SURFACE CARE
Seasoning Grates and Cast Iron the Right Way (2026)
Seasoning is not oiling. It is the process of converting a very thin layer of oil into a hard polymer bonded to the metal, and the two things that decide whether it works are how thin the layer is and how far above the oil’s smoke point you take it. Almost every failed seasoning attempt is too much oil at too low a temperature.
What you need
- High-smoke-point oil (grapeseed, canola or flaxseed)
- Lint-free cloth or paper towels
- Heat-resistant gloves
- Nylon scouring pad
The routine, step by step
Strip the surface back to clean metal
Seasoning bonds to metal, not to old residue. Scrub with hot water and a nylon pad — soap is fine here, the old advice against it applies to detergents that no longer exist. If there is rust, work it off with the pad until bright metal shows. Dry immediately and completely.
Drive off every trace of moisture with heat
Put the grates back on and run the grill at medium for ten minutes, or set cast iron in a 250°F oven for the same. Water trapped under an oil layer flashes to steam during seasoning and blows holes in the coating you are trying to build.
Apply oil, then wipe almost all of it off
This is the step that decides the outcome. Put a small amount of oil on a cloth, coat the surface, then take a clean cloth and wipe until the metal looks dry rather than glossy. It should not look oiled at all. Any visible pooling will turn sticky instead of hard.
Heat past the smoke point and hold
Bring the grill to roughly 400–450°F — above the smoke point of the oil — and hold it there for 40–60 minutes with the lid closed. Polymerization is what turns liquid oil into a bonded solid, and it only happens above the smoke point. Stopping at 300°F leaves you with a tacky film that collects dust.
Cool, then repeat two or three more times
Let the metal cool until you can touch it, then repeat the wipe-and-bake cycle. Three to four thin coats produce a far more durable surface than one thick coat ever will, and each layer takes less time than the one before.
Maintain it after every cook
A quick pass with an oiled cloth on a hot grate after cooking keeps the layer topped up indefinitely. This is why the after-cook routine matters so much on cast iron — the seasoning is a consumable that you replace a little at a time.
Know what breaks it
Long contact with acidic food, soaking in water, a dishwasher cycle, and aggressive wire-wheeling will all take seasoning off. If food starts sticking on a previously slick surface, that is the signal to strip and start again rather than to add more oil on top.
Common mistakes
- Using too much oil, which produces a sticky varnish rather than a hard coating.
- Stopping the bake below the oil’s smoke point, so nothing polymerizes.
- Seasoning porcelain-enamel grates — the coating is already the non-stick surface and oil simply carbonizes on top of it.
- Letting a freshly seasoned grate cool in a damp cabinet before the coating has fully hardened.