Cooking guides
Direct and indirect grilling.
Two ways to use the heat, and a useful lens for choosing the cooking space and controls you want.
Direct: food above the heat
Direct cooking places food over the active heat source. It is useful when you want surface color and can attend to food as it cooks. The distance from the heat, the grill setting and the food itself all affect the result.
For vegetables, leave room to turn and move pieces rather than filling every inch. If one area is cooking faster, move food as needed instead of relying on a fixed time alone.
Indirect: food beside the heat
Indirect cooking positions food away from the active heat source. It offers another way to finish food that needs more time without leaving its surface directly above the heat.
On a suitable multi-burner gas grill, this may involve using selected burners while leaving another area unlit. On charcoal, fuel placement can create the zones. Follow the setup and operating instructions for your own grill; not every appliance supports the same arrangement.
Plan for movement
Useful cooking space includes somewhere to move food when it has enough color. Compare the main grate area and burner arrangement if this is how you like to cook. A warming rack is not automatically a substitute for a separate cooking zone.
For your first cooks, prepare the food and serving dishes before lighting the grill. Keep attention on the cooking and adjust based on the food’s appearance and texture.
Compare cooking space (opens in a new tab)Put the idea into practice
Our vegetable platter is a simple place to begin: cook manageable pieces, turn as needed and remove each vegetable when ready. The corn recipe offers another short outdoor cooking project with a finish added at the table.
These recipes are original starting points, not model-specific operating instructions. Use your grill’s manual for lighting, preheating and operation.
Make the grilled vegetable platter (opens in a new tab)