Casual Conversation: What's your go-to BBQ food?

[Abigail_S]

With summer in full swing comes backyard BBQs on repeat. 

The nice weather is a great excuse to fire up the grill and invite your closest friends and family over. It's the perfect time to bust out your cornhole skills and get overly competitive for a few hours! Cookouts are a great time to kickback, get together, and eat some good food. As much as I love to devour the plethora of pasta salad, I am the one who brings the homemade chocolate chip cookies to the BBQ. 

What's your go-to food is that you're bringing to the next cookout? 

[Grace_R]

I am all about the pasta salad and potato salad! I like to make a pasta salad with orzo, grilled zucchini, grilled corn, feta, basil, and a lemon vinaigrette. And every single year I make dill potato salad, following a recipe by America's Test Kitchen. It's outstanding! I've also been making pesto grilled shrimp a lot this year. NOTHING beats pesto in the summer!

[Abigail_S]

Pesto grilled shrimp sounds AMAZING! I wish I was going to your house for cookouts 😁

[Chris-S]

IDK why I read pasta salad with orzo as pasta salad with oreos 😂

[William_A]

Reminds me of the Midwest "salads" that frequent our cookouts and barbecues. Oreo salad, grape salad, snicker salad, ambrosia salad...

[Chris-S]

Like a candy salad!

[Caitlin_M]

I bring the fruit salad. Summer screams "fruit" to me. Watermelon on a hot summer day? Yes. I heard to put sea salt on top of it and I haven't looked back since. 

[William_A]

My dad swears by salt on certain fruits - cantaloupe (though he always called it muskmelon), watermelon, and honeydew. He also swears by american cheese on some pie slices??? I've always been a bit skeptical, but it might be a generational or regional thing.

[Elizabeth_K]

Salt on grapefruit makes it sweeter! Though I can't get behind American cheese on pie, I really do like cheddar with apple pie. Sometimes I put it in the crust. Sometimes it's a little wedge on the side. I think it's a New England thing. So probably an English thing. Lol!

[William_A]

Love that Jennifer Coolidge quote 🌭 🇺🇸 🎆

When I'm feeling lazy and/or cheap, it's definitely brats. I can get a dozen for $1 each at my local grocery chain, and a lot of interesting flavors that I can't really get in the pre-packaged sets. Plus most of my friends can't handle even a little spice, so I get to eat all the good ones 😈. A dollop of sweet & hot mustard or some of my homemade sauce ties it all together.

When I'm feeling like doing the most, it's definitely burgers. Get a nice crust of salt and pepper on it ahead of time, and make sure they're shaped right to avoid them turning into small, round lumps. I also make sure to prepare the other accoutrements - whiskey-barrel smoked candied pepper bacon, garlic butter buns, and an array of sauces ranging from sweet to spicy to tangy, depending on what veggies or other stuff people want to put on them. Plain or nacho-cheese chips are also a regular addition to the burgers, at least among my friends and family.

A tavern my friends and I frequent also has some kind of curry powder-flavored burger that's really good, so I might try recreating that some time.

[Elizabeth_K]

I may be crazy, but peanut butter on a burger is 😚👌, and that's before you add the bacon.

Have you ever had Chinese sausages? They're bright red and they taste like spare ribs. I love them on the grill!

[Abigail_S]

Peanut butter and burgers!? How did you discover this combo?

[Elizabeth_K]

Lol! I was a bored suburban teenager trying to gross out my friends, and it turned out to be delicious. I have also been known to put peanut butter in a homemade burrito. It's good stuff!

[ACTIVATE]

I eat peanut butter and jelly every day for lunch... now I'm gonna have to branch out

[Chris-S]

I am on a peanut butter and jelly kick right now 😂

[Nick_S]

I once tried marshmallow on a burger and it was actually pretty good (also a bored teenager screwing around with friends).

Peanut butter on a lot of things is really good. I've had a lot of stir fries and curries with peanut butter as a main component and it's delicious.

[Chris-S]

A picture says a thousand words; this gif says the only one I need...ribs!

[Elizabeth_K]

Homemade chocolate chip cookies make excellent ice cream sandwiches! 🍪🍨🍪

If I have to go somewhere, my go to is a corn and avocado salad. It's made with frozen corn so it stays cool while you travel, it's easy to switch up ingredients, and it doubles easily. The basic recipe is:

• A bag of frozen baby gold and white corn.
• An avocado - chopped
• A half pint of cherry or grape tomatoes - halved or sliced
• A shallot or purple onion - diced (about 1/4 cup)
• A bunch of cilantro - chopped
• The juice of half a lime, and the zest if you want
• Olive oil and vinegar - whatever kind you want - just dress it like a salad
• Salt and pepper, and if you're feeling frisky add some chipotle chili powder

I might just make this for dinner now that I'm thinking about it. Lol!

[TraceyLeeDavis]

I love grilled corn on the cob!

Also, I am gluten-free and don't eat most types of meat, and it's amazing how many BBQ staples have gluten, beef, or pork in them! So if I am going to one, I will usually bring chicken or turkey dogs and GF buns, purely for selfish reasons so I have something to eat!

[Caitlin_M]

I never thought about that! My sister's in-laws are considerate of gluten intolerances in their family so they put chicken sausages on the grill. They're so good.

[ACTIVATE]

I'm a flexitarian, meaning I eat meat every once in a while... and I live in the mountains of Western North Carolina, so you can bet I eat some BBQ! I love pulled pork sandwiches or smoked beef brisket.

[Elizabeth_K]

I'm so hungry now! Brisket is my favorite, closely followed by pulled pork. 

[Caitlin_M]

Pulled pork mac and cheese is *chefs kiss*. Delicious.

[user537165]

As much as I love indulging in the variety of pasta salads, I'm known for bringing homemade chocolate chip cookies to the BBQ.

[Chris-S]

Cookies, my one weakness!