Cleaning Grates Procedure

The state of your grill grates has a direct impact on the taste and appearance of your food as well as the ease of grilling. Dirty grill grates can lead to flare-ups, or they might leave pieces of carbon on your food. Cleaning your grill grates is essential, but not every cleaning method is effective. If you go about it in the wrong way, you could actually wind up damaging them. Consider the following dos and don'ts of cleaning grill grates. Dos
Do invest in a quality grill brush. Look for one with a long handle and long, firm bristles. It will make it easier to clean your grill grates while the grill is still warm. Do deep clean your grill grates periodically. You can do this by pre-soaking them in a bucket with dish
While a dirty grill may irk you if you like to keep things clean, the reality is that you want to keep them coated in gunk between uses. Get rid of any large food chunks but leave the oils and burned-on residue. The residue seasons them and can protect them from rust much like a cast iron skillet. You can burn and scrape some of it off the next time you start your grill up. You can deep clean them from time to time using heat and a wire brush. Be sure to re-season them before use, however. Don't ever use water to clean cast iron grill grates. These grates can last for a long time and are impervious to everything except water. Getting them wet will make them highly vulnerable to rust. Don't clean grill grates using the self-cleaning cycle of your oven. While this is widely recommended, it is not a good idea unless you like setting your smoke alarms off and making your home smell like it's on fire. In addition, time in a self-cleaning oven can discolor your grill grates. Don't use wire brushes to clean porcelain grates. While these grates are heat resistant and will not rust under normal circumstances, they chip easily and this will expose the underlying metal. That metal can rust if it is exposed to