There are some things in life that are meant to go together like peanut butter and jelly, weddings and the chicken dance, and steaks and the grill.  

While steaks can certainly be prepared indoors in a skillet, grill pan, or the oven, these methods pale in comparison to the depth of flavor that is achieved by cooking with smoke and fire.  To help get you started on the road to creating a restaurant quality grilled steak at home, we’ve created the following tutorial.

Whether a grill master or novice, you may find yourself standing by the flame this Thanksgiving with a variety of burning questions. If you plan to join the 14 percent of North American barbecue owners who will cook all or part of their Thanksgiving meal on the grill,* follow the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association’s tips from the pros for the best techniques and safest practices for the most crowd-pleasing holiday meal yet. 

Calling it the first-ever Thanksgiving Barbecue & A, Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association offers these 12 expert answers to your most common holiday grilling questions:

If you're going to spend your hard earned money on a beautiful steak, why not take a few extra steps to ensure that it is grilled to perfection?  How does one grill the perfect steak you might ask?  It's actually not that difficult as long as you follow the advice of several top grill masters in this graphic courtesy of our friends at Kingsford charcoal!  

Sometimes a little Kosher salt and cracked black pepper is all you need seasoning wise, but there are so many other spices out there that can take your food to a whole new level.  

To get you on the right track, we have turned to the spice experts at Adventures in Spice LLC for a simple-to-follow chart highlighting which spices work best with which foods!

In advance of July 4th weekend, we've got an informative infographic created by Smithfield in tandem with BBQ luminaries Moe Cason and Tuffy Stone, highlighting the differences between backyard cooks and professional pitmasters.

There is just something so enticing about the smell and flavor of smoked meats. The deep aroma of smoke, the mouthwateringly tender meat, the whole combination is almost primal.

Choosing the right wood, selecting the best meat, and buying the best smoker won’t deliver the results you’re looking for if your temperature or timing is off.  As such, here's a simple infographic to help dial in your cooking time and temperature for smoking popular cuts.

All Summer long, millions of Americans are firing up their grills in the backyard, at the beach, in parks, and elsewhere.  To help perfect their grilling game, here are 5 tips from Grillocracy's grill master Clint Cantwell...

If you've ever tried a coffee dry rub then you already know the surprisingly deep and complex level of flavor it adds to red meat.  Today, however, we are taking it one step further by actually cold smoking the coffee.

Today we’re putting the “grill” back in grilled cheese sandwiches by throwing out mom’s butter laden pan and bringing the heat with several unique twists on this classic comfort dish. 

While the thought of cooking a pressed sandwich directly over live fire might be a little intimidating at first, a few simple tips and a couple practice rounds will have you knocking out monster meals in no time.

The weather outside might be frightful, but that doesn’t have to stop you from firing up the smokers and grills this winter.  Here are six quick tips to cold weather grilling to get you through the next few months.

Whether you're frying, oven roasting, grilling, or smoking (you can find our recipes for smoked and grilled turkeys here along with several grilled side dishes and desserts), actually carving the bird can be an intimidating step in the Thanksgiving meal.

Fear no more, however, as we've got a step-by-step video to show you how to do it right!

Recently I was wandering the aisles of a major home goods store and came across a bottle of smoked olive oil.  While I could have dropped $18 on the bottle, I decided to save my money for a rainy day and try to create my own smoked olive oil at home, to be used as a compliment to any number of dishes included grilled vegetables, grilled polenta, steaks, and so much more!

Here's the how-to...

Tailgating season is in full swing but just because you can't make it to each and every one of your team's home games doesn't mean that you can't still enjoy the tailgating experience.

Dubbed "homegating," football fans across the country are increasingly hosting their own pre-game bashes from the comfort of their driveway or backyard according to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (HPBA).  To get your homegating bash started out on the right foot, the HPBA has developed the following tips...

Thanks in part to television shows like Destination America’s “BBQ Pitmasters,” the popularity of competition barbecue has never been greater.  In fact, it is safe to say that you can most likely find a contest within a few hours of your home regardless of where you live or what time of year it is.

Entering your first contest, however, can be a stressful process as its hard to know exactly what to expect and, as such, how to prepare for it. 

Dubbed Sausage Shorties, these cheese stuffed sausage bites are a fan favorite around my house.  With only five ingredients total including the bacon ranch dipping sauce, they couldn’t be simpler to make but they sure are packed with flavor!

Adding a touch of smoke to chocolate chips is not only relatively easy, it's a great way to add an unexpected layer of flavor to cookies, ice cream, home-made candies, and so much more.  Here's how!

Recently I had the pleasure of joining the fine folks at Riceland, the world’s largest miller of rice, for the World Championship Duck Calling Contest in Stuttgart, AR.   

While there, the Riceland team and I discussed the numerous ways in which rice can and could be incorporated into barbecue and grilling, including an idea I had for cold smoking uncooked rice.

