Summer Cookout Tips and Recipes

These gluten-free summer cookout tips and recipes will help you enjoy any summer party, whether you’re attending a Memorial Day, 4th of July, or special occasion cookout this summer.

Find Out What’s Being Served

Ideally, you should ask a few questions before the party. Find out what the main course will be, and ask about any ingredients that might be added to what’s on the grill. For example, the barbecue sauce that will be put on the chicken or ingredients like soy sauce that might be added to ground beef to make the burgers.

Burgers almost always make an appearance at any summer barbecue party and that means hamburger buns will be present. If gluten-free buns are not offered, be sure to bring your own or be prepared to eat your burger with a knife and fork. I like to make a batch of these wonderful gluten-free hamburger buns and keep them in the freezer for such occasions.

Get Your Food First

Whether it’s burgers or anything else coming off the grill and being placed with bread items, it’s important to go straight to the grill and ask for your burger there before it gets contaminated.

Many summer side dishes are naturally gluten free, such as fruit salad, veggie salad, and many chips and dips. But those side dishes can also easily get contaminated by serving utensils from non-gluten-free food being used to serve a gluten-free dish or simply from stray crumbs. Even if the serving utensil is kept in one dish, when someone puts the food item on their plate, it might touch gluten-containing food that is already on their plate.

So…it’s really best if you can get your food before everyone else does. You might want to put your food on a plate, cover it, and set it aside until others are served and eating.

Bring Food You Can Eat

You might consider contributing more food to the meal than you might normally, just so you have plenty to eat. You could bring a side dish and a dessert, or bring whichever is most important to you.

Some great side dish ideas include Chopped Veggie Salad, Southwestern Pasta, and Watermelon, Avocado, Basil Salad.

Popular gluten-free desserts include Angel Food Cupcakes, Fruit Pizza, and Chocolate Chip Cookies.

You might also want to bring some extra food just for yourself in case you get there and decide that the other food being served is not going to be safe for you.

Have Fun!

Take your focus off the food and put it on enjoying the people at the event. I know it can be hard to do, but it’s simply more fun to have fun!