Grillin’ and chillin’: 38 Memorial Day recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

Click here for the recipe.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Richard Hartog / Los Angeles Times)

Pecan-crusted spareribs with Kentucky bourbon barbecue sauce.  (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Proceed at your own risk. Click here for the recipe.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Grilled, slightly charred grape leaves lend spice and crunch to the smooth, melting feta inside. Click here for the recipe.  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Tuscan chicken cooked on the grill under a brick results in crisp skin and juicy meat.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Stephen Osman / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

Recipe: Naked ribs. No sauce necessary.

Fig leaves, with their hints of spice and coconut, are a fragrant wrapper for lamb meatballs. Click here for the recipe.  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Eric Boyd / Los Angeles Times)

This one is a showstopper. Click here for the recipe.   (Eric Boyd / Los Angeles Times)

Bistecca fiorentina -- Tuscan steak. Click here for the recipe.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Banana leaves help hold in moisture. Click here for the recipe.  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Texas hickory smoked brisket with coffee barbecue sauce.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

Tip: When the eggplant is cut for grilling, it is not sliced all the way through.Click here for the recipe.  (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Grilled chocolate and pecan pound cake.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Grilled flank steak with peppers, onions and chimichurri sauce. Click here for the recipe.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

It’s called a ‘Gin’-ger basiltini. Click here for the recipe.  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

Click here for the recipe.  (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

How about a burger -- but not just any burger: The Stonehill Tavern Kobe burger. Click here for the recipe.  (Christine Cotter / Los Angeles Times)

Popular in Brazil, it’s popping up on menus here. Click here for the recipe.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

You can use onions as a sauce for meat, as in this rib-eye with carmelized onion marmalade.  (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Slice a pork roast crosswise into steaks and dust each with a blend of ground fennel seeds, peppercorns and salt. Grill for a few minutes on each side over a hot fire. Read the recipe.

Grilled figs, radicchio and fennel are combined with goat cheese and walnuts and tossed with a sherry vinaigrette.
Recipe: Grilled fig salad
  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

Dial down the flames to a slow burn and watch pineapple luxuriously transform. Click here for the recipe.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)