Safe(r) Springtime Grilling

Sunny and warm up and down the East Coast this week; birds are chirping and the 'dogs are smoking. Are you on my neighbors' wavelength? Have you gotten your grills out en masse?

I love our grill - it's quick cooking with easy cleanup. But grilling food at high temperatures creates nasty cancer-causing chemicals. Acrylamide (created when amino acids and sugars are subjected to heat above 248*F) may cause endometrial and ovarian cancer. (Great summary of the acrylamide issue here). Heterocyclic aromatic amines (HCA and HAA) may cause breast and colon cancer. (Great summary of the HCA/HAA issue here). Then there's polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), formed from burning fat and smoke. Possibly leading to stomach cancer.

What can we do besides following a raw diet (acrylamides are in just about every high-temperature and processed food, including whole wheat bread and cereal)?

Keep the chemicals at bay by watching how you cook.

Safer grilling boils down to one herb (rosemary) and one technique (marinating).

• Rosemary is amazing (and easy to grow yourself). It reduces acrylamide and kills free radicals
• (Side note: rosemary's also been tested as a safe alternative to carbon monoxide, which is currently -- ptooey!--used to keep conventional meat pink until purchase.)
• Other anti-acrylamide techniques? Marinating meat, adding a teaspoon of wheat bran to your burgers and soaking your potatoes before you make your own delectable french fries. (tips via Better Food Choices and ScienceDaily)

Other common-sense techniques from helium.com:

1. Don't eat the blackened or charred parts of the meat. (MamaBird adds: our British relatives are nodding emphatically at the idea of avoiding "burned food" -- they don't bbq at all across the pond!).
2. Use a drip pan or foil to prevent juices that cause smoke.
3. Cook meat slowly over low heat.
4. Don't let the flames touch the meat.
5. Turn the meat with tongs instead of a fork to prevent the release of smoke causing juices.
6. Use low-fat cuts of meat.
7. Consider grilling skewered vegetables and fruits instead of meat. They do not produce carcinogens even when charred.

If all else fails, you can simply rely on this list of the eight worst foods in America (one of which is my standby airport snack - can you guess which one?) and at least steer clear of them after tucking into your ribs....