How to Keep your Blackstone Griddle from Rusting – Complete Guide
You don’t need any reason to use a grill. Whenever there is a reason to celebrate, remove the griddle and start grilling some beef! However, maintaining the griddle and avoiding corrosion is a tough job. So, how to keep your Blackstone griddle from rusting?
Well, worry not, as in this article, I will tell you all about the preventive measures you can take to keep your grill free of rust. I will also tell you how to clean the griddle if it gets any rust and keep it clean in general. Keep reading below to know more.
How to keep Blackstone griddle from rusting
Rust in a griddle is never ever good. We cook in there. Our food stays in there. If it gets rust, it will be very harmful to our bodies, and we may contaminate various diseases. So, rather than waiting for the griddle to get rust and then cleaning it is a bad option. Instead, you may just prevent the rusting.
Especially in griddles made by Blackstone, the prevention of rust is very important as they are more prone to corrosion due to the use of carbon steel in their construction. So, you need to take extra care. Therefore, what are the best ways to clean Blackstone griddle and prevent rusting? Let’s take a look below:
Clean the griddle after cooking
It is very important that you clean the griddle after every time you cook. No food or debris should be stuck on the surface. A dirty griddle may cause rusting due to all the moisture stuck in it.
So, after cooking, scrape off any dirt you have stuck on it.
Protect from moisture
Always ensure your griddle is not in contact with moisture for too long. If you put any water in it for cooking purposes, wipe it off immediately after the work is done. Most importantly, do not store the grill outside if the weather is humid or rainy.
If you store it outdoors during humid weather, it will come in contact and easily corrode. Store it indoors. Also, do daily checks on the griddle wherever you store it and clean it regularly to keep it dry.
Use tight cover
Get an air-tight cover for your griddle to keep the moisture and rust away. The cover can be heavy-duty and should not let any water, air, or moisture inside the grill.
Season the grill
The process of seasoning is super simple. It is just applying oil to your griddle to keep it water-free, as oil and water cannot mix. If the grill is covered with oil, you can keep the water away, preventing the rusting. I will explain the seasoning process in detail further below.
How to remove the rust from your Blackstone griddle
It may be that your griddle has already become rusted before you start taking preventive measures. Or, sometimes, the preventive measures may go wrong for some reason, and the Blackstone surface may still contaminate corrosion. There is nothing to worry about in that case, as you can still clean the grill and remove the rust.
So, how do you clean a Blackstone griddle that has rust? The process is very simple. All you need is:
- A metal Scraper
- Paper Towels
- Heat Resistant Gloves
- Cooking Oil
- Steel Wool
With these few materials, cleaning the griddle off and removing the rust is possible. Let’s take a look at the process below:
Step 1: Heat the griddle
To be able to clean the rust off, you need to soften it first. You can do this by heating the griddle. Start the heat on it and heat it for about 20 minutes. This will make the rust loose and easy to clean.
Then, wear your gloves to not burn your hands and cool down the grill to bring it to a workable temperature. Waiting for 3-4 minutes should be fine.
Step 2: Scrape off the rust
Now that the rust has become a bit soft, the best way to clean the Blackstone griddle will be to take the metal scraper and scrape all the rust off. Ensure you wear gloves while dealing with all this, as the grill will be hot.
You may need to use a bit of force in this stage to properly remove the rust. Then, a lot of flakes will be created due to the scraping. Take a paper towel and wipe off the flakes.
In addition, you can also remove the flakes by applying some oil on the griddle surface and then using paper towels on it. It makes the flakes easier to come off. You may see the towel turning red, but that is only due to the oil.
Repeat the scraping and wiping process until the whole Blackstone surface is clean and no more rust is left.
Step 3: Season the grill
Last but not least, the Blackstone surface may become a bit rough due to all the scraping. To smoothen it out, get back your shiny black surface and prevent any further rusting,
The seasoning process begins by preheating the grill. After that, put some cooking oil on it and let it heat for 20 to 25 minutes until the oil starts giving off smoke. You can attempt to apply another layer of oil for safety after that. A sign of good seasoning is when the grill turns entirely black.
I will discuss the seasoning process further in detail below.
How to clean a Blackstone griddle after cooking?
After you have cooked in a Blackstone grill, cleaning a Blackstone griddle is necessary. Otherwise, we have already learned that the grill may get corrosion.
Many people get confused that cleaning a griddle may require soap. However, they are wrong. No soap is needed to clean a griddle! You can simply do it with a regular scraper, hot water, paper towels, and a scrubber.
Follow the process below:
Step 1: Clean off residue food
After the cooking is done, let the grill cool down. Then, use the metal scraper to remove any remnants of the cooked food. With grilled food, it is very common to get pieces of food stuck on the surface.
Later, you need to use a paper towel to wipe off any remaining loose remnants and clean off any oil or water on the pan.
Step 2: Wipe with hot water
After all loose food particles are completely wiped off, spray hot water on the grill. This will further help you clean the surface. After spraying the hot water, use the non-metallic scrubber to scrape away any remnants.
Use the paper towel to absorb all the surface water and wipe it.
Step 3: Season the griddle
After the grill is dry, use 2-3 tablespoons of oil to season the whole surface of the Blackstone griddle.
How to season a Blackstone griddle?
I have talked about ‘seasoning Blackstone griddle’ so often that you might be curious: what exactly is this seasoning? Well, seasoning is basically coating the Blackstone surface with oil so it does not come in contact with water or moisture. Preventing this will, of course, also prevent the corrosion.
So, how to clean and season a Blackstone griddle? Let’s learn through the process below:
Step 1: Cover the griddle surface with oil
Use cooking oil like vegetable, canola, or anything else to completely coat the griddle surface. You may use a tablespoon to pour the oil and then a paper towel to spread the oil throughout the surface.
Ensure the oil is applied on the corners and rims of the griddle.
Step 2: Turn on heat
After applying the oil, turn on the heat on the grill and let the oil become smoke. It usually happens in 15 to 20 minutes.
Step 3: Cool the burner
Turn the heat off on the grill and let it cool down. Make sure you are not touching the hot grill. Wear heat-resistant gloves,
Step 4: Repeat process
Now, repeat the same process 2-3 times more. Apply oil on the whole surface and ensure it reaches all the rims. Then, wait for the oil to give off smoke through heating.
Lastly, store the griddle in a safe storage. It is better to store it indoors as you need to keep humidity and moisture away. Use an air-tight cover to keep air and moisture away.
Final Words
Maintaining a grill that is made of Blackstone is not an easy task. It is very prone to getting rust. The rust can ruin the whole grill’s quality and contaminate your food.
That’s why, in this article, I have told you all about how to keep your Blackstone griddle from rusting and keeping it clean. You should have a very durable griddle if you take the right preventive measures.
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