kilograms of the main course. If you're serving a buffet-style meal, you can estimate slightly less, 110-140 grams per person.

On average, plan for each adult to consume about 1 pound of food total (not including dessert). Count on children to consume about a ½ pound. Remember; the more options you have, the less you need of each.

How do you feed 30 guests on a BBQ? ›

For a backyard barbecue of 20-30 people, keep it between 5-8 side dishes. For 30-50, keep it at or under 10 side dishes. This will help you streamline your preparation while still giving your guests sufficient variety. Then double or triple your recipes to make sure you make enough for everyone.