Summer is here and all is well! And in honor of it officially being barbecue season, culinary icon Andrew Zimmern — who will host Tastemade’s Grill Week June 30th through July 4th — shared his best outdoor summer entertaining tips and favorite recipes with Us.
Before sending out all those invites and firing up the grill, be sure to jot down the chef’s useful pointers to ensure your bash is a smokin’ success. “You’re not hosting just any BBQ,” the James Beard Award winner said. “You’re curating an al fresco symphony of smoke, sun and social sparkle.”
Zimmern truly has the answers to everything — whether it’s how to properly arrange tables and chairs to prevent your company from feeling cramped, or his must-try chicken and sauce recipes that will leave guests beyond impressed.
Keep scrolling for the restaurateur’s foolproof recommendations to help you throw “an elite-level summer BBQ.” Enjoy!
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Shade & Seating Are the New Caviar
No one remembers the brisket if they got sunstroke in the process. Rent a sailcloth tent, erect a tarp or invest in some crisp white umbrellas. Scatter low lounge seating and cocktail tables throughout the space. Don’t use a picnic table by itself like it’s the end of Little League. People mingle better when they’re not melting.
Serve Food Like a Proper Roman
Forget piling the entire meal out at once like a church potluck. Start with oysters, melon with prosciutto, or grilled peaches and goat cheese. Then roll out the mains and finish with something dramatic like my banana pudding. Staggered service = sustained delight.
Cocktail Hour Should Last Forever
Batch your cocktails. A big-batch Paloma with mezcal and fresh grapefruit wins hearts, but you should also have something with a low-ABV [alcohol by volume] like a spritz bar with seasonal fruits and herbs (thyme + strawberries = BBQ brilliance). Hydration is sexy too. Make sure you have PLENTY of NA [non-alcoholic] beverages and lots of water options.
Flame-Kissed, Not Flame Lighting: Set the Mood, Not the House on Fire
As the sun dips, your lighting should rise: fairy lights in trees, hurricane lanterns on tables, and clusters of candles at different heights. Skip the tiki torches, they’re not for stylish soirées. Mood lighting hides a multitude of sins.
Ask For Help
Your BBQ isn’t just a cookout. It’s a lifestyle flex with grill marks. Let the neighbors do the burgers. You’re giving Le Jardin de Feu vibes. The one mistake you don’t want to make when hosting an outdoor party is doing it all yourself. This buries every rookie party host. Have someone else deal with a cooler of beverages, have someone else bring dessert or make a pie ahead of time yourself; once your guests arrive you want to BE WITH THEM. You don’t want to be slaving over a grill. That’s why I make a few items for nibbling on. Then serve the meal. Everything is made ahead except maybe taking the BBQ items off the grill when the guests arrive. They will still be warm later when you serve them, or place on a platter in an oven set to 125-150 degrees.
Be Your Own Grill Master
While the James Beard Award-winning chef is happy to let guests bring the burgers, there’s one thing he always makes himself. “I think the BBQ chicken [recipe below] is my favorite BBQ recipe,” he says. “It reminds me of the Amagansett Firemen’s annual fund raiser my mom would take us to every August when I was growing up. For me, smokiness and char, go so well with chicken and this recipe delivers on that promise. It’s easy to do ahead, it tastes as good hot as it does warm or cold. That makes it perfect for summer when cooking and entertaining should be EASY. I devour this chicken every time I make it and apparently my guests do too, there are never leftovers.” The key, Zimmern says, is to cook the chicken quarters over indirect heat with a lot of smoke, before finishing them over the coals until nice and crispy. Glaze the chicken right before you take if off the grill to avoid burning the sauce.
INGREDIENTS
For the Barbecue Chicken:
2 quarts water
2/3 cup salt
5 chicken leg quarters
Salt
Pepper
Vegetable Oil
Applewood chips, soaked in water
Barbecue sauce
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For the Sauce:
3 cups cider vinegar
3 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp dark corn syrup
1 cup Heinz chile sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp Crystal hot sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp red chile flakes, or more to taste
1 tsp ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
1. In a large stockpot, combine the water, sugar and salt. Whisk until dissolved. Add the chicken leg quarters to the pot, and additional water if needed to ensure the chicken is covered. Place in the fridge overnight.
2. Two hours before you want to start the grill, remove the chicken from the brine and place on a baking sheet fitted with a wire rack. Place back in the fridge to dry on the rack.
3. Prepare a charcoal grill for indirect cooking. Light a chimney full of charcoal and let burn until the top of the charcoal turns white. Dump the coals into one side of a kettle grill. Clean and oil the grate.
4. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Brush the tops of the chicken lightly with vegetable oil. Place on the grill, with the leg end of the chicken quarter furthest from the fire. Put a couple handfuls of the soaked wood chips on top of the charcoal. Cover the grill with the lid and close the top vent. Cook for 30 to 45 minutes, until well browned.
5. While the chicken is cooking, light another half-full chimney of charcoal. After the chicken has cooked on the cool side of the grill for about 45 minutes, add the additional charcoal to the hot side of the grill. Cover with the lid and open the top vent. When the heat is back above 400 degrees, move the chicken to cook directly over the coals. Cook for another 10 minutes, flipping once (or more if needed to avoid flare-ups). Glaze with barbecue sauce and cook for about a minute to allow the sauce to set. Transfer the chicken to a platter and let it rest for at least 5 minutes. Dig in, passing more barbecue sauce at the table.
Be sure to check out more of Zimmern’s barbecue classics for your bash. For cocktail hour, we recommend his Charred Eggplant Salad with Pita for dipping and Shrimp Remoulade, while the Pineapple Glazed Baby Back Ribs, Grilled Onion Salad, Grilled Little Gem Salad and Chopped Cole Slaw are top contenders for the main course. Lastly, satisfy everyone’s sweet tooth with the Banana Pudding with Swiss Meringue!
