4 FUN Ways to Grill Greener This Summer
Memorial Day weekend is knocking at the door and I can already hear the sizzle of all those grills.
If you are indeed going to throw some tasty treats on the grill this weekend, be sure to grill it green!
Did you know that there are a few easy steps you can take to not only green your grilling habits, but also make you the star grill master (or mistress) of your block?
Let me share some with you.
May is National Barbecue Month, and this weekend is sort of like the unofficial start of the bbq season.
Unfortunately many of our bbq habits are not only environmentally unfriendly, but pretty hazardous to our health too.
Obviously, those are a couple of big things we want to avoid. As I've said countless times before, I'm kind of a big fan of not dying...and if since I plan on sticking around for a while, I'd like to do so on a healthy planet.
Don't you?
4 Easy Ways Have a Green BBQ
A while back we talked about 6 Fun Facts to Help You Grill Green, but let's check out some more.
Hog Tie Your Charcoal:
If you're a charcoal griller (like I am), you definitely want to ditch your charcoal briquettes...because they're killing you! Briquettes have many additives such as petroleum accelerants, coal dust, sodium nitrate, borax, and more
Instead, use an all-natural lump hardwood charcoal. I've used Cowboy Charcoal, a U.S. made product (actually it's made about 2 hours from me), for several years and LOVE it!
Don't Throw It Out, Dish It Up:
Like Robin Shreeves at MNN.com says in a great green bbq article, forgo the paper plates, paper towels, and disposable utensils and use real dishes, silverware, and cloth napkins instead...plus it makes everything feel homier too.
If you must use disposables, Robin recommends grabbing some biodegradable plates and such from Eco-Products. Check out more of her AWESOME green grilling and green barbecuing ideas.
Don't Forget the Veggies:
Personally, I'm a carnivore, and I don't make any bones about it...but I'm still about 75% vegetarian. If you've never loaded down your grill with tons of great veggies and even some fruits, you have no idea what you're missing!
Hit up your local farmer's market and find some great, fresh, and organic produce to either bbq on its own or along side whatever meat you've got sizzling next to it. Before you veggify your grill, check out some more great vegetarian barbecue tips.
SUPER FUN - Brand It Like You Own It:
One of my favorite things on the planet is a good set of bbq branding irons. It's no secret that the best around are from Texas Irons. You can find bbq branding irons with your favorite team's logo, brands to make your guests (or yourself) laugh, and many others.
Unfortunately this isn't something I've bought for myself yet, but maybe I'll grab some this summer...or I'll get some as a nice gift from someone. At around $29, they're very reasonably priced!
If you seriously want to grill it greener this summer, you should seriously check out The Daily Green's tips on green grilling and bbq.
What kinds of things do you do to make your grilling as green as it can be? If the answer is nothing, Memorial Day weekend
Image Credit: crashmattb on flickr
Great tips! We love grilling and have been having a great time learning to make all sorts of veggies on the grill along with out meat.
It's also worth noting that when you are outdoors grilling in the summer, the stove isn't on so energy is being saved and the house is staying cooler - meaning less use of the air conditioner.
yo Dena. I think you'll like the Cowboy Charcoal. If you don't already know, natural hardwood charcoal does burn faster than poisonous briquettes, once they get going...so just be sure to plan for that if yall are doing a lot of slow grilling or smoking/indirect cooking. I've been using Cowboy Charcoal for about 5 years and LOVE it...the way it makes the food taste--oh.my.god!
happy grilling.
I just love this! My husband and I grill constantly. We use real plates (not paper) and stuff, so we're good there. I grill veggies and fruit. The lump hardwood charcoal we tried, tho, was not that good. We will have to try to find the Cowboy brand. It sounds like it might be a lot better than the others we've tried. (My husband does a lot of low and slow grilling, and the hardwood we tried didn't act right.) Thanks for the tips. Have a great Memorial Day weekend!