Barbecue lite: cut calories and fat and enhance the flavor of all your grilled foods with these 3 simple techniques - Do-It-Right Nutrition

3. Let food cook for several minutes before flipping. Flip too soon or too often and your food will stick.

4. Spatulas are not for squishing. Pressing food while it cooks forces precious juices out and into the grill.

5. Let meat, fish and poultry rest 5-10 minutes after cooking, before slicing. This allows juices to resettle in the meat.

6. A clean grill = great taste. Residue on the grill grates -- such as burnt pieces of food and blackened sauces -- causes flare-ups, and flare-ups char food. After cooking, brush grates with a metal grill brush to remove debris.

Vegetables can be grilled two ways: in foil packets or directly over the flame.

* Use the foil method for small, irregularly shaped veggies. Cut-up onions, Brussels sprouts, baby carrots, green beans, snap peas and cherry tomatoes are all good candidates. Place vegetables on a large piece of foil and season with salt and black pepper. Lift the edges and add 1 tablespoon of water. Bring up the sides so they meet and fold them over twice, leaving a little room for steam expansion. Then fold in the ends twice to seal the packet like an envelope. Grill the packet on the hottest part of the grill for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking to shake up the veggies for even cooking.

* Cook larger vegetables directly on the grill.

"Larger" veggies include tomato halves, 1/2-inch-thick slices of zucchini, or yellow squash or eggplant slices. Brush vegetables with olive oil (or spray with olive-oil spray), salt and pepper them, then place them on the hottest part of the grill. Grill 4-5 minutes per side, until fork-tender.

You can cook corn directly on the grill without wrapping in foil. To prepare corn, soak ears (with the husks on) in a large bowl or bucket of water for 1 hour. Drain, shake ears to remove excess water and place them directly on the hottest part of the grill. Grill 20 minutes, turning occasionally. Cool slightly before removing husks.

Robin Vitetta-Miller, M.S., is a food writer based in Yardley, Pa.

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