Before You Light the Fire
Rub It
Season beef, pork, or chicken with your favorite barbecue rub, wrap in foil, and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 hours before grilling. This gives you a much richer flavor than if the rub goes on right before grilling.
Wrap It
Many of the world's grilling cultures, from Asia to Mexico, wrap foods to be grilled in banana leaves for grilling. Use foil the same way—to seal in flavor and moistness.
Protect It
Grilling a whole salmon or other large fish? Cut a piece of stiff cardboard the size and shape of the fish and wrap it in several layers of heavy-duty foil, shiny-side out. Indirect grill the fish right on the foil-covered cardboard, then transfer it to platter for serving. No breaking or sticking.
On the Grill
Shield It
Make a grill shield by folding a sheet of foil in thirds like a business letter. Slip it under the exposed parts of bamboo skewers when grilling kebabs to keep them from burning.
Shield It Again
When roasting chicken, if the breast or wingtips brown too much, cover them with foil.
Shield It A Third Time
When roasting pork or veal chops, rack of lamb, or other meats with bones, wrap the bones in foil to keep them from burning.
Smoke It
Tear off a 14-inch piece of heavy-duty foil and fold in half. Fill it with soaked, drained hardwood chips and crimp the edges to make a smoker pouch. Poke holes in the top and place the smoker pouch under the grate over one of the burners.
Roast It
Cut the top 1/4-inch off a head of garlic. Season with salt, pepper, and olive oil and loosely wrap in foil. Indirect grill for 30 to 40 minutes until the garlic is soft and can be squeezed out of the skins. Fantastic spread on grilled bread.
Clean It
Use a crumpled ball of aluminum foil to clean your grill grate. Hold it with your tongs and rub it across the bars of a hot grate.
Pan It
Foil drip pans are indispensible for soaking wood chips, marinating, and indirect grilling. Make drip pans by molding heavy-duty foil over an inverted baking dish.
Rest It
Twist a length of foil into a “rest” for the business end of your tongs and the brushes you use to apply glazes, mops, or barbecue sauces.
Cover It
Prevent excessive moisture loss in dishes like barbecued baked beans, grilled macaroni and cheese, or smoked fruit crisp by covering with foil; remove the foil to brown the top before serving.
Ring It
When grilling round foods like onions, cabbage and apples (all delicious stuffed with sausage and barbecue sauce), twist crumpled foil into doughnut-shaped grill rings to hold the ingredient steady on the grill.
Roast It
Wrap dense vegetables like eggplant, potatoes, or onions in foil and grill them directly in the embers, turning periodically with long-handled tongs
After Grilling
Tent It
Steaks, chops, and grilled chickens taste best if allowed to rest for a few minutes before serving. Loosely tent with foil to keep the food warm.
Grill Like A Pro with Steven Raichlen
Meet The Grilling Pro
Steven Raichlen is an award-winning author, journalist, cooking teacher, and TV host. His best-selling Barbecue Bible cookbook series has been translated into 12 languages and has sold more than 4 million copies. His long-running Barbecue University show on Public Television and Primal Grill with Steven Raichlen series (also on Public Television) virtually reinvented America's relationship with barbecue.
Watch Steven Raichlen
In Action
Foil Smoker Pouch
Foil: The Ultimate Skewer Shield
Create a Warming Tent
Make Killer Grill Marks