Manage Your Meat!
You don’t need to blow your entire food budget by always having to serve only the choicest cuts of meat. For example, skip the porterhouse in favor of a good (and MUCH cheaper) skirt or flank steak.
Ignore the boneless skinless chicken breasts for legs and thighs that are high in flavor and low in cost. Even better buy a whole chicken at drastically reduced price per pound and cleave it yourself.
As for fish, ignore the priciest catch of the day and get some darker, grill-friendly fish like mackerel or blue fish. And if anyone tells you frozen fish is an absolute deal breaker for serving guests, don’t invite them! In many cases the fresh fish you buy has already been frozen! Not to mention frozen is just as tasty as fresh, and a lot cheaper!
Dress Up Old Classics
Sticking with the tried and true; chicken, burgers, hot dogs, brats! Just add simple inexpensive elements that can really amp up your flavor.
Things like blue cheese, chopped bacon, or barbecue sauce inside your burger patties before you toss them on the grill can really dress up those old standbys. You can also split brats and hot-dogs lengthwise, add some cheddar and wrap them in bacon. Or let your chicken marinate overnight in your favorite Claude’s marinade.
Grill Your Leftovers!
Cooking is so difficult if your having to do it every single night. Make enough for two or three nights and plan to use your BBQ grill. If you put those briquettes or propane to work just once every couple of days, you decrease the per-meal fuel cost.
In order to reheat, just sprinkle your meat with a barbecue sauce, wrap it in foil, and cook over indirect heat for five minutes. Get creative! Do a vegetable medley with some garlic, butter, and seasonings. Put that on your grill for 15 minutes before hand and then add your leftovers to reheat.
Conserve Fuel
Surprise! People tend to waste fuel when they grill. Many of us pour way too much charcoal into our grills.
Approximately three pounds is average and should be enough to cook most average BBQ meal’s for four to six people.
Using propane? If you’re cooking brisket or pork loin, you only need it on high for the first five minutes the food is on the grill. After that, turn it down to low and let it cook slowly. And remember to turn the propane off after you’ve burned off the grill!
Befriend Your Butcher
There is no better way to keep tabs on when your favorite cuts of meat are going on sale than making friends with those who manage your local market’s butcher block. These people have the inside track!
Build up your relationship with your local butcher so you can find out which cuts have better prices because they aren’t as popular as others.
Like, for example: Lamb Neck. Not many people are interested, so the price is right. And it’s just as tasty as the much more expensive cuts of lamb on display.