With The Right Preparation, You Can Grill Year-Round

While advertisers may tout the time period between Memorial Day and Labor Day as grilling season, you can grill year-round if you really have a passion for outdoor cookery. Robbie Shoults, a restaurateur and celebrity chef who owns the Marshall, Texas-based Bear Creek Smokehouse, Marshall Mercantile, and High Horse 1898, feels that spring and fall may be the most enjoyable seasons in which to grill. He tells Mashed, "The weather is usually more tolerable in most areas of the country." He does note, however, that a covered patio or a pop-up canopy are nice to have in case you're sufficiently dedicated that you'll even grill in the rain.

That same canopy could come in handy to provide shade in the summertime, too, if you live somewhere where the temperatures get really hot (as Shoults assures us they do in Texas). The summer griller should also wear plenty of sunscreen and maybe a wide-brimmed hat to keep the sun off of their face.

As for wintertime grilling, Shoults says, "Cooking in the cold is nothing new; [humanity] has been doing it since the beginning of time. It can be a lot of fun if you dress for the occasion." Needless to say, you'll require far heavier outer garments if you're a Packers fan grilling Wisconsin-style brats at a late-season Lambeau Field tailgate than you do if you live in Texas.

If you do want to cook outdoors in arctic temperatures, you'll need to make sure your grill is prepared for the ordeal, as well. One of the biggest mistakes people make when grilling in winter is not allowing sufficient time for the food to cook. When you're grilling outside in the cold, the grill will take extra time to preheat, so you may need to wait another five to 10 minutes before you can throw the meat on.

You should also try not to open the lid of the grill if possible — yes, it may warm you up for a few seconds, but each time you do so could set the food back another five to seven minutes. The longer it takes to cook, the more time you're out there in the cold.

Robbie Shoults points out, though, that you don't need to stay and mind the grill the entire time your food is cooking, which is especially true if you've opted for a low and slow method like smoking. "It's okay to hang out indoors and check on your grill occasionally," he tells us. That will be easier to do if you've set up the grill fairly close to the house (although still at least 10 feet away from anything that might catch on fire).