FOOD - Barbecue tips for the summer

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Monday June 18 07:39 PM EDT

Men's Health: Barbecue Tips for the Summer

By Special to ABCNEWS.com

Slather a steak with yogurt and put some water in that burger. Just in time for the barbecue season, Men's Health has all kinds of tips for you.

The Aztecs had the life.

Those guys could hang out on a temple patio honing their summer cooking skills all year round (when they weren't sacrificing one of their guests). We aren't so lucky.

Most modern men are either too busy or too far north of the equator to get much practice wielding the old barbecue tongs. The result: We waste valuable pool time toiling over food that ultimately requires its own sort of human sacrifice to choke down.

But that's ancient history. Turning our pens into pickaxes, we did some excavating and unearthed something that'll help you out: the long-lost Secrets of Summer Cooking. We cover everything from preparing perfect corn-on-the-cob to grilling the most tender steak on the block.

Hamburgers

For burgers that sizzle, add 4 Tbsp of ice water to each pound of lean chopped sirloin. The grill's heat will seal in the extra moisture, making your homemade quarter-pounders juicier than the hockey-puck patties you usually churn out.

Corn on the Cob

The sweetest ears are slightly immature (just like you), with kernels that don't go all the way to the end of the cob (uh, not like you). Toss 'em, husks and all, onto a medium-hot grill. Cook for 10 minutes, then peel back all but the last layer of husk. Grill 5 more minutes for that just-smoked flavor.

Kebabs

Hold two skewers a quarter inch apart. Proceed to impale your meat and vegetables so that both skewers are threaded through each piece. Repeat for all of your kebabs. The meat won't spin (and end up cooking unevenly) as it would on a single skewer, and the vegetables won't be able to take a suicidal leap into the coals.

Watermelon

Before you can hold a proper seed-spitting contest, there needs to be an official weigh-in. Grab a few similar-size watermelons and plop them down on the produce scale. Heaviest melon wins. Why? Because the extra weight means the melon has more water, and water helps give a melon its flavor.

Macaroni Salad

Skip the deli variety (and the after-dinner angioplasty). Instead, make this better-tasting and less artery-plugging mac salad: Mix 1 diced boiled egg, 1 diced onion, 1 diced tomato, 4 oz kidney beans, 1 Tbsp light mayonnaise, and 2 Tbsp each relish and white vinegar into 1 1/2 c cooked macaroni. Sprinkle with paprika, chill, and serve.

Portable Fruit

Before you buy strawberries or raspberries, flip the carton over. You're looking for nature's expiration date: juice stains. See, dripping fruit is one step away from rotten fruit. If you've already bought berries that are going soft, place a single layer of them on a baking sheet and freeze for 20 minutes.

Chicken

Everything tastes like it, but nothing takes as long to grill. To speed up the process, spread your chicken pieces in a single layer on a microwave-safe plate and nuke for at least 6 minutes on medium-high heat, or until the meat just begins to turn white. Brush with barbecue sauce and slap on the grill.

Steak

Great steaks are made with yogurt. The live bacteria in yogurt produce acids and enzymes that, when used as a marinade, can break down a steak's fibers. That spells tender. Just spoon 1/2 cup of plain, fat-free yogurt into a bowl and mix with 2 Tbsp horseradish, 1 tsp spicy mustard, and 1 clove minced garlic. Spread it over the steak and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Frozen Drinks

Here's something you can do with an overripe banana that doesn't involve a tailpipe: Peel it, put it in a plastic container, and mash it. When you've got a half cup's worth, mix in 1/8 tsp of lemon juice and put it in the freezer. You have 6 months to use the stuff in the daiquiri or margarita of your choice.

Potato Salad

If your spud salad always looks like a bowl of mayo-coated mush, you're probably using the wrong potatoes. Use the red-skinned kind instead. Red potatoes have less starch, which means they won't mash in the salad like high-starch russets, Idahos, or Brooklyns.

Hot Dogs

Instead of trying to pass off burnt hot dogs as "Cajun franks," pick up a foil roasting pan ahead of time. Grill your dogs until the skin turns a light brown. Then turn the heat to low and cover them with the upside-down pan. Leave it on until steam builds up — about 5 minutes — to finish cooking the dogs.

Beer

Check your fridge. See any beer lying on its side? If so, then you're sabotaging your good time by increasing the surface area of the beer exposed to the air trapped in the bottle or can. The longer your brew is exposed to air, the weaker it'll taste.

-- Anonymous, June 19, 2001


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