Everyone thinks they know exactly how to barbecue - from preheating the grill until the moment when the food is cooked to perfection. How is it then that there are sooo many barbecue related disasters that occur? It’s because you don’t know the rules. Yes, there are rules, or commandments, if you will, to barbecuing and here they are…

I. Thou shalt wait for the grill to be hot enough to cook. It’s a given that you’re anxious to get the food cooking - cause your company’s impatient and hungry - but you must wait for your wood to be red hot, and for your coals to be burned down to ash. Throwing a log into a fire place and roasting marshmallows is one thing, but a log that still looks like a log in your barbecue grill will result in funny meat.

II. Thou shalt allow the grill plates to get hot. Failure to have a hot grill plate means your meat won’t sear and your food will stick.

III. Thou shalt be aware of the meat’s internal temperature. Lots of people make educated guesses as to whether or not the food is cooked, but let’s face it, a lot of time you’ll wind up with meat that is charred on the outside and still bloody on the inside. There’s only way you to know, and that’s with an instant read meat thermometer.

IV. Thou shalt be aware of the cooking temperature of your grill, just like your oven. It should be a law that low, medium and high temperature gauges be abolished. The temperatures should also be provided in degrees Fahrenheit. That way the 250° temperature you’re actually cooking at won’t be mistaken for the 350% temperature that you actually need.

V. Thou shalt not overcook your food in an attempt to tenderize it. In so doing, you’re actually doing the exact opposite - making it tough and dry.

VI. Thou shalt exercise due diligence in keeping germs and bacteria at bay. Do the words salmonella, botulism, ptomaine and food poisoning mean anything to you? They should. Keep your hands clean, and watch for cross contamination.