This document provides tips and recipes for healthy barbecue cooking and eating. It encourages grilling vegetables alongside meats and suggests including a variety of carbohydrates like whole grains, proteins from lean meats and plant sources, and healthy fats. Specific recipes included are for crockpot barbecue chicken, a watermelon feta salad, and cowboy caviar. Overall health tips emphasize portion control, mindful eating, hydration, and being active at barbecue events.

1. Healthy BBQ
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2. Get those Veggies on the Grill
 When firing up the grill, BBQ ribs and marinated
steaks may be the first things that come to
mind, but don’t forget to pair them with colorful
veggies!
 asparagus, zucchini, eggplant, onions, peppers,
broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts,
mushrooms, and tomatoes.
 Pro Tip: Grill extra veggies to add to other meal
throughout the week!

3. Carbohydrates
 Are not bad for you!
 Are our preferred/most convenient form of
energy
 Excess carbohydrates are stored as fat.
 Make half your grains whole grain.
 Ex: potatoes, sweet potatoes, oats, whole
grain bread/pasta, quinoa, chickpeas, beans,
peas, brown rice, fruit, corn
 Limit refined/sugary carbs
 Ex: white bread/pasta, baked goods/pastries,
candies, cakes, syrups, juices, chips

4. Protein
 Regulates blood sugar
 Makes you feel full longer
 Assists with burning more calories
throughout the day
 Muscle burns fat!
 Choose lean sources

5. Protein Sources
● Animal Based- Sources
○ Most bioavailable
 Chicken
 Turkey
 Lean beef
 Pork
 Cooked fish/seafood
 Ham/deli meats (low-sodium,
cooked)
 Venison
 Eggs
 Lamb
 Dairy
● High protein plant
 Chickpeas
 Peas
 Beans/legumes
 Quinoa
 Nuts/nut butters
 Soy protein
■ Soy milk, tofu, tempeh,
edamame

6. Healthy Fats
 Needed for synthesizing fat-soluble vitamins
 Vitamins A, D, E, and K
 Important for eye health, bone health,
skin health
 Examples of fat choices:
 Nuts
 Seeds
 Nut butters
 Olive oil
 Avocado
 Avocado oil
 Sesame oil
 Butter (in moderation)
 Dairy and meats may contain some fat

7. Hydration
 Drink water instead of lemonade,
sweetened iced tea and soft drinks
 Water doesn’t have to be boring
 Add herbs, sliced cucumbers or sliced fruit
such as oranges, strawberries, peaches,
nectarines or pineapple
 Add sugar free flavoring

9. Plate Portioning
 Use a smaller plate or bowl
 Portion out your food from
the bag or box instead of
eating from the bag or box
 Guess your portion size using
the hand method

10. Portioning Tools

11. Hunger Satiety
and Fullness
Scale

12. Practice Mindful Eating
 Pay attention to your food
as you’re eating
 When you’re halfway
through your meal, pause
to see if you’re full.
 It typically takes 20
minutes for your brain to
catch up with your body.

13. Get Moving
 When the main event at the barbeque is
food, it can make it easier to overeat
 In addition to food, have some board games
or outside games like corn hole, kickball,
volleyball or badminton available. Invite
everyone to go for a walk around the
neighborhood or a local park.
 Enjoy not only the food, but also the
company!

14. Crockpot BBQ Chicken
 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken
breasts
 1 ¼ cup BBQ Sauce
 ½ cup light Italian dressing
 2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
 ¼ cup light brown sugar
 1 TBSP garlic powder
 1 TBSP onion powder
 Salt and pepper to taste
1. Spray the inside of the crockpot with non-stick spray
2. Season chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder and place in bottom of crockpot
3. In medium bowl, add BBQ sauce, Italian dressing, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce and pour
over chicken
4. Place lid on crockpot and cook on high for 2.5-3 hours or low for 5-6 hours
5. Shred chicken once fully cooked and leave chicken in crockpot for another couple minute to soak up
extra juice
6. Enjoy 

15. Watermelon Feta Salad
 ½ seedless watermelon
 4 ounces feta cheese crumbled
 ½ cup basil leaves (about 10)
 2-4 TBSP Balsamic Glaze
1. Cut watermelon into one-inch cubes. Cut basil
leaves cut into chiffonade ribbons
2. In a large bowl or platter, arrange watermelon.
Sprinkle with feta cheese and basil
3. Drizzle balsamic glaze over the top of the salad

16. Cowboy Caviar
 6 roma tomatoes seeded and diced
 15 ounce canned yellow corn drained
 15 ounce canned black beans drained and rinsed
 2 avocados peeled, seeded and diced
 1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
 1 orange bell pepper seeded and diced
 1 jalapeno seeded and finely diced
 ½ cup red onion finely diced
 ½ cup sweet yellow onion finely diced
 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
 1 tablespoon fresh minced garlic
 4 tablespoons lime juice
 ½ cup Light Italian dressing
SALAD
Using a large mixing bowl, add the diced tomatoes, canned corn, canned black
beans, diced avocados, bell peppers, jalapeno, finely diced onions, chopped fresh
cilantro, fresh minced garlic and lime juice. Stir just until all the ingredients are
evenly combined.
DRESSING
Using a small mixing bowl, whisk together the extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar,
sugar, kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper, until well incorporated.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad. Stir just until well incorporated.

17. For more tricks and tips, check out these
articles:
 https://takecare.milfordregional.org/2015/06/01/10-tips-for-a-healthy-summer-bbq/
 https://nutritionhealthworks.com/nutrition-blog/tips-eating-well-summer-barbeques/
 https://www.sfmfoodbank.org/blog/nutrition-education-tips-for-a-tasty-and-healthy-
summer-bbq/
 https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/mindful-eating-guide