Make grilled foods taste better

If you haven’t been grilling year-round and plan to fire up your rig for weekend eats, you’ve got cleaning to do. Although you might try to rationalize all that black char on your grill grates as a “flavor enhancer,” what it most likely will do is shorten the life of your equipment.

Preheating to soften up the crusty bits is a good idea, especially for those who forget to apply elbow grease via hard-bristle brush at the end of a cooking session. (Experts say: Scrub/scrape before and after.) But before that, you can use warm, soapy water, a scraping tool like a putty knife and a hose with good water pressure to de-gunk the inside walls of your kettle or gas grill. Steel wool and/or the brush should work on the grates. Gas grill owners: Don’t forget those burner covers, bottom trays and drip pans.

If you need to clean the grates between courses, dip a wad of paper towel into vegetable oil and use tongs to wipe the towel over the hot grates, then follow up with a wad of clean paper towel. Once the season’s in full swing, a monthly cleaning is recommended.