COOKING FAULTS
Sticking, Burning & Flare-Ups
Food welding itself to the bars, chicken that is black outside and pink inside, fat fires that scorch everything in thirty seconds. These are cooking-technique and grate-condition problems far more often than they are equipment failures, which is good news for your wallet.
Start here
Read the symptom titles below and pick the one that matches what you are actually observing rather than what you suspect is wrong. Each page opens with a short answer you can act on immediately, then works through the causes in order of how often each one turns out to be responsible. Half of them resolve without buying anything, so work top to bottom before you reach for a replacement part.
Food Sticks to the Grates Every Single Time
Easy
20 minutes
Chicken Burnt on the Outside, Raw in the Middle
Easy
10 minutes to set up
Constant Flare-Ups Are Charring Everything
Easy
30 minutes
Prevention for this category
- The 5-Minute After-Cook RoutineAfter every cook
- Seasoning Grates and Cast Iron the Right WayNew grates, after any deep clean, and any time water beads stop forming
- Calibrating a Thermometer With Ice and Boiling WaterAt the start of every season, after any drop, and any time a reading looks wrong