26 of the Best Grilling Accessories

Grills are so wonderful! I love the smell of smoldering wood chips and the sight of the smoke rolling into the blue summer sky. But before you don your “kiss the cook” apron, there are a few more items you may want to acquire to make your barbecuing experience the easiest it can be. The best grilling accessories list will make it simple to remember the things you need for your perfect party.

#1 Best Grilling Accessories- Getting the Grill Started

• Chimney Starter-

  • If you have a charcoal grill then getting those coals a rollin’ means getting a charcoal chimney. This is by far the easiest way to start cooking if you are using specialty briquettes.
    Weber 7429 Rapid Fire Chimney Starter
    

• Heat Gloves-

  • Protect those hands. These chimney starters get very hot, not to mention the grates, the lid, everything about grilling can be a potential burn. Cover those paws with some heat resistance gloves.
    AngLink BBQ Grill Gloves, 1472F Extreme Heat Resistant Grilling Gloves for Cooking, Baking and for Smoker, Silicone Insulated Cooking Oven Mitts, Long Non-slip Potholder Gloves
    

• Charcoal Starter-

  • If you don’t already have a long stick lighter, please pick one of these up. You can use the old “lighter and newspaper” trick too. But if instant heat and fire power is your game, check this bad-boy out! My husband would flip over this!
    JJGeorge Grill Torch Charcoal Starter
    

• Charcoal Protection-

  • Let’s talk soggy charcoal. Make sure you have a nice place to store your charcoal. Summer rain can really put a damper on your bbq time. You think you are all ready to grill and then you reach for the bag, the water damaged bag rips spilling your boarder line unusable charcoal everywhere. Save yourself some time and money and pick up a charcoal storage bin.
    Buddeez Kingsford Kaddy Charcoal Dispenser for 12 lb. Bags
    

• Disposable Liners –

  • Getting your grill prepped for use is easy, but at the end, clean up can be tiresome. If you want to make cleaning up a breeze, start your bbq off with these disposable liners!
    Clean BBQ – Disposable Aluminum Grill Liner. Set of 12 Sheets of Grill Topper

• Outdoor Canopy-

  • Sun protection is very important when you are manning a grill all day long. If you do not have a covered area to cook, your hands won’t be the only thing you will worry about burning. These tents are great for barbecues and can be useful for summer activities all season long.
    AmazonBasics Pop-Up Canopy Tent – 10′ x 10′, White
    
    And of course…
    Kiss The Cook Cute Apron For Your Kitchen
    
    I mean… I had to.
    

#2 Best Grilling Accessories – Keeping Everything Within Reach

• Grill Tool Organizer –

  • “Hey honey, can you grab me the…” these words on repeat throughout the day if you’re not ready. I love organization and having everything close at hand is the next thing to godliness in my opinion. This one even has a paper towel holder!
    BBQ Butler – BBQ Organizer – Sized to Serve – Grilling Tool Organizer for Gas, Charcoal, Electric Grills
    

• Grilling Accessories Kit-

  • Stop rifling through your kitchen drawers trying to piece together the tongs, a random spatula, a basting brush (“won’t this old paint brush work?” no.) and get the tools of the trade.  These are sort of the basic best grilling accessories. I like this all in one kit because everything should have a home. When it’s time to get grilling, I know where everything is.
    Home-Complete BBQ Grill Tool Set- 16 Piece Stainless Steel Barbecue Grilling Accessories with Aluminum Case, Spatula, Tongs, Skewers
    
    

• Grill Knives-

  • When it comes to your barbecue accessories, make sure your knives are in good working order as well. The think the more people injure themselves due to a dull blade than a sharp one. When buying trimming knives, do not get serrated as you will not be able to sharpen these.
    Victorinox Swiss Army Cutlery Fibrox Pro Curved Boning Knife, Semi-Stiff Blade, 6-Inch
    

• Carving Knives-

  • Then there is a quality carving knife. This one, I personally like serrated. When using this blade, you do shorter, sawing like motions. By cutting this way, you prevent the juices from being pressed out of the meat. Surprisingly enough, this bread knife is perfect for the job.

Fat Daddio’s Bread/Cake Knives, 10 Inches

• Cutting Boards-

  • Cutting boards are very important for barbecuing. Make sure you have a nice large one with a juice drip tray. This will make it easy to prep several things at once and give you ample work space. This is one of the top barbecue accessories.
    Large Reversible Teak Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove – Hardwood Chopping Block and Serving Tray (17x11x1 Inches)
    

#3 Best Grilling Accessories – Plates, Cups, Utensils

• Sturdy Compartment Plates

  • One of my favorite barbecue accessories is a plate. I know that seems odd, but this tray makes serving food easy for everyone. These occasions usually have lots of sides and these sturdy trays hold up under the weight of all the different choices. They’re also eco-friendly and compostable.
    Stack Man 100% Compostable Paper Plate 125-Pack 5-Compartment Bagasse School Lunch Heavy Duty Quality Disposable Tray, Eco-Friendly Made of Sugar Cane Fibers
    

• Tumblers-

  • You will probably notice a theme in A) disposable- no one wants more dishes than a Crate and Barrel to contend with and B) eco-friendly- the planet shouldn’t suffer because I hate washing dishes. Cups are no exception. However, just because they’re eco-friendly doesn’t mean we don’t have cute options. These even come with eco-friendly straws!
    12 oz Rose Gold Rim Plastic Cups with Eco-Friendly Paper Straws – 50 Elegant Clear Rimmed Cocktail & Dessert Tumblers for Weddings & Special Events – Reusable or Disposable – With Drinks Recipe eBook
    

