Is It Safe To Cook on a Rusty Grill Grate?

You haven’t seasoned the grill last time and now the grill grates are all rusted and need urgent attention. Maybe you had plans for a small BBQ and now wonder if it will be safe to grill on rusted grill grates.

Rust in Itself Isn’t Harmful in small amount but it affect your food ( flavor ) in a wrong way. Then their is the concerns of tetanus or digestion issues if say you end up consuming it.

So the obvious question comes should or should not you grill with rusty grill grates? Will it be safe and what will be the negative effects. Let’s take a look and find out.

Is it safe to cook on a rusty grill grate? Yes, you can be confident that the grill grate is safe for cooking as long as it has been cleaned first.

There are ways that you might be able to protect your food from rust stains if the grate has rusted and stained in those spots. The grates are typically made out of stainless steel or cast iron, both non-sticky and non-corrosive.

You can paint them with a Rustoleum spray sealant after being cleaned. There are also special stainless steel and cast iron cleaners that you can use to clean rust off of the grates.

Rust in Itself Isn’t Harmful

Rust is basically iron oxide which is not harmful if digested in moderation. The max it will do is to increase the iron content in your body and alter the authentic taste of your meat.

Consuming much of it, however, might become potentially harmful leading to first indigestion and later iron toxicity; when consumed over a long run and should be avoided at all costs.

Obviously, iron oxide is not food that you should be consuming and it doesn’t provide nutrition. But the small particles that you may ingest with the food can easily pass through your digestive tract.

So should you be using rusty grill for your backyard BBQ? You can use a rusty grill once or twice if in hurry, just don’t make it a habit.

Even the USDA consider rusted grill grates and utensils not a food-safe material. Thus rust from your grill must be cleaned every time you use your grill after a long break.

Cleaning rust becomes even more easier once you apply heat. Ideally you won’t need much after a nice rub applied with soap and water solution.

Rusty Grill – Cause Symptoms & Health Concern

Rust is form when your cast iron surface of the grill grate slowly oxidized. It may happen when rainy weather evaporates into water drops that enter through a tiny hole in the bottom of a grill.

Many a time rainwater also collects on areas covered by grease, fat, or other contaminants. The bacteria and other airborne particles then contact the metal and rust quickly.

It is essential to thoroughly clean your grill to prevent infections and illness from building upon it. Unhygienic grills can be dangerous because they are more likely to harbor harmful bacteria.

Eventually, when these reach your food, you will have gastrointestinal distress or worse.

Rusty grills can worsen food conditions, significantly worsening the flavor and taste. Rusty grills make it hard to cook food because they have pockmarks that cause uneven heat distribution.

When food is overcooked, bacteria may be able to grow to dangerous levels.

More importantly, they can harbor harmful bacteria that could cause illness to your family. So it’s essential to clean them regularly. When the rust is cleaned off, the surface becomes even more smooth.

This allows the heat to spread evenly rather than drop on one spot because of a rust pockmark. Also, the meat will not stick as much if you keep your grill clean enough to prevent rusting.

Tips for Cleaning a Rusty Grill

Now that you have learned that occasional cooking on rusty grill grate isn’t harmful, let’s discuss now how to make your grill grates clean.

One can clean his or her grill with items generally available at home like vinegar and salt, baking soda, commercial rust remover, sandpaper, and cleaning detergent.

Cast iron is a durable metal yet it can be hard to clean when they become dirty. However, proper care of the cast grill can enhance its durability and help you get a good time with your grilling sessions.

With stainless steel grill grates their might not be serious rust issue but they too require some cleaning before use. While the main surface remains pristine, other materials on it will rust over time.

Related Post: 5 Ways To Clean Your Cast Iron Grill Grates

A Quick Tip for Cleaning a Rusty Grill:

1: Take off all the pieces of burnt food and charred grease from the grill. This will remove pockmarks or grease spots on your grill that would trap water in them because this is where the worst of the rust will occur.

2: Put your grill outside, if necessary, and spray it with warm water from a hose. This will wash the rust off using your hose if it’s cold out.

3: If you have any pockmarks, use a wire brush to scrape them off. You can also use a wire brush or steel wool broom on some of the larger holes in your grill to lift dirt and dust that has found its way into those areas.

4: Clean the entire inside of your grill with a cloth soaked in ammonia (if you can handle the smell). This helps break up any residual rust left on there and is one of my tricks for cleaning stove grates.

5: Let it dry out completely before attempting to cook again.

6: Get a wire brush or steel wool and scrub off any burnt or stuck food.

7: Wash it with a sponge soaked in ammonia to completely clean it (if the ammonia smell doesn’t bother you, but if it does, use vinegar). You can also use a stainless steel cleaner or a cleaner specifically for grill grates.

How to Prevent Rusty Grills

These tips are essential because they can help to prevent airborne bacteria from growing on your grill. They will also help prevent your grill from rusting if it is left outside as usual in the winter.

1. Clean and dry your grill first thing in the morning.

This will ensure that all of the water has been vaporized, thus preventing any grass or leaves from falling into it and giving off rust spores when they freeze over.

If the grass or leaves fall directly onto your grill, wash them off immediately afterward and try not to put pressure on them so that there’s still a tiny amount of moisture in them for rusting. Books on grilling:

2. Use the best grease you can.

Copper pans, copper accessories, and copper-coated grills are highly recommended to prevent rusting. Copper is good because it is a natural anti-rusting element.

Alloys of tin and zinc are also very effective in preventing rust. Tin and zinc are often found in recipes for cast iron cookware, which has been used since ancient times to produce excellent results on grills.

3. Clean your grill regularly when you go camping or have friends over for the weekend.

They will give it an excellent, thorough cleaning to prevent any bacteria from growing on it while they are there. If you can’t do the cleaning yourself, have a friend or colleague willing to help.

4. Make sure to clean your grill after any BBQ when rusting is most likely.

The longer you wait after you’re done grilling for rust to appear, the more difficult it will be to remove later on. Therefore, clean and dry it immediately after so that you don’t have to do a lot of scrubbing later.

Also, if you use foil instead of regular parchment paper or aluminum foil on the inside of your grill, it will last longer (though it may not taste as good).

5. Make sure that the surface of your grill is even and smooth.

If any minor bumps, pockmarks, or rust stains on the grill, it will be harder to cook food evenly. Therefore, to prevent this, try to clean out all of the rust and pockmarks with a wire brush before cooking.

Also, make sure that your drip pan or drip pan catch area is free of debris and is evenly coated with oil.

6. Clean off any grease or fat from grill.

Clean off any grease or fat from grills using a sponge moistened with vinegar or ammonia until it’s dry. This helps kill any bacteria left that can cause illness if left on your grill for long periods.

7. Cook food on grills that are clean and dry.

By following these tips, you will likely avoid rusting altogether until you have to clean your grill.

If the grill is washed, it will be much easier to cook evenly and prevent bacteria from growing in any spots you missed or missed cleaning and getting rid of.

Also, removing rust regularly before it gets too bad means you won’t have to do much scraping later on. Try these tips out and see if they work for you!

However, if they don’t, try one of the other methods on this page that do not suit your situation.