Go to the Article: Tips & Tricks: Season Your Grill So Food Won’t Stick
Thanks! Fantastic tip.
Sometimes we all forgetting to "Teflon" grill wires.
Will remember to do this from-time-to-time.
I'll second that aluminum foil works well for this (and many other cleaning jobs).
Besides aluminum, an onion slice (or end) helps to remove a ton of crud.
I would love to see chefsteps do a video in seasoning a brand new cast iron pan, and then fry an egg in it for the Altamonte non stick test.
What isn't in the text, but is in the video, is that the grill should be hot when oiling. I've got new grill racks arriving today (my old ceramic ones actually started buckling in the middle, thanks Weber), and I can't wait to try this out on them.
Cooks Illustrated has a great way of cleaning grills without a lot of scrubbing. Measure a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil to about the size of your grill leaving 1/2 inch around the edges. Place the aluminum on the grill, close the lid and let the BBQ go for about 20 minutes on high. After that much time the crud on the grill has been incinerated to ash. If not, let it burn some more. Remove the foil and then clean with your brush and season as shown here.....no more scrubbing. Works for me.
Maybe it's too late for me: My grill is rusted, from humidity. Will this treatment actually burn off rust?
For me the best idea is CLEAN IT WHEN YOU'RE DONE COOKING!!! Really. It's easier to to scrub a hot grill than a cold one and most things you grill should rest for at least a few minutes. So, while you're resting your latest masterpiece, CLEAN THE FRIGGIN' GRILL!!!! Not only is it easier, but you also avoid lifting the cover of the thing and looking at some seriously UGLY aftermath of whatever you used the grill for last time. Nothing sticks to my 36 year old Weber Go Anywhere (charcoal, thank you) because I've been doing this for 30-some years. Fish, shrimp. vegetables - not a problem!
Best advice on the Board!
I love to watch the cooking channel, Chef Emirl Lagrassi was grilling "something" and he gave a bit of advice I have followed for years, he also cleaned his grill like you show in the video, but he added a rule he has followed for years, never grill meat or anything else cold, let the food come up to room temp, I started doing this and I swear it works,never grill anything cold. I loved grilling and since I took his advice, and "seasoned" my grill like in the video, my sticking has ended.
If your grill is really cruddy as most are you need to get serious to clean it. Remove the grid and remove as much of the caked on debris as you can with scraping and brushing. Then put it in a heavy plastic bag ( like a contractor bag ) and then spray the hell out of it with oven cleaner. Seal up the bag and come back tomorrow. The grill grate should then come clean easily with a light soap and water scrubbing. You can only season steel and iron. You can't season rust. So if your grid is also rusty you'll have to use abrasion or metal prep ( phosphoric acid..a home depot thing ) to get rid of all rust before you season. The reason most grids need this is improper seasoning when the grill was set up and improper cleaning post cooking in it. Rust develops from the water in the food gunk on the grate as well as from using a "cover" on the grill and leaving it outside. The "cover" is a vapor trap and keeps the grill in a humid oxidizing zone. Bring the grate inside if you must leave the grill out.
How often would you season the grill? Every time, or every ten times you use it?
Nice! I usually use a paper towel for wiping. Then little bits of towel get stuck in the junctions. This looks like a much cleaner technique.
Ok, so your grill is a mess. You have caramelized BBQ sauce and other assorted lovelies stuck to the cast iron. No amount of brushing will remove the crust. But a solution is at hand. Simply put the grates into your oven and run the clean cycle. They will come out like new. Then you can season the grates. Works like a charm.
Assuming your oven has a clean cycle
Thank you - very clever!
Yes, I've done this several times and the grates come out like they are brand new! Just wash off the ash and you are good to go. Takes about 5 hours for the complete cycle in our oven
No it won't. If the grilling surface is rusted you have the options of removing the rust or buying new parts. If you try to brush the rust off you'll most likely burnish the rust ( coat it with metal from the brush ) and it will look de-rusted but it won't be. You can get rid of rust mechanically ( chipping or sandblasting ) but most folks don't have the equipment for that. The other option is chemicals. Acids to reduce the rust and convert some of it back to the original metal. Phosphoric acid ( metal prep ) works well but it does create a thick white debris on cast metals like cast iron. You can brush that off. If the rust is so heavy is scales off you need to buy a new part. If you keep the grill outside bring the cooking grid in after use to avoid rust.
Oven cleaner > Soap and water > acid. If the grid is still serviceable you're ready.
If using a brush to grill should be wiped down well, before oiling.
There have been quite a number of people having to have surgery because they get a wire from the brushes in their throat. The wires stick to the food.
. Happened to me. Wiping down the hot grill loosend the wire in the brush. Got stuck in the back of my throat. Luckily. Some people swallow them and get their intestines perforated.
Forget the cheap brushes at the big box stores... Find am industrial/restaurant supply store and pick up a BBQ brush there. It will costs $35-40 bucks, but will last for years. It is about 8 inches wide and has a 24 -36 inch handle, and very strong, stiff bristles. the one I purchased in 2007 lasted until 2014 when I purchased a replacement. That one has at least two years left. I think I bought mine at American Supply (SF Bay Area)
Hey Grant, I've been way too anal in cleaning my grill grates to a clean aluminum surface. (Oh,way too many minutes invested through the years!) I sure know how to care for & season one of my favorite cooking surfaces: cast iron. I'll be cleaning my grill as you outline: "seasoning" the grates. [By the way I notice you use Greenpan(s) which I discovered this last holiday season. They too have now become one of my favorite non-stick cooking surfaces.] So, to the point: I'd encourage your followers NOT to use straight-wire stainless steel/bronze-bristled brushes to clean their grill grates! You may recall that several years ago, "The Seattle Times" reported a couple of people hospitalized due to unconsciously swallowing a single wire from a grill brush. One of my closest friends had the same thing happen to him in southern OR. He was unaware of having done so; however, upon returning to Seattle a couple of days later, he was struck with serious abdominal pain. He was admitted to a local hospital where the 1st Xray didn't display his problem. It took a second non-invasive exploration to discover the single wire which had punctured his intestine. In the meantime, he experienced extreme pain and bacame delirious & unaware of where he was. After being rushed into the OR, he was released in several days & fully-recovered in several weeks. Since that time, many of his friends & I will never use a straight metal- bristled grill brush. You point out that aluminum foil works too. It does; however, for those who want a grill "brush", there are non-bristle (straight-wire) SS brushes & non-metal pads. I hope this comment saves others the serious hospitalization my friend experienced. -Roger Chaffin-
I use Grill Daddy… Fl it with water and when the water meets hot grill.. STEAM…need I say more?
