Twist First, Flip Second: It only took me 30 years to learn this one! Get killer sear marks and only turn the food once. Mike Mills from 17th Street Bar & Grill showed me how the restaurants do it. Lift the food, twist (i.e.from 10:00 to 2:00) and place back down on the GrillGrates. The GrateTool makes this technique a snap. Then turn to reveal beautiful cross-hatch sear marks (this gives you the presentation side) and finish to desired doneness and remove. One twist followed by one turn.- Warm up Your Grill to Grilling Temperature: Avoiding high heat burn-off keeps your grill from getting too hot (700F and higher) and the possibility of a burned meal. Gas Grillers tend to heat their grills to max temp (and then get a beer) and turn their grill into a blast furnace to burn off any debris and prepare the grate. A hot grill takes a while to cool down to 450-500F. Warming up the grill to grilling temps will save a lot of fuel and you won’t burn off all that wonderful seasoning on the GrillGrates. The raised rails clean-up very easily during warm-up, so there is no need to burn-off the remains of your last meal. Warm up, clean-up, Grill Grate!
- Use Grilling Spray: GrillGrates have more surface area than regular grills. With Hard Anodized GrillGrates, use Weber Grill Spray or Pam for Grilling especially in the beginning. The sprays are built for high temps and aid in the non-stick until the GrillGrates become seasoned. Olive oil can also be used to prepare the raised rails. Over time the non-stick of the raised rails gets better and better.
- Clean Hard Anodized GrillGrates as little as possible in the beginning: This will aid and speed up the seasoning process. The entire Grate will blacken except for the raised rail grilling surface. Use a grill pad or brush to wipe the rails clean. Beyond that, just keep debris out of the valleys.
- Bring on the Marinades and Sauces because you can with GrillGrates: No more starting bonfires with marinades. You can marinate early in the grilling process. The valleys sizzle and steam the marinade back up tot he food. Enjoy the sounds of a sizzling sauce and taste the difference too. Extra marinade burns on the bottom of the GrillGrates, not of your food.
