With the warmer weather here to stay, it's safe to say that BBQ season is officially here. There's nothing like the faint sizzle and drool-inducing smells of a barbecue, surrounded by friends and family.
However, it can sometimes be quite stressful to arrange a BBQ, as people have very high expectations in terms of flavour and consistency.
When you're managing the grill, one of the most stressful things is preventing the meat from burning or going too dry.
Luckily, food expert and founder of The Gift of Oil, Phil Bianchi, has shared his simple, £2 hack that will prevent your meat from going dry – and it turns out it's a flavour game changer too.
According to Phil, the secret to this is applying a special olive oil mixture to your meat to prevent it drying out. While a bottle of olive oil can cost as little as a couple of pounds, adding a bit to a spray bottle with some lemon won't cost much at all.
He explained: "Often, when cooking on the BBQ, the meat can dry out very quickly. A simple, yet effective, trick to stop this from happening is to find an empty spray bottle in your house.
"Clean it out, and fill it up with lemon juice or lemon infused olive oil to really give it the extra moisture and flavour. Applying this over the meat will not only keep it moist but also elevate the flavour."
Another way of boosting the flavour is adding herbs to the coals, which Phil says can really "up your grilling game and will go down a treat with guests". He added: "Dried herbs can be used, but to really enhance those flavours I'd choose fresh herbs!"
The food expert's BBQ hacks don't stop there, as he also recommends sprucing up your side salads. Phil said: "Bring restaurant quality to your guests this BBQ season and get some infused balsamics to really enhance your salad.
"Whether you love sweet or spicy, just a simple drizzle over salads will make a BBQ buffet go from basic to boujee. Why not try a pomegranate and fig infused balsamic?"
No barbecues are complete without condiments, but Phil recommends you make your own instead of buying them. He said: "BBQs might not always be about presentation, but there's no reason why you can't at least try!
"Put all those condiments, and even the additional toppings for burgers, skewers and salads into a muffin tin. This not only looks fancy for your guests, but it’s also a great way to organise them all."
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