(NAPSA)—The next time you're looking to advance your grilling skills or bring newflavors to neighborhood cookouts, you may care to consider somesecrets to grilling success. They come from eight culinarians whooutgrilled over 3,600 others in the first annual Red Lobster Certified Grill Master Competition. The contest revolved around the newest addition to every kitchen in the restaurant chain: a wood-fire grill that sears in the juices and brings out the natural flavor of seafood. For a winning grilling experience of your own,follow thesetips: 1. Start off clean. Competition winner Alex Lopez, Tampa, Fla., creates a clean grill surface by using a grill grate brush. Season the grill with a light coat of vegetable oil to prevent sticking. 2. Season safely. A.J. Subramaniam, a winner from Ontario, Canada, suggests marinating seafood for up to two hours before cooking to infuse it with flavor. Set aside an extra dish of marinade just for basting while cooking to avoid spreading any bacteria. Use different utensils for handling cooked pieces on thegrill. 3. Notice temperature zones. Matt Cavanaugh and Nathan Schwartz, Certified Grill Masters from the Roanoke, Va., and Detroit, Mich., areas, check the grill for hot and moderate temperature zones. For even cooking, place thicker foods at the center of the grill, smaller pieces toward the edges and leave one inch of space between each piece. A secret to great-looking seafood and steak is perfect grill marks. 4, Use proper tools. Place fish fillets such as salmon, mahi- mahior tilapia directly on the grill with grilling tongs. Winner Robert Hart, Denver, Colo., pre- fers metal or water-soaked wooden skewers for cooking shrimp and scallops. 5. Look for cooking clues. Robert Felia, from Wilkes-Barre, Pa., uses visual cues to determine if seafood or steak is cooked to perfection. Steak juice turns clear as it cooks, shrimp turns from clear to white and salmon becomes more opaque with time. 6. Go for the grill marks. A secret to great-looking seafood and steak is perfect grill marks. Winners Jesus Ramirez and Brandon Williams from Temecula, Calif., and College Station, Texas, cook fish or steak for two to three minutes without turning. Then, rotate a quarter turn on the grill and cook for two to three minutes longer on the sameside. Flip to the other side andfinish. Learn More For additional grilling tips and seafood recipes, visit www. redlobster.com.
