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North Carolina Chef Says How To Grill Your Best Burger

It sounds so simple, but all you need to do is go to one cookout where your burger is either as cold and raw as the Harris Teeter cooler or…

North Carolina Chef Says How To Grill Your Best Burger
Pexels/Vitaly Kushnir

It sounds so simple, but all you need to do is go to one cookout where your burger is either as cold and raw as the Harris Teeter cooler or and charred and hard as a hockey puck, and you realize:  grilling ain't easy.

Next week is July 4th.  I'm not sure of the percentages, but I'm almost positive that at worst this is one of the top 3 days for grilling out annually in this country.  If you're the man or woman behind the flaming grill grate, and perhaps feeling the pressure, help is here.  Guilford Technical Community College Culinary Chef, Al Romano is sharing the best way to cook your burger(s).  Here's what he told WFMY-TV.

The BIGGEST Mistake Grillers Make

You may think you're doing the right thing turning your meat all the time, but you're not.  In fact, you're committing cardinal sin number one.  Here's what you SHOULD do.  Put the meat on a hot grill (this is important, let the grill get hot).  Cook the burger for a few minutes.  Then move to get some nice grill marks.  Cook a few more minutes, and then fip to the desired temp.  FLIP ONCE AND ONLY ONCE.  Also, use 80/20 meat for best results and for goodness sake, DO NOT press down on the burger.  Keep those juices in kids.

It's All About The Temperature

Kids, this is a biggie.  Color means nothing.  Temperature means everything.  Three words:  use a thermometer.  This is THE most effective tool that will make the difference between your guests enjoying their afternoon by the pool/lake/beach, or in an emergency room with food poisoning.  Important safety tip from my own experience.  Unless you saw your meat ground in front of you, don't get cute cooking your burgers to medium rare or medium.  Cook the burger all the way through.  Oh, and that temperature is in excess of 150 degrees.

America’s Favorite Foods On The Grill

Memorial Day weekend and summer are almost here. Let the grilling begin! Of course, for some us, the grilling never stops. That's one of the nice things about our weather in the Carolinas. We can cook our food outdoors practically year-round. The question is, what are your go-to grilling foods?

According to a survey of 3,000 U.S. adults conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Tabasco Brand, these are America's favorite foods on the grill:

Burgers (45%)

burgers on grill

(Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Chicken (43%)

chicken on grill

(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Hot Dogs (43%)

hot dogs

(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Steak (40%)

steaks on grill

(Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

Ribs (32%)

Guy Fieri grilling ribs

(Photo by Dylan Rives/Getty Images for SOBEWFF®)

Fish (29%)

fish on grill

(Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Vegetables (28%)

vegetables

(Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Shellfish (24%)

lobster on grill

(Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

Fruit (24%)

grilled pineapple

(Photo by Brian Ach/Getty Images for Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi)

Meat substitutes (Plant-based burgers, tofu, etc.) (22%)

veggie burger

(Photo by Adam Berry/Getty Images)

Charlie Nance is the Afternoon Drive co-host (along with his wife) of "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple have been with the radio station since 2006. Charlie has won the prestigious CMA (Country Music Association) Award for Radio Personality of the Year and has been a finalist for the Country Radio Hall of Fame four times. Prior to his time in Charlotte, Charlie (along with Debbie) spent more than a decade hosting successful morning radio shows in Greenville, SC; Augusta, Ga; and Birmingham, Al. As a content creator for Country 1037, Charlie writes about dream lottery windfalls, sports, restaurants and bars, and travel experiences in North and South Carolina.