The Onion Secret Every Indiana Griller Should Know

Hoosiers, ditch those dangerous wire brushes now—grab an onion instead and protect your grill, your food, and your family from hidden hazards!

One of my favorite things to do this time of year is to fire up the grill and serve up some delicious food for my family. When it comes to grills, I have used a Weber charcoal grill, a gas grill, and my favorite to date, a pellet grill. They are all great and get their job done in their own way. Over the past few years, I have used my pellet grill more than the others just because I feel like food tastes better on it. No matter what type of grill you use, one thing is universal. You must clean the grill grates before each use. Those wire brushes that you have been using pose a major safety hazard. 

Why You Shouldn't Use Wire Brushes to Clean Your Grill

I'd be lying if I said that I didn't clean my grill grates with a wire brush. It's what I have always used, and it gets the job done. However, using wire brushes to clean your grates can be dangerous. AARP reports that a wire bristle from a grill brush is responsible for over 130 ER visits per year.

AARP continues:

“The main danger is that the wire bristle will poke into or perforate the lining of your mouth, throat, esophagus or elsewhere along the intestinal track,” says Mark Prince, M.D., chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Michigan Medical School. “In the least dangerous scenario, this causes pain and requires a visit to the emergency room to be evaluated and have the bristle removed. But if the bristle perforates the lining and migrates into deeper tissues — for instance, into the neck, chest or abdomen — this can lead to pain, possibly infection and the need for complex surgery to remove the bristle.”

The Consumer Products Safety Commission recommends replacing the brush after 100 uses or at the end of every grill season.. They also said that cleaning your grill with balled-up aluminum foil or a nylon brush. However, there is another way that you can clean your grill grates that not only works but adds a little extra flavor to the grates too.

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Clean Your Grill Grates with an Onion

According to My Recipies, you should try cleaning your grill grates with an onion. Yes, an onion! It's a natural way to clean your grill, and it poses no hidden dangers, unlike a wire brush. First, you will need to heat up your grill. While that's heating up, cut an onion in half. Then, stick a long grilling fork into the end of the onion. Rub the cut side of the onion along the grates to remove the grime and access food. My Recipies also says that you can remove those "tough spots" by spraying the grates with lemon juice or white vinegar, as the extra acidity helps with the cleaning process.

Oh, and if you're using a charcoal grill, don't waste that cut onion by throwing it away after you clean the grates! If I were you, I would toss that onion into the coals after you're done using it to add some extra flavor to your food. Genius, right? It's all a win-win. Give it a try the next time you fire up the grill and see how you like the results.