Grilling Books, Cookware, & Extras: My recommendations

If you already have all of your basic tools, maybe it's time to enhance your grilling game by trying out some new recipes or different pieces of cookware. These grilling books and other items below are all things that I personally enjoy and would encourage you to check out.

If you've built a grillscape, grill gazebo, or other backyard cooking space, you may appreciate the items in the final section here — just a couple of fun enhancements that I have included in my own backyard design.

Grilling-related books

Barbecue! Bible by Steven Raichlen — More than 500 grilling-related recipes from expert Raichlen (star of "Barbecue University" on PBS), who has travelled the world experiencing grilled food in dozens of countries and all over the U.S. This will quickly become a go-to cookbook for many favorites.

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling — This fascinating book is the definitive guide to the concepts, methods, equipment, and accessories of barbecue and grilling. With the help of physicist and food scientist Prof. Greg Blonder, grill master Meathead Goldwyn applies the latest research to backyard cooking with more than 100 thoroughly tested recipes.

Grill cookware

Cast iron skillet set — Set of three skillets: 6", 8", and 10" diameters. Cast iron offers great heat distribution and can be used for frying, baking, grilling, broiling, braising, and sautéing. This set comes with heat-resistant handle covers and a one-year money-back guarantee.

Flexible stainless steel skewers — Unlike traditional bamboo or wood skewers, this steel variety allows you to marinate your food while it's already on the skewers, and the cooked food slides off easily without sticking! Besides that, the flexible cable lets you bend your kabob however fits best on your grill. 

Gourmet BBQ System pizza stone — Although it is specially designed to fit in the Weber Gourmet BBQ grill grate, this pizza stone can also sit on top of any grill grate and is rated for extremely hot temperatures. A pizza stone is also great for baking bread.

Gourmet BBQ System wok — Also made to fit in the Weber Gourmet BBQ grill grate. The cast iron wok is great for sizzling hot dishes like a stir fry!

Gourmet BBQ System griddle — This griddle fits in the Weber Gourmet BBQ grill grate but can also go on top of a regular grill grate or even indoors on the stovetop. The griddle makes it simple to use your grill not only for burger and vegetables, but even for quesadillas or pancakes!

The extras — Stepping up your backyard design

Steel moveable dining cart table — Not essential for the grilling experience, but certainly helpful! This black flattop is a terrific extra workspace and rolling shelf/storage for your grill tools. It is very sturdy and comes with three multifunctional hooks.


Weatherproof and shatterproof string lights — This 2-pack of strings (15 lights each and 45 feet each) is a perfect enhancement to the "ceiling" of my grillscape. The bulbs create a nice, warm glow but aren't so harsh as to be uncomfortable on the eyes.

30-inch high industrial bar stools, set of 4 — I love these indoor/outdoor stools. In the Gun Metal gray color, they are a great neutral color pulled up to the bar/workstation of my grillscape. They also have the benefits of being easy to clean and easy to stack or move around.

There you have it — my recommendations for grilling books, cookware, and other items to start enhancing your backyard design or grillscape!

Also check out my list of grilling tools and accessories that will give you consistent results and will make your backyard cooking experience more successful and more enjoyable. 


My related pages: Recommendations