July Fourth celebrations are changing, with some cities opting for drones over fireworks and holiday grillmeisters all fired up to grill … corn and asparagus?

More Americans said they plan to grill or barbecue on July 4th this year (56%) than last year (49%), based on the more than 1,000 surveyed by research firm Numerator in April 2024.

Grilling ranked second only to gathering with family and friends – 58% said that was their July 4th plan – and surpassed attending a public celebration (31%), cooking or baking at home (26%), and hosting others at their home (18%), Numerator's survey found.

What is open July Fourth?See store hours and details for Target, Walmart, Home Depot and more.

What's cooking July Fourth? The most searched "How to grill" foods

You might expect most grilling plans would focus on cooking meat as a main dish. Meats like chicken, salmon and steaks were the top "how to grill" searches on Google last year leading up to the July Fourth holiday.

But this year, among the top-searched "How to grill" subjects, based on Google search data, corn on the cob got the most searches. Here's the top five:

1. How to grill corn on the cob
2. How to grill salmon
3. How to grill chicken breast
4. How to grill asparagus
5. How to grill burgers

Maybe most backyard cooks have mastered cooking meats, but remember to cook meat thoroughly and follow proper food safety at your cookouts.

Best grills to buy:See Reviewed.com's top 7 recommended grills

Top searched BBQ sauce types by state

Tastes appear to be changing, too, when it comes to barbecue sauces.

This could be a case of the familiarity of traditional barbecue sauce styles leading to slack search traffic, but the most searched BBQ sauce type ahead of July 4th, according to Google search data, was overwhelmingly "Japanese BBQ sauce," followed by Hawaiian BBQ sauce, Korean BBQ sauce, White BBQ sauce and Carolina BBQ sauce.

Top hot dog types searched by state

Beef hot dogs and kosher dogs got some attention in Google searches of unique hot dog types, ahead of July 4th. But others such as the Korean Hot Dog, Chicago Hot Dog, Coney Island Dog and Sonoran Hot Dog attracted more traffic, according to Google search data.

Surprises? The Reindeer Hot Dog, searched in Alaska, and Dirty Water Hot Dog, searched in Hawaii, and the Red Snapper Hot Dog (Maine).

Top Fourth of July salads

Pasta salad was the top searched salad in the most states, ahead of July 4th, followed by cucumber salad, chicken salad, fruit salad and others, according to Google search data.

Top trending Fourth of July cocktails

Searches about the Bomb pop cocktail spiked in the U.S. during the week leading up to July Fourth, according to Google search data. (Google defines "top trending" searches as: search terms that had the highest spike in traffic over a given time period as compared with the previous equivalent period).

1. Bomb pop cocktail
2. Sangria
3. Aviation cocktail
4. Margarita
5. Aperol spritz

Top trending Fourth of July things to do

What do Americans plan to do over the July Fourth holiday week and weekend? Dangerous heat across the U.S. ahead of July 4th could have helped Google searches surge to give "Water park," a higher-than-usual spike in traffic over "Fireworks" and "Camping." (Note: Branded location searches were excluded from the results.)

1. Water park
2. Fireworks
3. Camping
4. Movies
5. Zoo

What to wear on July Fourth?

"Skort" got the highest spike in traffic among “red white and blue” items of apparel over the past week, according to Google search data.

1. Skort
2. T-shirt
3. Hat
4. Heels
5. Summer dress

Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

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