Since rice is great at absorbing flavors I was certain that adding an element of smoke would be a problem so upon returning home I decided to give it a try.  The result?  Lightly smoked rice grains which when added to various dishes.  Here’s the “how to”...

Summer grilling season is in full swing and to make sure you’re getting the most out of your cookouts, we want to make sure you’re well prepared with Grillocracy's list of essential ingredients that you should always have on hand.

Whether it's a makeshift grate cleaner, a cost effective vegetable grilling basket, or a flavorful replacement for traditional skewers, Grillocracy's got 10 hacks to help step up your grilling game.

If you’re like me, the weather outside will rarely keep you from firing up the grill.  But while we take extra steps to deal with grilling in the snow and grilling in the rain, few people take the time to properly prepare when the outside temperature begins to soar during the summer months.

As such, we’ve compiled a list of five tips to ensure you remain safe while grilling in extreme heat.

Often we think of barbecue and grilling as an American pastime but in reality you can find live fire cooking in some way, shape, or form in virtually every corner of the globe.

To help showcase the nuances of grilling across the globe, Personal Creations has created the following infographic on how 10 different cultures around the world do their grilling.

With Father’s Day approaching fast and furious, I started thinking about what an interesting supporting role grilling has played in my family life.

I remember catching and grilling fish with my grandparents on a little green lake in Wisconsin when I was only 5 or so years old…watching my parents fire up a smoker before daybreak at our home in Texas during my teen years…

In this how-to video, the baron of beef Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue shows how to smoke a brisket, discusses when and why to wrap a brisket, and puts together a brisket sauce for those non-purists who love a little sauce with their Texas barbecue.

The summer grilling season is here and Grillocracy has got you covered with the recipes and tip to help take your outdoor cookouts over the top including the "10 Tips for Amping Up Your Grilling Game"!

Today we’re putting the “grill” back in grilled cheese sandwiches by throwing out mom’s butter laden pan and bringing the heat with several unique twists on this classic comfort dish. 

While the thought of cooking a pressed sandwich directly over live fire might be a little intimidating at first, a few simple tips and a couple practice rounds will have you knocking out monster meals in no time.

The weather outside might be frightful, but that doesn’t have to stop you from firing up the smokers and grills this winter.  Here are six quick tips to cold weather grilling to get you through the next few months.

When it comes to barbecue and grilling cookbooks, there are literally thousands from which to choose.  

And while there are so many among them that are chocked full of great recipes, tips, and how-tos, there are 10 that I would rank above all others when starting your personal collection. 

What grill out would be complete with a little beef?  Today Grillocracy has teamed up with the fine folks at the Ohio Beef Council and Beef It's What's for Dinner to offer this easy-to-follow "3 Simple Steps for Grilling Beef" infographic.

While pork chops are a favorite among backyard grillers across the country, the problem is that all too often they come out tough and dry.  In an effort to ensure moist and tender chops each and every time they hit the grill, Grillocracy's compiled a few tips to help get you there.

Take the guess work out of grilling meat, seafood, and vegetables with this comprehensive guide to approximate cook time and internal temperatures, courtesy of Andrea Bravo and the team at Visual News, the site that provides visual inspiration from around the world every day.

We’ve all seen it far too many times – chicken breasts that have been grilled until every last bit of moisture has been sucked out and covered in a layer of burnt on barbecue sauce.

But there is hope yet for all of you poultry grillers!  Here are seven tips to firing up perfectly moist and tender chicken breasts every time.

It’s been a long and harsh winter across the nation with snow and ice storms forcing even the most die-hard barbecue and grilling fans to keep their cooking relegated to the kitchen. But with the start of spring comes warmer temperatures and longer days, the perfect combination for those looking to fire up their backyard smokers and grills for the season’s first backyard cookout.

Whether your grill has been braving the elements on the back porch or has been stowed away in the garage during the offseason, the months of inactivity have likely left it looking nothing like the star of so many barbecues last season.

Ask anyone you know what he or she likes to grill and more often than not one of the top answers will be burgers.  The problem is, many of these burgers end up being dry and flavorless due to any number of factors including the type of meat being used, the cooking temperature used, the amount of time they spend on the grill, etc.

But worry no more!  Today Grillocracy's got 10 tips for reaching burger perfection. 

One of my favorite techniques for cooking on the grill has to be planking.

A process that dates back to at least the Native Americans, planking is a unique form of indirect cooking in which seafood, meat, cheese, vegetables or even fruit are grilled on an untreated piece of wood above the flames.  By doing so, the food is allowed to evenly cook without the threat of direct heat.  Meanwhile the wood serves not only as a heat shield, but a source of flavor as it begins to slowly char and release smoke up and in to the food.

Now many of you may recall a few years back when cedar planked salmon took the grilling world by storm, nearly knocking chicken off its mighty beer can throne as the “it factor” at countless backyard cookouts...

I consider ribs to be one of the holy trinities of low-and-slow barbecue, but getting them just right (i.e. the perfect bite that doesn’t “fall of the bone” despite popular lore, kissed with just the right amount of seasoning and smoke) takes practice. 

