Off the Galley Mike
Mike — Off The Galley
Six years as a Navy cook on submarines and destroyers, feeding 130 sailors from a galley the size of your bathroom. Now I cook the same big-flavor, no-nonsense food for my family of four — and share every recipe here. No culinary school. No fancy plating. Just real food that works, tested on the toughest critics afloat and the pickiest ones at home.
Top 18 Grilling Recipes for Your Next Cookout
Everything you need to run a perfect cookout. I fell in love with grilling after my first duty station in San Diego. The steel beach picnic — grilling steaks on the deck of a surfaced sub — is still one of my favorite Navy memories. Now the backyard grill is where I spend most of my weekends, and these are the recipes that have earned permanent spots in the rotation.
Texas-Style Brisket
The king. Salt, pepper, oak smoke, 12+ hours of patience. If you’ve never smoked a brisket, start here. It’s a commitment, but the payoff is legendary.
Baby Back Ribs
Low and slow with a dry rub. Whether you wrap or go naked, these ribs are the crowd-pleaser that never fails.
Pulled Pork
Pork shoulder, smoke, time. Shred it, sauce it, pile it on a bun. The most forgiving protein on the smoker.
Grilled Chicken Thighs
The weeknight grilling workhorse. Thighs are more forgiving than breasts and the skin gets impossibly crispy over direct heat.
Grilled Ribeye Steak
Salt, pepper, screaming hot grill. The simple approach that produces steakhouse results for a fraction of the price.
Grilled Tri-Tip
Santa Maria style, reverse seared. West Coast BBQ at its finest. Ready in 90 minutes — the fastest impressive cut.
Beer Can Chicken
Looks ridiculous, tastes incredible. The steam keeps the chicken impossibly moist while the skin crisps.
Smoked Wings
Smoke low, finish hot. The two-temperature method produces wings with deep smoke flavor and crispy skin.
Dry Rub Chicken Wings
All the flavor is in the rub. No sticky sauce, no mess, just crispy, seasoned wings.
Perfect Burger Patty
80/20 beef, minimal handling, dimple in the center. The fundamentals that produce a great burger every time.
Grilled Hot Dogs
Spiral cut for maximum char. Simple, fast, and every cookout needs them.
Grilled Corn on the Cob
Husk on, husk off, or butter-wrapped in foil. Three methods, all excellent.
Smoked Mac and Cheese
Regular mac and cheese plus 45 minutes of smoke time. The smoky flavor makes it a side dish that steals the show.
Elote (Mexican Street Corn)
Charred corn, mayo, cotija, Tajín, lime. The best thing on a cob.
Carne Asada Tacos
Marinated flank steak, grilled hot, sliced thin. San Diego changed my life, and this is the taco that started it.
Street Corn Salad
All the elote flavors in a scoopable bowl. The side dish that goes with everything.
Banana Pudding
The cookout closer. Nilla wafers, vanilla pudding, bananas. Make it the night before and bring it cold.
Jalapeño Poppers
Cream cheese, bacon, grill. Gone in five minutes. The appetizer that never makes it to the main course.
Building a Cookout
Pick one main protein, two sides, one appetizer, and banana pudding. That’s your cookout. Don’t overcomplicate it.
The Steel Beach Memory
The best cookout I ever attended was on the deck of a surfaced submarine in the Pacific. We called it a steel beach picnic — the whole crew topside for the first time in weeks, grilling steaks and hot dogs on portable grills lashed to the deck, blue sky overhead for the first time in a month. The food wasn’t special. Standard Navy-issue steaks, hot dogs, and burgers. But eating outside after weeks underwater made everything taste incredible.
That’s what grilling is about. The food matters, but the experience matters more. The smell of charcoal, the sound of sizzle, standing outside with a cold drink while something delicious slowly transforms over heat. Every recipe on this list is designed for that experience.
The Grill Setup Guide
The most important grilling concept. Hot coals on one side (direct heat for searing), no coals on the other (indirect heat for gentle cooking). This setup handles everything from (direct, high heat, 2 minutes) to (indirect, 350°F, 90 minutes). One setup, all recipes.
Open vents = more oxygen = hotter fire. Closed vents = less oxygen = cooler fire. This is the only temperature control you need on a charcoal grill. On a gas grill, just turn the knobs.
