Our 10 Best Grilling Tips—All in One Place

Grill marks. Grill marks are mysterious. No matter how hard you try to stoke the fire, sometimes that steak just won't get those crosshatches of charred glory. Or maybe you can't get the charcoal to light in the first place. 

We've all been there—some of us more often than others. But there's just something about grilling and summer that makes us want to be better grillers. They're a dynamic duo, which is why, no matter your grilling woes, we're here with our best grilling tips our community has written about over the years.

Here are our 10 best tips, plus some of the best tools for the job, to help you tame the flame:

How to Light a Grill

You might want matches—and a Milk Bottle Match Scratcher for that:

  

 

How to Grill a Whole Fish

A Sampler Pack of Grilling Plans will add flavor—and keep the fish from falling through the grates:

  

 

How to Clean, Prep, and Grill Fish + Shellfish

Salt for the table is way more fun in an Oyster Salt Cellar:

  

 

How to Achieve Perfect Grill Marks

For an extra caramelized curst, use a Grill Press:

  

 

5 Tips for Better, Not-at-All Dry Grilled Chicken Breasts

An Extra Large Grill Spatula will make the flipping extra easy:

  

 

The Do’s and Don’ts of Grilling Leafy Greens

Add low-n-slow flavor, by way of Smoking Chips:

  

 

All About Grilling Fruit

Peel, core, and slice your fruit with an Essential Kitchen Knives Set:

 

How to Clean a Grill

A Grill Scraper will make this hella easier:

  

 

What We Learned about Grilling From 9 Cookbooks

Rather than tossing your bamboo skewers every time, try Hand-Forged Metal Skewers that can be washed and reused:

  

 

The Proper Way to Shut Down a Grill

And if that sounds no fun, try a Grill Pan right on your stovetop:

  

This post originally ran last summer, but we bulked it up with helpful tools and brought it back for summer. Happy grilling!

Have some great grilling advice? Tell us in the comments below!

Photos by James Ransom and Tom Hirschfeld