TIP OF THE DAY: Grilling Tips

August 23, 2014 at 8:23 am · Filed under Cooking

Burgers are the number one item grilled–
although few are quadruple burgers, like this
one. Photo courtesy Grilling.com.

Labor Day, just around the corner, is the third most popular grilling holiday of the year. According to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association’s most recent State of the Barbecue Industry Report:

51% of grill owners used their grill on Labor Day last year

52% grilled on Memorial Day

A whopping 68% lit up their grills on July 4th

It doesn’t stop at the end of summer: Statistics show that 60% of grill owners use their grills year-round.

What are all of these grills cooking up? The most popular foods for cooking are

Burgers, 85%

Steak, 80%

Hot dogs, 79%

Chicken, 73%

The side dishes most commonly prepared on the grill are:

Corn, 41%

Potatoes, 41%

Other vegetables, 32%

The Association’s website has information including

Choosing the Right Grill

Popular Accessories

Grill Features

Knowing Your Fuels

Grilling Facts and Figures

General Grilling Safety

Gas Grill Safety

Charcoal Grill Safety

Electric Grill Safety

Food Handling Safety

Easy Grill Clean-Up

The most popular flavors of barbecue sauce? Hickory, followed by mesquite, honey, and then spicy-hot.

Thomas_Jefferson_by_Rembrandt_Peale_1805_230-wiki

Thomas Jefferson, the First Griller, in 1805. Portrait by Rembrandt Peale | Wikimedia.

Not surprisingly, HPBA has a variety of resources for grillers, including:

BBQ 365 Grill Guide.

BBQ 365 Calendar featuring barbecue trends, stats, holidays and events throughout the year.

GRILLING AT THE WHITE HOUSE

Barbecues have been a White House tradition since Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the U.S. Fast forward some 160 years: Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th president, hosted the first barbecue at the White House that featured Texas-style barbecued ribs.

Jimmy (the 39th president) and Rosalyn Carter hosted a “pig pickin’” for about 500 guests including visiting foreign dignitaries. Ronald (the 40th) and Nancy Reagan also were avid barbecuers who entertained with barbecues at their ranch.

George H. Bush, 41st president, held a barbecue for Members of Congress annually on the South Lawn of the White House, a tradition continued by his son, President George W. Bush (43rd). However, that tradition was interrupted on September 12, 2001, the day after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Secret Service agents, who had evacuated the White House a day earlier, cancelled the barbecue. The White House kitchen donated the 700 pounds of beef tenderloin to feed the hundreds of rescue workers who had traveled to Washington.

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