Rookie Mistakes....


 
J

James Payne

TVWBB Member
So, I am very much a grilling rookie. I can see all the progress I have made and am enjoying all the delicious food I am cooking on my grill. I'm thinking to myself, hey, you might not be a rookie anymore!

Then, today happens. I throw some ABT's on the grill to take to a friends to watch the game (GO BENGALS!). I've done this numerous times on the WSM but this was the first time on the OTG. What does dummy do? Forgot to put a drip pan under them :)

Now the kettle is full of bacon fat! Anyone want to give this rookie some ideas on how to clean that up so it doesn't catch fire on the next cook? :)
 
Go to HD and pick up a plastic putty knife. The package I picked up had three in different sizes. Use the plastic putty knife to scrape the bacon fat off your kettle. Everybody that's forgotten to place the drip pan raise your hand. Wow, do you see all those hands. LOL
 
I would just take a spatula and remove what you can. If there is still any amount, light the kettle and let it burn off under control. Keep the lid on and watch your vent positions so the fire does not get away on you.
 
The plastic putty knife works well; HD has the 3 pack with a 1" wide blade and sells a similar size just by itself. Get most of it up and the rest will just burn off. Btw; this isn't a rookie mistake or a big deal.
 
I have done it 3 times. :eek:

I didn't clean mine. On my next cook the charcoal was on it and it help start my fire.
 
I don't clean mine either. I will take my grates and when I have the gasser or performer fired up for another cook, I will lay my WSM grates over the fire and get them hot. Then I will brush them with wire brush. That's all the cleaning my Q will see.
 
As others have said.... Let it cool, scrape it down, and carry on. It's not that I 'forget' to put a drip pan down, I simply don't use one most of the time.
 
Raises hand! I try to give my kettle a bath once a month. In the beginning I washed it every week... got old fast. Sometimes I plan on cooking food hot and fast after a messy cook. So I can burn all the nasty fat out of the grill. 600* will burn off almost anything.
 
Bill W San Diego said:
Go to HD and pick up a plastic putty knife. The package I picked up had three in different sizes. Use the plastic putty knife to scrape the bacon fat off your kettle. Everybody that's forgotten to place the drip pan raise your hand. Wow, do you see all those hands. LOL
Click to expand...

I'll raise my hand Bill cause I'm guilty as charged.
I do a burn off a few times a year.

Tim
 
Thanks for all of your solutions! I think I am going to give a burn off a try. If that doesn't work as anticipated, I will grab a plastic putty knife and go to town.
 
I don't use a drip pan all the time. Put coals on that area next time and it will probably burn off.
 
A little grease is not a problem if it burns and ends up as residue. It can be a big problem if it becomes rancid. Had that happen to me after making a bunch of pig candy. I used a catch pan but still had a bunch that missed. Didn't think it would be a problem. The next time I used that grill was a week or so later to make peach cobbler. It totally ruined the cobbler because the batter absorbed the smell of the rancid grease and it tasted terrible. Definitely learned my lesson.
 
Tyson said:
Raises hand! I try to give my kettle a bath once a month. In the beginning I washed it every week... got old fast. Sometimes I plan on cooking food hot and fast after a messy cook. So I can burn all the nasty fat out of the grill. 600* will burn off almost anything.
Click to expand...

This is how I clean my kettle and my WSM. Cleansing fire. :)

Seriously, just fire it up with no food. Use lump if you've got it. Vents wide open, lid sitting a little crooked. You'll get a big, hot fire that will cook off just about anything.

It's also a good time to flip your charcoal grate over to make it bend the other way. :)
 
The only time I scrape the kettle is when my vents are hard to move. It is the result of unburnt grease and ash buildup. I usually do a big burn then scrape whats left. It works.
 
Hehe. Oh wait. I never use a grill/drip pan. But I do clean all my kettles every spring w easy-off oven spray foam and Brillo pads. Sometimes twice a year if they're messy from marinades esp teriyakis, etc.

Personally I think mistakes are necessary at least for my own improvement. 'gotta burn ribs to learn ribs' ...

Don't lift the lid...
 
I always bank the coals to one side (have a platinum with the composite/plastic table...it's old), and do a good amount off cooking indirectly. Unless I'm cooking something with a lot of sugar I don't seem to have problems.....it's only the sugary glaze that seems to cause the problems IME........
 
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