This newsletter contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase — at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I personally use and trust in my own kitchen. Thank you so much for supporting CopyKat Recipes!

Mid-July is when grilling stops being a way to cook dinner and becomes the whole event. This week's lineup is for exactly that — real smoke, real fire, and recipes worth planning a Saturday around: a beer can chicken that comes off the smoker burnished and juicy, a porterhouse done low and slow, bacon-wrapped Hatch chiles to keep everyone happy while they wait, and the In-N-Out burger trick that West Coast transplants miss most. Let's make the neighbors jealous. 🔥

​Ultimate Smoked Beer Can Chicken — A whole chicken, perfectly seasoned, propped over a can of beer and smoked until the skin turns deep golden and the meat stays impossibly juicy. It looks impressive coming off the grill because it is — and yet the technique is almost foolproof, since the beer keeps everything moist while the smoke does the flavoring. This is the centerpiece recipe for a backyard weekend.

🥩 The Steak That's Worth the Wait

​Smoked Porterhouse Steak — Low and slow on a pellet grill, a thick porterhouse picks up smoke flavor a hot-and-fast sear can't touch, then finishes tender from edge to edge. The seasoning stays simple on purpose — when you've got good beef and real smoke, they're the whole show. If you've only ever grilled steaks over high heat, this one changes how you think about steak night.

🌶️ The Appetizer That Buys You Time

​Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Hatch Chile Peppers — Hatch chiles stuffed with a creamy cheese filling, wrapped in bacon, and grilled until the bacon is crispy and the chiles are molten. The big stuff on the grill always takes longer than anyone wants to wait — these keep the crowd fed and happy right at the grill's edge. Hatch season peaks in late summer, so this is exactly the moment for them.

🍔 The West Coast Legend, No Road Trip Required

​In-N-Out Animal Style Burger — Mustard-grilled patty, caramelized onions, melted cheese, and that famous special sauce — the off-menu order that made In-N-Out a pilgrimage destination. If you live anywhere east of Arizona, this copycat is the only way you're getting one this weekend. The mustard-on-the-patty trick is the detail most people miss, and it makes the whole burger.

☕ The Secret Weapon in the Spice Cabinet

​Homemade Texas Coffee Rub — Five minutes to mix, and it transforms steaks, brisket, and burgers with a deep, dark crust and a rich flavor people can never quite place. Coffee and beef are among barbecue's best-kept secrets — the rub doesn't taste like coffee; it just makes the beef taste more like itself. Make a jar now, and you're set through Labor Day.

🥬 The Cool, Crunchy Counterpoint

​Brookville Hotel Coleslaw — The famous sweet-and-tangy cream slaw from the legendary Kansas hotel dining room, and the perfect cool bite next to anything smoky coming off your grill. It's five ingredients and ten minutes, and it's been earning recipe requests for over a century. Make it in the morning, chill it, and dinner has a built-in counterpoint.

💬 What Should the Grill Crack Next?

Every grill has a white whale — the restaurant dish you'd love to pull off at home but haven't cracked yet. Tell me yours in the CopyKat Community, where you can request recipes, ask questions mid-cook, and show off what came off your grill this weekend. Join the CopyKat Community — your request might be the next recipe on the site.

🔧 In the Kitchen for Grill Day

Three tools that earn their spot at every cookout.

🍔 Cast Iron Burger Press — The Animal Style burger depends on a thin patty with real crust, and a heavy cast iron press is how you get it — firm, even pressure for maximum sizzle against the griddle. It's also the difference between a burger that cooks evenly and one that puffs up in the middle.

🖌️ Silicone Basting Brush — For buttering the beer can chicken as it smokes, saucing at the finish, and oiling grates without incident. Silicone handles high heat, holds plenty of liquid, and goes straight into the dishwasher when the day's done.

🥣 Nesting Mixing Bowls — The coleslaw, the rub, the burger spread — grill day is really three or four small mixing jobs before anything hits the fire. A good nesting set keeps them all moving without a sink full of mismatched bowls.

🔥 Go Earn That Apron

A smoked bird, a slow porterhouse, molten Hatch chiles, a legend of a burger, and the rub that ties it all together — that's a weekend worth firing up for. Pick one and make it the centerpiece, or run the whole menu and make it an occasion. Either way, save me a plate. 🔥