Food - Drink
Why You Probably Don't Need Special Cleaners For Your Grill
By WENDY LEIGH
Using commercially available grill-cleaning solutions may seem like an easy go-to, but the chemicals in those cleaning products can actually leach into your food and alter its taste. Fortunately, cleaning your grill the old-fashioned way is a lot easier and works perfectly.
Derek Wolf, of Over the Fire Cooking, advocates heat, elbow grease, and brush scrubbing for removing accumulated dirt and grease on a grill. Scrub off any rust, ash, or carbon accumulation on the grates with a standard, coarse cleaning brush with sturdy bristles.
Clean the grill grate and the charcoal grate, if you have one, and knock off any stubborn food remnants with a ball of aluminum foil. Remember to clean the bottom of the grill, empty ash catchers, and scrape off any black carbon flakes, using an empty bag to dispose of the debris.
Maintaining your grill during the season is simple — just preheat and use the scrubbing brush to knock off food particles from your previous grilling session. You can prevent buildup and sticking by brushing the grate or your food with a light coat of cooking oil before starting to grill.