"Master the Grill: 8 Essential Barbecue Safety Tips to Lower Cancer Risk and Ensure Perfect Cooking"

WITH temperatures set to spike again this week, many of us will be back to our barbecues.

But before you chuck your burgers and sausages , make sure your cooking methods are not ill-advised.

With temperatures set to spike again this week, many of us will be back to our barbecues Credit: Getty We share eight rules to make your heatwave barbie go easy, not queasy Credit: Getty

Figures from the UK Health Security Agency show that cases of stomach bug salmonella were at their highest level in a decade in 2025, and incidents of campylobacter – the most – were also at higher- than-normal levels in the last two years.

To try and reduce these cases, the Food Standards Agency has launched a Stop, Think, Serve campaign offering advice on cooking food safely.

Here Josh Saunders and Claire Dunwell give eight rules to make your heatwave barbie go easy, not queasy.

1. FORK OFF

DON’T use a fork to turn your meat over on the grill.

This will puncture the skin, causing juices to fall on the hot coals and shoot ash and soot up on to the meat.

It also dries the food out. Instead, use a flat spatula or tongs.

2. WIRE HAZARD

METAL brushes are often used to clean grills but if using them, be careful.

Tiny wire bristles can easily break off while you are cleaning then get stuck in your next burger.

Instead, use half an onion pierced through a long fork.

The vegetable’s natural acids will loosen the grease.

3. AVOID CANCER

MEAT cooked at high heat over open flames can cause cancerous matter to form on the outer skin.

Instead, marinate beef, pork and lamb in dark beer, red wine, green tea or rosemary-infused oil to create an antioxidant barrier to carcinogens.

It reduces the risk by up to 90 per cent.

4. NO RAW RISK

PART-cook thick chicken pieces and sausages in the oven, or boil them, to avoid meat being raw in the middle.

Then use the barbecue to give meat that smoky, charred flavour.

Stick a cooking thermometer into the meat to confirm the core is 75C.

5. MAYO MYTH

OFTEN blamed for food poisoning, shop-bought mayonnaise is actually acidic enough to halt bacterial growth.

Cold dishes with onions and eggs, such as coleslaw or potato and pasta salad are normally to blame.

Keep the temperature low for these dishes and refrigerate until the last minute.

6. GRILL ZONES

WHEN setting up the barbecue, split your charcoal grid into a bigger side with more coal for searing and a smaller one on the other for slow, even cooking through to the centre.

This method avoids raw-in-the-middle meat.

7. TEMPERATURE

WHEN the mercury soars above 30C, it is vital to only keep meat outside for 30 minutes.

Below that temperature, it can last for an hour.

Cover it up with foil or clingfilm right until you plan to grill it to lessen the risk of bacteria and bugs.

8. MARINATE

DO not reuse the marinade that has been put on raw meat to add to other meat cooking on the grill.

Instead, separate the sauce into two pots and use one for each or boil the old marinade in a pan for five minutes before reusing to avoid food poisoning.