Buy an instant-read thermometer. Use it every time. Guessing doneness is how people ruin meat. at 130°F (medium-rare) is perfect. At 150°F it’s gray and tough. That 20-degree window is the difference between an incredible steak and an expensive mistake.
Smash Burgers
Thin, crispy, stacked, and better than the drive-through for a buck fifty. Six months at sea, dreaming about a real burger. This is that burger.
Beer Can Chicken
Whole chicken sitting on a beer can on the grill. Ridiculous looking. Insanely juicy.
Grilled Ribeye Steak
Ribeye, salt, pepper, screaming hot grill. Two minutes per side. Rest it. Eat it. Steel beach picnic — the day we grilled steaks on the deck of a surfaced sub.
Cookout Planning by Group Size
One protein ( or ), one side ( or ), dessert (). 90 minutes total. $25-35.
Two proteins ( + ), two sides ( + ), appetizer (), dessert. 2-3 hours. $50-60.
Three proteins ( + + ), full side spread, banana pudding. 12+ hours. $100-150. This is the commitment cook — start the night before, serve the next afternoon. Worth every minute.
Grilled Chicken Thighs
Thighs over breasts. Every time. Juicier, cheaper, and harder to overcook. Chicken thighs are superior. I will die on this hill.
Grilled Corn on the Cob
Charred, buttered, and the easiest side you’ll ever make on a grill.
Elote (Mexican Street Corn)
Charred corn, mayo, cotija, chili powder, lime. San Diego street food at its finest. Liberty in San Diego — the street corn vendor outside the gate.
Banana Pudding
Nilla wafers, vanilla pudding, fresh bananas, whipped cream. The BBQ dessert that matters.
Smoked Mac and Cheese
Mac and cheese + 30 minutes in the smoker = the best BBQ side that exists.
Street Corn Salad
All the flavors of elote but scoopable. Perfect side for tacos, BBQ, or just a spoon.
Jalapeño Poppers
Cream cheese, bacon, grill. The appetizer that disappears before the main course.
Texas-Style Brisket
Low and slow. No shortcuts. This is a weekend commitment and it’s worth every hour. First thing I did stateside — bought a smoker.
Charcoal vs. Gas
Charcoal produces better flavor — the combustion of hardwood charcoal generates compounds that gas simply can’t replicate. Gas is more convenient — push a button and you’re cooking in 10 minutes. I use charcoal for weekend cooks when flavor matters most and gas for weeknight grilling when speed matters. Both produce great food. Don’t let anyone tell you one is wrong.
Common Grilling Mistakes
Every time you lift the lid, you lose 50-75°F of heat and add 5-10 minutes to cook time. The meat doesn’t cook faster when you stare at it. Set a timer and walk away.
A charcoal grill needs 20-30 minutes after lighting to reach proper cooking temperature. A gas grill needs 15 minutes on high with the lid closed. An underheated grill produces gray, steamed meat instead of properly seared meat with grill marks and char.
High heat is for steaks, burgers, and thin cuts that cook fast. and need indirect heat or they’ll char outside while remaining raw inside. over direct high heat is a recipe for burnt rubber.
Sugar-based BBQ sauces burn over direct heat. Apply only during the last 5-10 minutes of cooking, or after the meat comes off the grill entirely.
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: rest every protein. Five minutes minimum for steaks. Ten for chicken. One to two hours for brisket. Cutting into meat immediately releases the juices you spent hours developing. Patience is the last — and most important — grilling skill.
The grill is more than cooking equipment — it’s the center of summer life. Every recipe on this list has been tested over years of backyard cookouts. Start with the easy cooks, work your way up to brisket, and enjoy every meal along the way.
Fire up the grill this weekend. Start simple — and . Once you’re comfortable, work your way up to brisket. The journey is half the fun.
Grilling is the one form of cooking that gets better the more people you feed. More food on the grill, more friends in the yard, more reasons to stay outside.
Homemade BBQ Sauce
Ketchup base, brown sugar, vinegar, smoke. Better than anything in a bottle.
More From This Collection
Grilled Tri-Tip
Reverse seared: low heat first, then a hard sear. California BBQ at its best. San Diego style. This is how they do it on the West Coast.
Grilled Hot Dogs
Spiral cut, grilled until charred. Sounds simple because it is. Execution matters.
Carne Asada Tacos
Thin-sliced marinated steak, charred on the grill, corn tortillas, onion, cilantro. Simple. Perfect. San Diego changed my life. First liberty, first taco stand, first real carne asada.