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Charcoal or gas? Brats or burgers? Rare, medium or well-done? No matter what side of these debates you’re on, chances are you can afford to level up your grill skills for this summer’s backyard barbecues and baseball tailgates. Maybe you just invested in your very first Weber, or perhaps you’re a practiced grillmaster just looking to up your game. Either way, these thoughtful tips from local chefs will come in handy when it comes time to get fired up.

How to rock your charcoal grill
First, invest in a charcoal chimney. “Chimneys are super inexpensive, and they’re very easy to use,” said Joey Beato, executive chef-partner at Community Tavern in Portage Park. “What [a lot of people] will do is dump all the charcoal in the middle, then the grill will be the same temperature, which you don’t really want. What I like to do is move the charcoal where you want it.” For example, pile the charcoal on one side for a high-temp searing surface. “Once you get your crust, you can move [your meat] to the other side and you’re not going to get all the flare up from the fat. It makes your life lot easier,” he said. Beato likes to use wood chips as a firestarter; newspaper works, too, but whatever you do, don’t commit the cardinal sin of grilling: “Just don’t use lighter fluid. It’s horrible,” he said.

Beer can chicken
Beer can chicken

Beer can chicken in 5 steps
According to Darren McGraw, chef at Ampersand Wine Bar in Lincoln Square
1. Drink the beer.
2. Season the bird inside and out.
3. Shove empty beer can into cavity and position bird upright with legs facing down.
4. Add wood chips to your grill to achieve smoky flavor.
5. Grill bird—off flame, so fat doesn’t cause flare-ups.

Quick and dirty marinade
“I’ve made something that I like to call ‘Mudd.’ It’s leftover herbs that are getting dry or black; I blend them in with garlic, shallot and oil until it’s smooth. It will come out [looking] like green oil, and I pour it over meat to marinate until I’m ready to use it. It’s a great way to use up herbs that are about to spoil, and it tastes a little different each time!” —Mariela Bolaños, executive chef of Mad Social in the West Loop

3 tips for killer burgers
According to Justin Vaiciunas, corporate executive chef at Bucktown’s WhirlyBall

1. Go to press
“When prepping your burger, make sure it is evenly pressed and also pressed thin. Having a burger that is really thick can make the outside become hard and burnt while the center is still not cooked to a perfect medium.”

2. Flip out
“During the cooking process, never squeeze or press the burger. You should flip the burger four times, which means taking a half-pound burger and flipping it over [after] 2 minutes and rotating it 90 degrees, then repeating three more times.”

3. Got buns, hun
“When your burger is done, throw the buns on the grill—the same time you are about to melt the cheese—to soften the bread. The best burgers are all about texture and flavor. The bun should be soft and not overpower the flavor of the meat. I always recommend a potato-style bun.”

How to prep for your next grilling session
How to prep for your next grilling session

How not to suck at grilling fish
“The best way to grill fish is on a clean, hot grill,” said Jeff Mahin, chef-partner of Summer House Santa Monica and Stella Barra Pizzeria in Lincoln Park. “Most people do not let the grill get to the proper temperature and end up messing with the fish before it’s ready, which causes the fish to stick and rip apart,” Mahin said. First, lightly oil the fish. “Too much oil … and you will get a black, smoky and bad-tasting soot on the fish,” he said. Next, clean the grill thoroughly (any remnants from your last cookout will stick to the fish) and test the heat of your grill to make sure it’s hot enough. Mahin recommends taking an old rag dipped in a bit of olive oil to lightly brush the grill. If the oil sizzles and then smokes, you’re ready to roll. Last, place your fish on the grill. “If you feel the need to check the fish, carefully check by lifting up a side—check for golden brown sear marks. If they are there, then you can turn the fish.” He recommends cooking fish to medium. “No one likes dry, overcooked fish,” he said. “Try removing from the grill about two minutes before you think it is ready and the heat will carry over and finish cooking the fish to perfection.”
Bonus points: “Lay citrus and herbs over the fish while grilling, as this will add flavor and some cool chef skills to your toolbox,” Mahin said.

