Memorial Day Recipes

This is an incredible little oven with simple, reliable operation, whether you're using gas, wood, or charcoal to fire it. It consistently hits wood-fired-oven temperatures and maintains them for as long as you are cooking, with no fussing or babysitting, which means you can spend more time enjoying pizza with your friends and family and less time coddling a temperamental flame. It's attractive, solidly built, weatherproof, and portable.

I’ve been cooking on Weber charcoal grills for over 20 years now, and the only reason I’ve ever retired one has been to give it to a deserving friend or because a cross-country move forced me to. If you want a family-sized charcoal grill for less than $200 that can cook anything and will last forever, the Weber Original 22-Inch is it. Whether you get the standard, ash tray–style model or the Premium (formerly the One-Touch Gold) with its built-in ash catcher, the sheer space and searing power of a Weber Kettle will put gas grills to shame. Its large cooking area and deeply domed lid will allow you to smoke a few racks of ribs or a turkey over indirect heat, or grill over a dozen burgers at a time.

One of the most frustrating parts of grilling for me is the parade of bowls, plates, and tools you have to carry from the kitchen to the grilling station outdoors. A stack of inexpensive rimmed aluminum baking sheets makes this easy. Just load them up with food or utensils, and you're ready to go. Of course, in the off season, they're the best pans for roasting meat, baking cookies, and charring vegetables.

A good grill basket should be durable, with a tight enough weave to allow very small foods to be cooked without risk of getting lost. Finally, it's worth hunting down one that's sizable enough to cook large batches of food in one go. One of our favorites is the simple Culina stainless steel basket. The metal mesh keeps even the smallest food items up on the grill grate where they belong. You can even toast or smoke nuts in it.