With football season gearing up, you might be starting to plan your next tailgating party. Everyone knows the staples of a good tailgating party: great friends, good food, and, of course, beer. But what steps can you take to help make your tailgating party the best on the block?
Here are a few of our favorite tailgaiting tips:
Tailgating Tip #1: Set up your grill on a level surface.
One of the staples of an afternoon tailgating is the barbecue grill. For both safety and practical purposes, you will want to find the most level surface possible to set up your grill.This can help your food to cook evenly and drastically reduces the likelihood that your grill will tip over, harming someone or even starting a fire.
Tailgating Tip #2: Do not use extra lean beef.
Hamburgers are one of the most popular food choices for tailgate events. While extra lean beef (90/10 or lower) can be great for tacos or shepherd’s pie, you will want to steer clear of extra lean beef while you are making your burgers. If you do not heed this advice, the end result will most likely be dry burgers that will be decidedly unsatisfying.
Beef with an 80/20 ratio tends to make the most satisfying, moist burgers, so you will want to be sure that you include some 80/20 beef on the shopping list for your weekend of tailgating.
Tailgating Tip #3: Give your burgers a uniform thickness.
While everyone loves a good burger, home made burgers have an unfortunate habit of swelling up in the middle, making them thicker in the center and thinner at the edges. This can make it hard to keep your toppings from sliding out to the side of your burger.
To prevent the center of your burgers from swelling, use your thumb to make a dimple in the middle before you put your burger on the grill. This will help to keep your burger’s thickness uniform, allowing everyone to pile on the toppings without worrying about making a mess.
Tailgating Tip #4: Stuff your burgers.
If you would really like to change things up, you should consider making two thin burger patties with a layer of stuffing in the middle. Popular options include cheese, bacon, or jalapenos. This great twist to a traditional burger can help to put your afternoon of tailgating over the top. Of course, you should probably warn your guests ahead of time so that nobody end up with an unexpected mouthful of jalapenos.
Tailgating Tip #5: Coat your baked potatoes with coarse salt.
Now that you have your main course, the hamburgers, organized, it is time to start thinking about some side dishes. Baked potatoes are a popular choice, but it can be easy to bake bland potatoes. We recommend that you cover your potatoes with coarse salt before you poke holes in them, wrap them in foil, and place them on the grill over medium heat. If you do this, the salt will begin to penetrate the potatoes while they cook, making them extra tasty when you pull them off the grill an hour later.
Tailgating Tip #6: Keep the grill lid open while you cook your vegetables.
Another popular choice for a cookout is vegetable skewers. If you are grilling vegetables, you will want to keep the grill lid open while they cook. This might seem counterintuitive if you are looking to cook your food quickly and evenly, but the grill lid can trap excess moisture, making the vegetables soggy instead of giving them the charred sweetness that makes most people love grilled vegetables.
Tailgating Tip #7: Your grill can help you make amazing guacamole.
Now that you have your meal planned, you need to decide on an appetizer. A popular choice for tailgating parties is guacamole. You can take your guacamole to the next level by cooking your halved avocados on the grill for a couple of minutes. Coat each half with olive oil, salt, and pepper and then place them on the grill to enhance their flavor. Mash up your grilled avocados with tomatoes, onions, and your favorite seasoning and you will have an appetizer that will keep your guests coming back for more.
If you need to buy a new grill before you can implement these tailgating tips, check out our grill selection at Armand’s Discount. Browse our website to learn more about our grills and all the new recipes that you will have at your disposal.