Chef’s favorite
Cesar Gutierrez, director of culinary operations at Pinstripes, which has a location in Streeterville, loves to grill on a Big Green Egg, a barbecue modeled after ancient clay cooking vessels of China’s Qin Dynasty. “[It’s a] ceramic, lump charcoal grill that lets you adjust the heat levels via an airflow valve, allowing you more control over the temperature than average charcoal grills,” he said. “It is the perfect tool for when trying out new recipes and helps you to cook them right the first time.”

Best backyard beers
Try not to obsess over finding the perfect pairing, said Jacob Sembrano, head brewer of West Loop brewery and taqueria Cruz Blanca. “With something that’s an experience that’s supposed to be as lighthearted and easy as grilling … I think that sometimes we overcomplicate the process of finding a good beer.” That said, here are a few of his suggestions.

Pilsners & kolshes: “Both [have] a kind of light malt character and medium-low bitterness that’s really refreshing and thirst-quenching.”

Sours: Think goses and Berliner weisses. “[It] works exceptionally well with barbecued meats, grilled meats, smoked meats—anything with some heavy char and heavy spices.”

Pale ales: “I tend to go with drier styles of beer; even pale ales are really refreshing when doing this. I try to stay away from really big, rich maltier beers like brown ales and stouts and porters … if it’s 80-plus degrees outside and you’re standing over a hot grill, the last thing you probably want to be drinking is something really rich.”

The magic number: 5.5 percent. “Especially if I’m going to be doing multiple consumption, I generally like to stick in the 5.5 percent ABV and below, something I can really throw down and not think too much about it.”

Best grill-side wines
Mitch Einhorn, owner of at Lush Wine & Spirits in West Town and Roscoe Village, and Darren McGraw, chef at Ampersand Wine Bar, share their picks.
Red: Einhorn likes fruit-forward wines such as syrah or red zinfandel with grilled chicken or ribs. “People always assume big cabs,” McGraw said. To switch it up, he suggests summertime reds such as mencia, frappato and aged beaujolais.
White: “On the white wine side, I pair rieslings with everything on and off the grill,” McGraw said. “Their versatility is amazing.”
Pink: Yes way, rosé! You can’t go wrong when you think pink, McGraw said.

Develop a system—and stick to it
“Whenever I’m grilling a large number of items, I always work from left to right, back to front as I rotate and turn grilled items,” said Aaron McKay, executive chef at Mercat a la Planxa in the South Loop. “This way, I can tell by where something is what my next step will be.” Here’s how he does it: Start with your meat or veg at a 45-degree angle. When it has a good sear, move it over one row and rotate 90 degrees to the left. “This will give you those pretty diamond-shaped grill marks,” McKay said. Flip and move to the second side. Repeat the process so that you’re putting raw meat on the left side and taking off cooked product on the right side. “This will make you more efficient, consistent and reduce the chances of contamination” between raw and cooked proteins, he said.

Put a lid on it
“If you close the lid on your grill, you are now turning your grill into an oven, which is great for cooking vegetables,” said George Giannoulias, owner of Green Street Local in the West Loop. “This can also be helpful if you need to cook your meats to medium-well or well-done.”

Oddball grill hack
Use balled-up aluminum foil to clean the grill grate. “It gets between the bars really well, and you can reuse or throw away,” said Shaun Connolly, executive chef at Presidio in Bucktown.

Add kiwi to your marinade for a tenderizing kick
Add kiwi to your marinade for a tenderizing kick

Secret marinade ingredient
“I like to use pureed kiwi in my marinades,” Connolly said. “One kiwi per quart of marinade will tenderize without adding much flavor. It’s great for ribs, pork shoulder and skirt steaks because it breaks down tough connective tissue.”

Lisa Arnett is a RedEye contributor.