She says oil your food, not the grate

[Brock Gingery]

I also oil the food not the grates, I have cast iron grates and only oil them for preventative maintenance , I have watched a lot of cooking shows including "Americas Test Kitchen " and by the time they oil the grates and put the food on all the oil has burned off.

Sure do miss Steve Smith. I wonder what kind of Adaptation he would have come up with for some of our grills now.

I remember the one episode he foiled and tucked food around his engine to "cook" it as he drove, especially the corn.

 

[JKalchik]

I remember the one episode he foiled and tucked food around his engine to "cook" it as he drove, especially the corn.

Manifold cookery. Old offroader's trick to get hot meals well away from civilization.

 

[Andy Kaminski]

Wayyy back in the middle 70’s on a long road trip I cooked some green stuff that wasn’t quite dry on the engine of the car I was driving.
Andy aka the original OG baker .

 

[Dwain Pannell]

I rarely oil food OR the grates. When cooking steak I am normally guilty of going straight from the marinade onto a white hot grill grate. Fish usually rides on a cedar plank. Sausages and burgers make their own oil. Shrimp on a salt block. Chicken goes over direct heat in the WSM with the grates and pan removed. ….

our version of manifold cooking: in the desert we just chunk our food on the dash. It was well in excess of 140*F by meal time.

 

[TonyUK]

I'll oil the meat if cooking on grates. Otherwise I'll slightly oil/butter a griddle. (A little bit of oil with the butter stops it burning).

 

[Brenda T]

I'll oil the meat if cooking on grates. Otherwise I'll slightly oil/butter a griddle. (A little bit of oil with the butter stops it burning).

I did not know that. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Bob Correll]

 

[Big JohnV in AZ]

My 22" kettle is 21 years old and I haven't oiled the grate in 15 years. the grate is so carbonized that nothing sticks. I do clean it by scraping off after every cook, but nothing sticks.

 

[Rick P]

I do both, but 90% of the time, it's usually the food. Always with vegetables, or when direct cooking lean meat. When I do oil the grate, I do it literally seconds before I put the food on.

 

[Jim C in Denver]

When I do oil the grate, I do it literally seconds before I put the food on.

+1

 

[Brett-EDH]

I know Steven Raichlen, and others, say to oil those grates, but Elizabeth Karmel says oil that food.
Oiling hot grates always seemed silly to me, it burns right off.

Grilling expert: You can avoid ‘most of your problems’ by following one simple rule

There’s one common grilling practice that Elizabeth Karmel can’t get behind, and unfortunately “a lot of chefs and writers tell people to do it.”

www.newsnationnow.com

yes and no. think wok cooking. you oil the wok to create or better your non-stick surface. so oiling grates does the same. example, cooking salmon; you salt the salmon and let it sit a bit to get it's moisture to the surface, wipe the surface dry and then oil your grates to get a non-stick surface to cook your salmon on. this gives a crispy outside texture to the salmon and allows you to cook it to rare, and not lose your fish because it stays solid and not flaking into a thousand pieces.

so, oil both if you want but there are some very specific times you need to oil the grates.

here's a link to oiled grates for salmon:

now oiling a steak before grilling? YES. it's the best way to attract flames to sear the meat and generate that Maillard reaction.

 

[JohnTak]

I oil the grates just before throwing the food on and do a final brush off with a stainless steel scrubber. This knocks off what's left from the previous brush off. I do this to clean the grill before using and not for a nonstick situation.

 

[Jose Suro]

I always oil the grates but I clean them thoroughly first and then again after cooking no oil after cooking - not needed. Oiling grates is similar to curing cast iron. After you cure a cast iron skillet you don't see any oil on it, but it's there and makes the skillet non-stick and keeps it from rusting. Same with the grates but you have to do it on every cook.

I bought my latest Performer in 2019. Bought a standard grate with it to save the grate that came with it for wok cooking. The pic below is of the ORIGINAL grate in 2021 - Grate looks great and it works great too. I used to not oil the grate and had to replace them every year or so....

All the best,

Jose

 

[Brian B Atlanta]

I use a bit of olive oil on my steaks before adding salt and pepper then throw them on the grill. Other thing I learned from Weber I believe is to use a clean part of the grill when you flip whatever as flipping it over in the same spot it won't be as hot since the meat has absorbed some of the heat from the grill. I start on the left side then flip to the right side.