16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (2024)

The best grilling recipes are often easier than you think. Combine the right ingredients for the sauce, seasoning, or marinade and you've got a winning dish to serve during grilling season for years to come. Simple side dishes and vegetable mains can be the star of the show with the perfect sear. We've rounded up plenty of quick and easy recipe options for your grilling pleasure. Read on for some of our favorites.

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Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Lemongrass-Lime Aïoli

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (1)

Sweet, mild grilled mahi-mahi harmonizes with an aïoli featuring lemongrass and lime. The creamy aïoli comes together in seconds using an immersion blender, resulting in a silky texture that's less likely to break. It adds richness and zest to a classic summer meal that's ready in 25 minutes.

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Grilled Shrimp with Oregano and Lemon

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (2)

The sauce for this shrimp is a simple version of Italy's salmoriglio, typically made with lemon and herbs in a mortar. The sauce is also delicious spooned over grilled swordfish or any other meaty fish.

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Grilled Chicken Breasts with Lemon and Thyme

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (3)

A bold mixture of red pepper flakes, garlic, thyme, lemon juice, and olive oil serves as a spicy marinade for bone-in chicken breasts. If you want your chicken spicier still, increase the red pepper or leave the breasts in the marinade for an hour or two.

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Grilled Pepper and Onion Panzanella with Peperoncini Vinaigrette

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (4)

Cookbook author Molly Stevens' panzanella uses grilled sweet peppers and onions in place of tomatoes as the centerpiece of this dinner salad. The charred vegetables are tossed with cubes of grilled bread, drizzled with a peperoncini vinaigrette, and topped with creamy feta and crisp slices of peperoncini, which add pops of flavor and contrasting texture ⁠— all in 40 minutes.

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Grilled Red Curry Chicken

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (5)

Roasting a whole chicken takes about an hour, but cut out the backbone and flatten the bird and it will grill perfectly in just 30 minutes. We like to rub the chicken all over with a very simple, Thai-inspired mix of red curry paste, coconut milk, and brown sugar.

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Sausage Mixed Grill

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (6)

Three types of sausage plus peppers and radicchio make for a fun assortment of flavors to pile on your plate. Be sure to prick fresh sausages all over before grilling to release the excess fat.

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Spicy Apricot Wings

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (7)

The apricot-based sauce that's brushed on these chicken wings before grilling provides plenty of zingy flavor, and the extra sauce is good for dipping. A refreshing wheat beer or fruity Pinot Gris would be a superb complement to the wings.

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Celery, Grilled Grape, and Mushroom Salad

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (8)

"Celery is a vegetable people either love or hate, and we try to get people to love all their vegetables," says chef Amanda Cohen. She balances out the celery's bitterness and crunch with meaty oyster mushrooms and grapes that have been grilled until almost bursting.

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Grilled King Salmon with Meyer Lemon Relish

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (9)

Floral and lightly acidic salsa brings out the buttery, rich flavors of grilled salmon. Salmon is meaty enough to stay intact on a grill and gets meltingly tender as it cooks. Save the leftover salsa to serve with grilled lamb, chicken, or pork.

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Grilled Pork Chops with Honey Garlic Glaze

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A simple glaze made from sticky-sweet honey, savory soy sauce, and fresh garlic drenches each perfectly grilled pork chop in this recipe. For the most evenly cooked pork, with delicious char and grill marks, flip the pork frequently over high heat for the first several minutes of cooking, then finish the meat on lower heat.

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Skillet Brownies on the Grill

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Dessert deserves a place on the grill, too. These brownies take on a deliciously smoky flavor on the grill from "baking" in a skillet set over hot coals. Just remember to butter the skillet generously.

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Grilled Corn on the Cob with Calamansi Mayo

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (12)

Chef Sheldon Simeon's recipe for a Hawaiian twist on Mexican elote features grilled corn slathered in a creamy, cheesy calamansi mayonnaise, which gets its acidic twang from a sour citrus fruit native to the South Pacific (you can substitute Key limes in a pinch). Ichimi togarashi (Japanese chile flakes) add heat; aonori (dried seaweed) flakes add umami oomph and island style.

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Grilled Shrimp and Lettuces with Charred Green Goddess Dressing

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (13)

In a salad that's anything but boring, this grilled shrimp gets an extra boost from the green goddess dressing. Charring the dressing ingredients before making it lends a smoky depth to the whole dish.

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Grilled Oysters with Chorizo Butter

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (14)

No shucking necessary: Once the oysters open on the grill, simply top them with chef David Kinch’s smoky, tangy butter.

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Crispy Grilled Lamb Pitas with Radish-Watercress Salad

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (15)

The robust, fatty lamb here needs a fresh, zippy counterpoint, so it's served with a salad featuring three types of radishes: watermelon radishes for their gorgeous magenta hue, green daikon for softer color but more pungent bite, and cherry radishes for their crisp, juicy texture. This trio gets tangled in a pile of also-peppery watercress and dressed with the simplest combo of lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

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BLT Hot Dogs with Caraway Remoulade

16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (16)

Of course, classic hot dogs are never a bad idea on the grill, but if you're looking for an easy upgrade, this is it. These "BLT" hot dogs are topped with crispy bacon, fresh tomatoes, and crunchy lettuce dressed with creamy caraway-pickle mayonnaise.

