Quick’n’Easy BBQ Recipes for National Fast Food Day

Sometimes you want to spend hours crafting a complex meal, and sometimes you want your food to magically appear on your plate.

In these cases, you could either get in your car and drive to your nearest fast food joint, or, you could cure that craving yourself! With the time it takes you to drive to the closest burger joint and back, you can recreate your favourite takeout order with a homemade touch. All you need is a BBQ.

With National Fast Food Day coming up on November 16th, now’s the perfect time to test out your favourite fast food recipes on the grill. Read on to discover some quick and easy comfort food recipes!

Hot’n’Ready Homemade Hamburgers

Recipe Courtesy of Simply Recipes

Thankfully, creating homemade hamburgers isn’t as difficult as it sounds. All you need is four ingredients: ground beef, garlic, onion, and worcestershire sauce. Mix these together in a bowl for 30 seconds, form the dough into disks, and you’ve got perfect hamburger patties!

Next, cover the patties in plastic wrap and set them in the fridge while you preheat your grill to 450°F. When the patties are chilled and your grill is hot, place the burgers on the BBQ over indirect heat. It should take about about 9 minutes to fully cook the burgers, but make sure that the internal temperature reaches 160°F before taking them off the grill

After about 8 minutes, or when your burgers are close to being fully cooked, set a slice of cheese on each of the patties (or two—we’re not judging!). If you’d like, you can also set some buttered hot dog buns on the grill for this final minute to add an extra smokey crunch to your burger.

When your burgers are cooked to perfection, serve with whichever toppings you’d like—that’s the joy of making fast food at home: you can customize your meal however you’d like!

Gourmet Grilled Hot Dogs

Recipe Courtesy of KingsFord

If you’re looking for the quickest, simplest dinner idea possible, hot dogs are your solution. All you’ll need is some hot dogs, buns, and your favourite condiments.

Although hot dogs have a rep in the BBQ community as something you could cook with your eyes closed (well, hopefully not literally), grilling the perfect hot dog does require some thought if you want to avoid a flare-up and grill your hot dogs to perfection.

If you have a charcoal grill, set it up in a two zone configuration whereby all the coals are placed on one side. If you’ve got a gas grill, set it up for indirect grilling. Set the hot dogs on the hot side of the grill, and if a flare-up occurs, promptly move them to the area that’s not directly above the flame or coals.

Watch those dogs like a hawk: hot dogs cook super quickly, making them quite literally fast food. Once they’re nicely browned with those beautiful grill marks, move them to the unheated side of the grill to finish ‘em off. In the meantime, set the hot dog buns over top the heated side of the grill to develop that coveted char.

The entire process takes only 5-7 minutes, so if you’re looking for a truly quick and easy meal, you don’t have to save this option for only the summer months!

The World’s Simplest Chicken Tacos

Recipe Courtesy of Epicurious

With no marinade or major preparation required, this simple taco recipe will only take you 15 minutes to recreate.

Start by preparing your grill for medium-high heat. While it’s preheating, toss chicken breast with sliced onion, garlic, cumin, oil, and salt and pepper. Barbecue the onion and chicken until lightly charred, about 4 minutes on each side.

When the onion is nicely toasted and the chicken is cooked through, remove from the grill. Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before slicing. While the chicken is cooling down, get your taco toppings ready: if you want the tacos to be ready in a pinch, opt for some store-bought salsa and guacamole, and sprinkle with whichever veggies or herbs you have in your fridge.

And voila: healthy and delicious tacos ready in only 15 minutes!

Fast but Fancy Grilled Potato Poutine

Recipe Courtesy of The Cookie Writer

When you’re looking for a quick dinner fix, the fewer ingredients a recipe requires generally means the faster you’ll be able to eat it. If this adage is true, then poutine is definitely in the running for the quickest and simplest homemade meals, as it only requires three ingredients: fries, cheese curds, and gravy.

If you want to recreate this classic fast food dish in a gourmet fashion—without having to carve out any extra time—this grilled poutine recipe fits the bill.

First, preheat your BBQ to 400°F. While the grill’s heating up, slice some mini potatoes in half and toss them in a bowl with olive oil and your favourite seasoning.

Place potatoes directly on the grill and cook for 15-20 minutes, flipping occasionally. Make sure to keep the lid of your barbecue down as much as you can.

When your potatoes are golden brown, remove from the grill, and top with cheese curds and gravy. Bon appetit!

Easy Cooking, Easy Cleanup BBQ Chicken Foil Packs

Recipe Courtesy of Skinny Taste

This recipe is the equivalent of a gourmet TV dinner—it’s just as simple, but so much tastier. With the smokey flavour and BBQ sauce, you won’t even realize that the vegetables were frozen!

Start by preheating your grill to medium high heat. Inside, cut 18 x 12-inch pieces of aluminum foil based on how many servings you need. Place ¾ cup of frozen vegetables into each of the tin foil squares.

In a separate bowl, rub chicken drumsticks or thighs with your favourite seasoning, and brush with your favourite BBQ sauce. Set the chicken on top of each foil packet.

Fold each end of the foil inward so that everything is sealed, but there’s still enough room for air to circulate inside. Cook over indirect heat for 50 minutes or until the chicken reaches 160°F. Although the cooking time of this dish is longer than the others, the prep time is practically nonexistent and the cleanup time is nothing. All you need to do is brush some extra BBQ sauce on top and your dish is ready to devour!

Glorious Grilled Nachos

Recipe Courtesy of Betty Crocker

Fruits, vegetables, starch, protein, dairy—nachos cover every food group (provided you accept that a tomato is a fruit and not a vegetable). If you’re looking for an easy way to meet Canada’s food guide, grilled nachos provide a delicious option.

Start by preheating your grill to medium and spraying a foil pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread tortilla chips—or doritos, if you want some extra flavour—in a pan. In a separate bowl, mix together beans, cooked ground beef, or your protein of choice together with some taco seasoning. Coat evenly atop the tortilla chips. Top with your favourite fruits & veggies (we recommend green onions and diced tomatoes) and sprinkle some cheese over top.

Cover the pan with tin foil, and set it on the BBQ. Cover grill, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Carefully unfold the foil, and serve with your hot sauce, salsa, guacamole, or all three.

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