• Disposable Serving Ware-

  • These fantastic bamboo and biodegradable utensils are perfect for an outdoor party. They hold up well and come in the correct ratios. Instead of having equal amounts of forks, knives and spoons, they come in a variation so at the end you aren’t stuck with 70 plastic knives you’ll leave in a drawer somewhere to forget about.
    Disposable Wooden Cutlery Set – Natural, Eco-Friendly, Biodegradable, Compostable Utensils – Great for Parties, Weddings & Dinner Events – Pack of 200 (100 Forks, 50 Spoons, 50 Knives) By Aevia
    The lovely summer time breeze is great! However, it is also great for blowing napkins all over the place. Barbecues are notoriously messy and its good to have napkins within reach. You can pop over to Dollar Tree and pick up a few counter top paper towel holders and position these on every table. They’re heavy enough to not fly off the table, but cleanliness is just an arm’s length away.

• Serving Utensils-

  • I never have enough of my “nice” serving utensils for all the barbecue dishes that get brought and made. Its nice to have these “disposable” catering utensils around. They’re sturdy enough that they can be washed and reused for future parties when serving devices are in short supply.
    Upper Midland Products Disposable Plastic Serving Utensils Black – Set of 12 – Four 10″ Spoons, Four 10″ Forks, and Four 6″ Tongs

#4 Best Grilling Accessories – Feeding the Guests

• Tables for Guests-

  • Seating can be in short supply when you have a large group. If you don’t have ample outside seating or mobile seating, I highly recommend getting one of these folding tables. It’s worth its weight in gold with how much use it gets in my household. If we have more than 8 people things start to get a bit tight. I love the easy fold design and quick setup!
    Flash Furniture 30”W x 96”L Plastic Bi-Folding Table [RB-3096FH-GG]
    

• Seating for Guests-

  • If you need more chairs, you can always announce a B.Y.O.C. situation. That being said, renting chairs isn’t that expensive if you have enough people to justify the cost. Most party rental places will rent chairs at around $2/ per chair. But even this ten pack of folding chairs won’t break the bank if you’re the kind of family that loves to host parties!
    Flash Furniture 10 Pk. HERCULES Series 800 lb. Capacity Premium Black Plastic Folding Chair – 10-LE-L-3-BK-GG
    

#5 Best Grilling Accessories – Barbecue Entertainment

Anytime you get a group of people outside is a good time to break out the fun and games. Here are some of my favorite group out door games.

• Giant Jenga

Yard Games Giant Tumbling Timbers

• Corn Hole

GoSports Portable PVC Framed Cornhole Toss Game Set with 8 Bean Bags and Travel Carrying Case – Choose American Flag Design, Red & Blue or Football

• Ladder Ball

Many summers would have not been the same if it wasn’t for this game.
Premium Ladder Ball Toss Game for Adults, Kids, Family – Outdoor Ladders Set with Canvas Bag, Resin Bolos, and Thick PVC Piping – Backyard Games, Activities for Parties – Pro Series

• Four to Score

Giant 4 in A Row, 4 to Score – Premium Plastic Four Connect Game JUNIOR 3 Foot Width Set with 44 Rings by Rally & Roar – Oversized Fun Family, Kids Indoor/Outdoor Games

• Little Tykes Outdoor Toys

Little Tikes TotSports Easy Hit Golf Set + 3 balls + 2 clubs

• Combo Outdoor Sport Set

Franklin Sports Combo Set: Badminton, Volleyball, Flip Toss, Horseshoes, Flying Disc

Keeping that equipment safe is very important as well. This can also double as necessary outdoor seating!
Keter Westwood Plastic Deck Storage Container Box Outdoor Patio Garden Furniture 150 Gal, Brown

#5 Best Grilling Accessories – Keep the bugs away!

• Tiki torches-

  • Tiki torches are a fun barbecue accessory and they help protect against pesky bugs. There are the traditional styles which seem quintessential to summer.
    Matney Bamboo Torches – Includes Metal Oil Canisters with Covers to Extinguish Flame – Great for Outdoor Decorating, Luau, Parties, Extra Long 60 Inches (12 Pack)
    

• Bug & Insect Repellant-

  • But I also really like the mosquito sticks that are nice and essential oil based.
    Murphy’s Mosquito Sticks | Plant Based DEET Free Insect Repellent Incense Sticks | Bamboo Infused w/Citronella, Lemongrass & Rosemary | 12 Sticks per Tube | 3-Pack
    

#6 Best Grilling Accessories – The Ultimate Barbecue Food List

Of course the accessories are what support the epic food traditions so let me inspire your inner barbecue king or queen with these posts:

Read Now:

• The Ultimate Backyard Barbecue Menu from Start to Finish
• The Ultimate Barbecue Food List and Grilling Guide

Have fun in the sun and use this list of best grilling accessories to make sure you have everything you want to make it the perfect day!

Kim Anderson

Kim’s is the party planning, cupcake loving, celebration catalyst behind the Thrifty Little Mom Blog. Kim was a pro event planner for over 7 years before she became a full-time blogger. Kim is the author of: Live, Save, Spend, Repeat: The Life You Want with the Money You Have. She’s been featured on Time.com, Money.com, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Day and more! Kim aims to inspire you to create parties, celebrations and gatherings that everyone loves!