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Keeping Your Food Moist
It’s easy to keep your food moist and succulent on a barbeque by following these guidelines:
Use tongs instead of a fork when turning meat and poultry. A fork pierces the flesh and causes the juice to seep
out.
Resist the temptation to keep turning meat over. Juices tend to rise to the top of a piece of meat and then settle.
Each time you turn the meat over, the juices are lost. It’s better to quickly sear the meat on each side (about half a
minute) then with the burner controls down near low, leave the meat cook on one side at a time, turning once only
before serving.
If you like salt with your food, try adding it at the end instead of before or during cooking. Salt draws the natural
moisture out of the food and dries it out.
Baste food with light marinade or canola oil a couple of times while cooking, though watch out for excessive
flare-up if too much oil is used.
Using a roasting hood as outlined later in these instructions is an excellent way to preserve moisture and
succulence and takes the hard work out of barbeque cooking.
Other Useful Tips
You don’t need to be an expert to serve up a tasty, good looking meal. Try these ideas:
Although cooking on the plate looks easier, cooking on the grill gives you a more authentic barbeque flavor.
Natural juices drip onto the flame tamer and then vaporize, with the vapors penetrating back into the food.
As an alternative to simply grilling, try marinating your meat, fish, poultry or vegetables first. The longer you leave
the food to stand in the marinade, the more thoroughly the flavor will soak through. Several pre-made marinades
are available and good recipes are easy to come by. It is best to leave food standing in the refrigerator.
If you use a tomato or sugar based sauce for basting, apply it in the last 5-10 minutes of cooking. Using these
sauces over a longer period of time will result in over-browning.
To prevent meat from curling, slash the remaining fat at roughly 5cm intervals, taking care not to cut into the meat.
Avoid burning or charring food as this has been shown to be unhealthy. Don’t leave cooked food standing for too
long before eating.
