Cast Iron vs. Grill Grates

[John Ford]

Over the next few days I'm going to compare grill grates to the very heavy cast iron grates found on my Weber Genesis 1000 from 1999.
Mainly concerned with ability to cook more fragile items such as seafood & vegetables.
First cook squash & zucchini seasoned with olive oil & citrus blend.
Grill grates on top of standard grates. Long preheat (15 minutes)
Grilled 5 min side 1 then 4 min side 2.
Veggies turned on cast iron with tongs & on grill grates with "tool".
Set up all burners on high, forgot to take pic till most had already been removed.

Cast iron on right ( darker) grill grate cooked on left lighter.

Minimal sticking from either surface, although the grill grates worked best with tool
Both sets tasted fine.
Both worked fine.

 

[John Ford]

Comparison cook for salmon.
Thick farm raised salmon seasoned with McCormick salmon rub then coated with olive oil.
Long preheat, cooked on high for 5 min on meat then 4 min skin side down.
Minimal sticking, lost a tiny chunk of fish on grill grates.
Good sear on both, no significant difference.
Cast iron

Grill grates

Next cook catfish, a little more fragile fish.

 

[John Ford]

Catfish grille on the grates
I often when eating less calories grill fish & shrimp as I'm not a big fan of "Boneless, Skinless, Tasteless chicken breasts."
Catfish is easily obtained, stored frozen glazed in bags, & to me is preferable to Tilapia ( Boneless, Tasteless fish filets)
It is more fragile than tuna or salmon which I often grill.
Grill grates on right, cast iron on left
The filets were seasoned with SZEGED fish rub then liberally coated with olive oil

The cast iron did great, no sticking, good sear marks.
The grill grates stuck & the seared part stuck to grates.

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

Catfish grille on the grates
I often when eating less calories grill fish & shrimp as I'm not a big fan of "Boneless, Skinless, Tasteless chicken breasts."
Catfish is easily obtained, stored frozen glazed in bags, & to me is preferable to Tilapia ( Boneless, Tasteless fish filets)
It is more fragile than tuna or salmon which I often grill.
Grill grates on right, cast iron on left
The filets were seasoned with SZEGED fish rub then liberally coated with olive oil

The cast iron did great, no sticking, good sear marks.
The grill grates stuck & the seared part stuck to grates.

I think the reason Amazingribs.com is so big on grillgrates is that you can turn it upside down and use it like a griddle for more of all around sear. Personally I'd stick with the cast iron. Cool post!

 

[Mark Barton]

Thanks for the comparison, John. It's really useful to see real life results.

I've been considering Grill Grates just for fish. Looks like I will skip those at this time.

 

[Enrico Brandizzi]

Thanks for sharing your tests!!

 

[Rich Dahl]

I think both have their place in grilling, it's what works best for you. I have CIs on my genesis 1000/2000 and my NG E320. I've been very pleased with their performance so never looked at grill grates.
Thanks for taking the time to share your results.

 

[JeffG]

Just add a little pressure with one of these, and i think the results might change on the cast iron and grill grates. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

Good reference points, for all of it! I think I want some cast iron!
I said want not, need!
Or maybe, I just need a weight?

 

[John Ford]

Good reference points, for all of it! I think I want some cast iron!
I said want not, need!
Or maybe, I just need a weight?

Don't get me wrong, for dense food, steaks, chops etc a weight does help with the searing no matter what grate.
If you used a weight on most seafood or veggies you'd just destroy the food.

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

I get that, not my first rodeo.

 

[Bob H.]

John, it looks like your grillgrates are bone dry and were not oiled. Is there a reason for that? They work quite well if they get a splash of oil before they are used.

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

Interesting post John. I've been vacillating on whether or not to try out Grill Grates. I have a ton of various cast iron products which work well for me. Still thinking...

 

[John Ford]

John, it looks like your grillgrates are bone dry and were not oiled. Is there a reason for that? They work quite well if they get a splash of oil before they are used.

Food was well oiled.

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

One thing I like abut the ones for a kettle is the way it's divided in quarters. After seeing the other thread on breaded "grill baked" poultry the ability to use 3/4 for product and still have pretty much unhindered access to heat.

 

[Bill Spearman]

Grill grates and a thermopen are two upgrades that are undeniably worth the money.............

 

[Bob H.]

Food was well oiled.

If you oil the grates the food will not stick. If you oil the food it works like you showed.

 

[Bob H.]

One thing I like abut the ones for a kettle is the way it's divided in quarters. After seeing the other thread on breaded "grill baked" poultry the ability to use 3/4 for product and still have pretty much unhindered access to heat.

I like your Clampett quote. Jed would be proud! MMmmmm Dogies!

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

Much obliged, Bob.

 

[RD Hauch]

The cast iron results look the best. Most of my grills have cast iron grates. I've never been interested in those grill grates.