How To Use A Park Grill For Perfectly Cooked Food

Even if you don’t have a grill at home, you can still enjoy a tasty barbecue by visiting one of your local parks. Many of them do have grills that you can use for free. However, you may be a little bit intimidated by using a public grill for the first time. Fortunately, it is easier than you might think to cook on. Here’s how to use a park grill for perfectly cooked food.

Preparing the Grill

Before you cook on a park grill, you need to clean it. By taking a few minutes to prepare the grill, you will ensure that your food will taste exactly as you want it to. Remove any charcoal, branches or leaves that are in it. Scrape away residue with a grill scraper. If you are worried that you aren't able to get the park grill as clean as you'd like to, you should cover the cooking grate with aluminum foil.

How To Start It

This can be one of the most difficult parts of using a park grill. You first need to make sure that you purchase the right charcoal. It should already contain lighter fluid. Some parks won’t allow you to bring lighter fluid with you as it is flammable. You can get around this by making sure that your charcoal already contains it. You then need to stack your charcoal in the middle of the grill in the shape of a pyramid. This will allow it to get the right amount of oxygen. Light your charcoal, and let the briquettes burn for about 25 minutes before you start grilling food.

How Long To Cook Chicken, Meat And Vegetables

It can be difficult to determine how long you should cook food on a grill. However, you can use these tips below to ensure that your food is perfectly cooked each time you cook on a park grill.

Boneless Chicken:5-6 minutes each side

Bone-in Chicken: 11 minutes per side

Steaks: 8-9 minutes per side

Hamburgers: 5-6 minutes per side

Pork Chops: 5-6 minutes per side

Bell Peppers, Squash, Mushrooms and Zucchini: 4-5 minutes per side

Onions: 5-6 minutes per side

Other Tips

It’s important that you cook your food directly over the heat source. If the charcoals aren’t under the food, it will take longer to cook. If you are worried about under-cooking your meat or chicken, you might want to invest in a food thermometer. You can insert it into your food to ensure that it has cooked thoroughly. Keep in mind that cooking times will vary based on how thick or thin the food is.

As you can see, you don’t need to be intimidated by using a park grill. By utilizing the tips mentioned above, you can ensure that your food is cooked just the way that you want it to be. A park grill is a great resource to have if you want to spend time with your family at the park and create a delicious meal to share with them.