Grill Seasoning Tips

How to Season and Re-Season You Grill

The key to perfect grill marks without your food sticking is to have well seasoned grill grates. Here’s how!

Depending on your grill, your grates might be made from stainless steel or cast iron. The seasoning process is similar for both.

Open the lid and turn to Med-Hi heat
Close the lid and wait 20 minutes to ensure all the manufacturing chemicals have been burned off
Open the lid and apply a thin coating of oil with a brush or oil mister
- Make sure you get in the corners and curves – your food will!
Close the lid and let the heat bake on your seasoned coating for 45 minutes to an hour
Carefully wipe the grates down with tongs and a paper towel to remove any excess oil
Close the lid and turn the burners off, letting the coating bake on while the grill cools

Open the lid and turn on Med-Hi heat
Close the lid and wait about 10 minutes to burn off any old food and oils
Open the lid and clean your grates with your favorite brush
Apply a thin coating of oil with a brush or oil mister
- Make sure you get in the corners and curves – your food will!
Close the lid and let the heat bake on your seasoned coating for 45 minutes to an hour
Carefully wipe the grates down with tongs and a paper towel to remove any excess oil
Close the lid and turn the burners off, letting the coating bake on while the grill cools

Good oils for seasoning

Bad oils for seasoning

Salted fats (the salt can create pitting in your grates)
Butter (the cream can split or even become rancid on your grates)
Margarine (the low melting point won’t harden on the grates to create a seasoned coating)

For a more in depth article on seasoning cast iron, Lodge talks about seasoning cast iron pans here: Cast Iron Seasoning from Lodge

For a more in depth article on seasoning stainless, Dalstrong talks about seasoning stainless pans here: Stainless Seasoning from Dalstrong