How to clean your grill with an onion: The surprising chef-recommended trick you should know

Grill cleaning is that type of task that most people tend to dodge. The grill grates are usually covered with remnants of burnt food, greases, and tough black residues after preparing burgers, steaks, chicken, and veggies on the grill. As popular as the grill brush may be, there is a more convenient and easier way of grill cleaning which you may not think of because you already have it in your kitchen - the onion. According to Food & Wine, chef and cookbook author Bricia Lopez uses an onion to clean her grill grates, calling it a 'sacrificial onion'. Lopez use half an onion to scrub a hot grill, with the vegetable helping remove bits of charred food and grime.

"I call it the sacrificial onion. It not only brings a beautiful aroma, but it almost creates a nonstick surface, perfect for your proteins or vegetables," Lopez said as quoted by Food & Wine.

WHY DOES AN ONION WORK?

The process, however, is quite easy to carry out. Onions have natural liquids and acid that will help in cleaning the grime and any other debris from the hot grill surface. According to Southern Living, the natural juices contained within the onion will help release grease from the surface. There is a second reason why some grilling enthusiasts use this method of cleaning their grills. Grill brushes made from metal wire might deposit metallic bristles into food, and this could be risky for the health of those eating the grilled meals. White onions, according to Lopez, are very effective for this task.

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR GRILL WITH AN ONION

First, preheat your grill for around 15 to 20 minutes for grease and food residues to soften. The second step is to take an onion and cut it in half. Do not peel it before using. Grasp your onion firmly using long tongs and position it on the grates with the cut side facing down. Rub your onion against the grates with force. The heat will aid in releasing onion juices whereas the cut part will remove stuck-on residues from the grates. According to Southern Living, before you use an onion, you can soak your grill grates in lemon juice or white vinegar for extra acidity if needed.



The onion method is not a magic replacement for every type of grill cleaning, but it can be a convenient way to clean hot grates before or during cooking. Afterward, the used onion can simply be discarded or composted.

The next time you fire up the grill, you may want to grab an onion before reaching for a traditional brush. It is inexpensive, simple and may give your grill grates a surprisingly effective cleanup.