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16 Great Grilling Recipes to Try (2024)

FAQs

What is the most popular food to grill? ›

Steak was the favorite grilled food of roughly one third of Americans in 2020. When asked which grilled food they enjoy the most, 34 percent of the respondents to a widespread survey opted for the beef steak, with hamburgers and chicken completing the top three.

What is the first rule of grilling? ›

The first rule of grilling, according to Bob Barton: Don't be in a hurry. If using charcoal, wait until the coals are white ash. Don't be impatient with meats on the grill; turn when they are ready to be turned, not a minute before.

What to grill for 20 people? ›

Tasty BBQ Food Ideas For Large Groups
  • Cheeseburger Kebabs.
  • Baked BBQ Chicken.
  • Honey Glazed Chicken Wings.
  • Grilled Shrimp Skewers.
  • Mac 'N' Cheese.
  • Steak Fajitas.
  • Pulled Pork Brioche Buns.
  • Sweet & Sticky BBQ Salmon.
Jun 10, 2019

What is good to cook on the grill? ›

Some delicious and easy foods to cook on a grill include steak, chicken, burgers, hot dogs, and sausages. These meats provide a juicy and flavorful taste, and grill marks give them a unique texture that many people love.

What is the most popular grilling food in the US during the summer? ›

Among Americans who have recently attended a barbecue, 88 percent chose meat or steak as their preferred food of choice at a barbecue. About 50 percent said they prefer grilled vegetables.

What meat should you grill first? ›

What should you cook first on a BBQ? As a general rule of thumb, the best order to cook food on a BBQ is starting with a thick piece of meat that typically takes a while to cook (for example chicken and sausages), so we'd recommend cooking them first.

What is the 4 hour BBQ rule? ›

That's a very general rule based on safety measures described by the gov't. Basically it goes like this: if you remove food from a 40*F fridge, the surface of whole muscle meats should be raised to 140*F or above within 4 hours.

When grilling do you put the lid up or down? ›

The heat doesn't build up and intensify the way it would if the lid was down. Thin pork chops, shrimp, and burgers tend to cook quickly. Leaving the grill lid up will slow the cooking process by reducing the temperature around the meat. For thicker cuts, you want to close the lid to keep the temperature high and even.

What is the best meat to feed a crowd? ›

Smoked Brisket

The ultimate crowd favorite, one 6- to 8-pound beef brisket is enough to feed 24 people.

What is a good meal to serve 20 people? ›

19 Ideas For Easy Meals For Large Groups
  • Taco Bar.
  • Meatballs.
  • Butter Chicken.
  • Lasagna.
  • Chili.
  • Homemade Pizza.
  • Baked Pasta.
  • Skewers.
Apr 4, 2023

What is the best meat for a big party? ›

Beef Dishes for a Crowd
  • Greek Style Chuck Roast.
  • Beef Meatballs.
  • Buttery Herb Roasted Whole Chicken.
  • One Pan Rosemary Whole Chicken & Veggies.
  • Jamaican Jerk Chicken.
  • Spare Ribs, Spices, and Smoke.
  • Slow Cooker Braised Pork Shoulder.
  • Citrus Braised Pork Roast with Mojo de Ajo.

Which grill makes food taste better? ›

Nothing beats the added nuances of flavor imparted by wood or charcoal. A pure charcoal fire can be enhanced with wood chips. By choosing a complementary wood for the meat or fish being grilled, you can make the flavors even better.

What is the best fish to grill? ›

What Fish to Grill. Salmon and firm, thick white fish like sea bass, red snapper, grouper and halibut are the best types of fish to grill because they are hearty. If you would like to grill thin, delicate fish, it is best to wrap them in foil instead of using this method.

What can I grill besides burgers and hot dogs? ›

What Can You Cook On A Grill Besides Hamburgers
  1. Avocado. Say hello to your new way to enjoy avocado – grilled to perfection. ...
  2. Grilled Cheese. Let's say you're craving a grilled cheese sandwich. ...
  3. Fajitas. ...
  4. Tomatoes. ...
  5. Scallops. ...
  6. Watermelon. ...
  7. Clams (with spiced paprika butter) ...
  8. co*cktails.

What is the most popular type of grill? ›

Charcoal grills have long been a favorite of outdoor cooks for many reasons. A charcoal grill is easy to use, and foodies crave the smoky, rich flavor which charcoal imparts.

What is the most popular grilling day? ›

The most popular grilling day of the year continues to be Fourth of July, when 54% of owners grilled out; other popular summer grilling occasions: Memorial Day (44%) Father's Day (34%)

What is the most common side dish served at BBQs? ›

Classic Coleslaw: Creamy coleslaw with cabbage, carrots, and a tangy dressing is a BBQ staple. Potato Salad: A creamy or tangy potato salad with diced potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and a flavorful dressing. Baked Beans: Sweet and smoky baked beans with bacon or sausage are a BBQ favorite.

What do Americans eat at a BBQ? ›

The most widely used meat in most barbecue is pork, particularly pork ribs, and also the pork shoulder for pulled pork. In Texas, beef is more common, especially brisket. The techniques used to cook the meat are hot smoking and smoke cooking, distinct from cold-smoking.

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