Regardless of your hometown’s climate, outdoor gas grill cooking can be a four-season endeavor. Just remembe to keep your grill clean.
According to Weber’s annual GrillWatch Survey, less than 40% of grill owners clean their equipment with any bit of frequency, and 6 percent admit they’ve never cleaned their grill at all.
There are three main reasons to keep a clean grill. The first is that a clean, well-maintained grill will have a longer useful life than a dirty, sloppy one. Grills can be expensive and it’s often less costly to maintain them than to replace them.
The second reason to keep a clean grill is for sanitary reasons. Over time — especially when exposed to the elements — a grill’s finish can deteriorate and/or retained cooked foodstuffs. This can create a breeding ground for germs and disease.
And, lastly, a clean grill helps cooked foods taste better.
So, whether you’ve cleaned your equipment recently or never at all, it’s always a good time to freshen up your grill. Here’s how to do it, quickly :
- Remove the grates. Soak them in soapy water. Scrub foodstuffs using a wire brush. Allow to dry.
- Remove loose debris from bottom of grill.
- Using soapy solution, scrub grill’s surfaces, grill pans, and grease trays. Don’t forget the lid.
- Clean outside of grill with mild soap solution, treating rust areas with cooking oil.
- Look for broken, cracked or faulty equipment, specifically burners and ignitors. Replace as necessary.
Then, as a last step, re-assemble your grill and turn its burners to high for 10 minutes. This will burn off excess water in the grill and help to sanitize it.
Cleaning a gas grill is a 20-30 minute process. The results, however, are long-lasting.
Whether you barbecue for friends or family once annually, or through all 4 Sacramento seasons, it’s important to keep a clean gas grill. A well-maintained grill will help your food taste its best — no matter what you’re cooking up.