Here to get you started in the right direction is the winningest woman in competition barbecue and owner of Memphis Barbecue Co., Melissa Cookston, with her 10 Tips for Rib Perfection.

When it comes to grilling steaks for family or friends, one of my favorite cuts is the flank steak* – a large, flat cut that is both lean and full of beefy flavor.   

In this Flank Steak Grilling How-to sponsored by Omaha Steaks, we'll start with a flavorful marinade as it’s one of a select few cuts of steak that really respond well and are enhanced by marinades (see my tequila-lime marinade recipe below).  To marinate, simply place the flank steak in a zip top bag, pour in the marinade, remove excess air from the bag, seal, and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes and no more than 2 hours. 

It’s officially Spring and that means a ton of seasonal rain showers.  But do you think a little rain is going to keep a serious outdoor cook from firing up the grill?  HECK NO!  If postal workers can get the mail delivered in any weather, then we can surely turn out some mouthwatering grilled dishes.  Here are a few quick tips to help get the job done despite the weather.

Whether your charcoal grill has been lying dormant all winter or you've been using it year-round, Spring is an excellent time to give it a top to bottom cleaning in order to maximize its life and your cooking experience.  Here's Kevin Kolman of Weber to get you started!

When it comes to ribs, there are basically three options available -- the large and meaty spare rib, the smaller but more tender and lean baby back rib, and the St. Louis spare rib (in which the sternum bone and cartilage have been removed from the top of the rib to create a more uniform, rectangular rack).  Today we are focusing on the latter with a "how to" video from our friends at Pork Barrel BBQ.

Last summer I purchased a grinding attachment for my kitchen stand mixer and since then I’ve had a ton of fun grilling my own meat blends for hamburgers, sausage and more.  While ground beef from your local grocery store or butcher are perfectly fine when you’re short on time, grinding it at home allows you the freedom to play with different combinations of chuck, brisket, shortrib, and more. 

Now although grinding your own meat at home might seem extremely challenging, it’s really quite simple once you understand the basics.  For that, we’re turning to John Carruthers and Jesse Valenciana, authors of the recently released BBQ and grilling cookbook ManBQue! By (Running Press, 2014), for their grind meat “how to”. 

Who doesn't love a few slices of perfectly smoked brisket? But for many, the thought of tackling this huge hunk of beef at home can be a daunting task.  

But fear no more!  Here at Grillocracy, we take you through the process step by step, beginning with the selection and trimming process, courtesy of brisket master Aaron Franklin of Austin, TX's famed Franklin Barbecue.

It’s grilling season and we’ve got the ultimate guide to the various types of grills and smokers that are sure to keep you cooking all summer long.

When I think of grilling in Wisconsin, I always think of bratwurst.  First introduced to the US in the late 1800s by German immigrants, bratwurst are becoming increasingly available outside of the Badger state thanks in part to the availability of the Johnsonville® brand at virtually every grocery store nationwide (note that there are other great brands such as Unsingers which are available via mail order).

When it comes to preparing brats, I am of the beer bath school, parboiling the fresh brats before moving to the grill over medium heat to add color.  Now, the rationale behind the beer bath is two fold. 

Unlike marinades which take time to fully penetrate the meat, injections are a quick way to introduce a whole new level of flavor to bigger cuts of meat such as pork picnics and pork butts (collectively referred to as the pork shoulder).

When creating your injection, try to stick with flavors that complement and don’t overwhelm the particular cut of meat (apple works well with pork for example so the use of apple juice and/or apple cider vinegar works well).

In this how-to video, pitmaster extraordinaire Chris Lilly demonstrates techniques for keeping your chicken juicy and delicious -- from rotisserie grilling, dry rubs, beer can chicken, whole split chicken, boneless grilling, and two zone tips and tricks. 

When it comes to grilling, the way in which you position the charcoal in the grill can make a tremendous difference in how your food comes out.  While a large percentage of the foods we grill require high heat and short cooking time, others require indirect cooking, long cooking times, or a combination of hot and cool temperatures.

In this how-to video, pitmaster extraordinaire Chris Lilly shows how to control the internal temperature of your grill and setting up a two-zone fire.

In this how-to video, pitmaster extraordinaire Chris Lilly shows how to arrange the charcoal briquets for indirect low-and-slow cooking on a kettle grill.

In this how-to, pitmaster extraordinaire Chris Lilly showcases three ways to start charcoal, including my method of choice -- the charcoal chimney.

In this how-to video, the team at Kingsford charcoal shows how to grill the perfect steak including tips for telling if it's rare, medium-rare, medium, or well-done.

In this how-to video, Aaron Franklin of Austin's famed Franklin Barbecue shows how to prepare and smoke beef ribs.

In this how-to video, Malcom Reed of HowtoBBQ.com and Killer Hogs competition barbecue team shows how to inject a pork butt or pork shoulder, a means of adding additional depth of flavor and moisture that is most often used in competition cooking.