Tips for barbeque-on-a-budget at home

 Click the play button on the video window to the right to see the story

Grilling is a great way to incorporate some new flavors into your meal.  Whether you use marinade, or wood chips to create different flavors the costs can add up.

Steven Raichlen, author of Barbeque! Bible Sauces, Rubs and Marinades, says there are ways to keep your costs down. 

Here are his tips:

• Stay home and fire up your grill.  Simply commit to grilling at home and automatically save money, especially when entertaining a group. Grilling at home is also healthier for you and more fun.
  
  
• True barbecue is the original budget food.  The low, slow heat of the smoker breaks down tough meat, making cheap cuts like brisket and ribs supernaturally flavorful.
  
  
• Save leftover charcoal for next time.  If there is charcoal left over, cover the grill, closing the top and bottom vents to put out the fire.  Use the remaining charcoal for a future grill session.
  
  
• Inexpensive steaks, like skirt and hanger, have a lot more flavor than costlier cuts, like filet mignon.  Tenderize these cuts by flash grilling over high heat and slicing the meat thinly across the grain.
  
  
• Choose the less-expensive dark meat pieces of a chicken.  Dark meat, like thighs and legs, are better marbled, richer tasting, and less prone to drying out when exposed to the high, dry heat of the fire than pricier white meat pieces.  95 percent of the world's grill masters prefer dark meat.
  
  
• Expensive sirloin and kobe may have the prestige, but chuck delivers more flavor when making a burger.  Choose chuck that is at least 15 percent fat and your burgers will be juicier.  Try making an inside-cheeseburger by grating sharp cheddar, pepper jack, or blue cheese directly into ground meat; it melts as the meat cooks, producing an exceptionally moist burger.
  
  
• Grill dark oily fish like sardines, Spanish mackerel, or kingfish as an inexpensive seafood alternative.  The omega-3 fatty fish oils are great for your health and keep the fish from drying out on the grill.
  
  
• Smoke whole briskets, beef clods (shoulders), pork shoulders, whole turkeys, and racks of spareribs.  This yields mor meat for the money, much less work is required, and everyone loves the primal pleasure of cutting into a communal size roast.
  
  
• Cook the whole meal on the grill.  Appetizer, main course, vegetable side dishes, and even dessert.  It saves on fuel, clean-up, and wear and tear in the kitchen.  Don't forget, if something tastes good baked, fried, or sauteed, it probably tastes better grilled!