The Super Easy Way To Find Hot Spots On Your Grill

Grilling is a great way to enjoy the fresh air, spend time with good company, and show off your cooking skills. But to truly call it a successful grilling day, your foods should be cooked evenly and have a good sear. If you've arranged your charcoal the right way but still find that some items are burning while others are undercooked, it's probably due to your grill's hot spots. Luckily, there's an easy way to identify those on both charcoal and gas grills, and all you need is a bag of bread.

Once your grill is fully heated, lower the heat to medium and cover your grilling surface with slices of bread, starting from one corner and working your way across. After about 90 seconds, flip the bread over in the same order that you laid it down. You can then use the toasted bread as a visual heat map to show you which parts of the grill are hottest. Darker toast indicates a hotter area, while lighter coloring points to a cooler area of the grill. This is a great grilling season hack because you can now plan accordingly. Sear steaks and thick pork chops on the hotter areas, and save the cooler spots for fish, chicken breast, vegetables, and burger buns.

The best type of bread to use to find your grill's hotspots is a white, uniformly sliced loaf. This makes it easier to spot the color differences and gives you consistent results. It's best to pick a sturdier bread so that it doesn't fall apart when grilled. For the most accurate results, it's also a good idea to give your grill a quick clean first — this way there's no leftover grease that can cause your bread to char too quickly. If you know you won't remember the hot spots for the next time you have a cookout, take a quick photo once you've flipped your bread.

While this hack is super handy, you might think it's an absolute waste of bread. Well, that's not the case if you know a few easy ways to repurpose it. Turn the grilled bread into croutons for a panzanella salad, pop a few slices in a blender for homemade breadcrumbs, save them for a batch of vanilla pudding French toast, or make a bunch of pulled pork sandwiches.