The manly art of BBQ cleaning
According to magazines, barbecuing is man’s work. As soon as the grilling season starts, they tell you that outdoor cooking is a testosterone laden enterprise. Raymond, being no exception, fancies himself the god of fire, expert on all things grilling. We gracefully bow to this virile know-how, but we point out the he who masters the flames is also the one who cleans his equipment. Unfortunately for him, the sign of a good barbecue is often the sorry black sticky mess clinging onto the hotplate and racks.
To help your dear beloved cope and clean like a king, quickly brief him on health and environmental dangers of toxic cleaning products, totally incompatible with his ancestral cooking methods. Generously share your favourite cleaners that are cheap and eco-friendly and give him some clever hacks to get rid of the caked on and burnt fat together with all the grime of an unknown origin. With these miracle helpers, he’ll make his barbie sparkle, even after he’s cooked a whole lamb.
The secret to painlessly degrease it in no time, is to discreetly drop some salt on the hot plate while it’s still hot after cooking. When it’s cooled down, he just needs to scrub it with a dish brush and warm soapy water, rinse it, dry it and run some cooking oil – groundnut, canola or coconut – on the hotplate with a clean rag.
Vinegar, with its awesome acetic acid, ruthlessly eradicates bacteria, viruses, grease, grit and grime in no time. Tell the Master Roaster to mix 2 cups of vinegar with 2 cups of water in a pretty spray bottle, close it tightly, shake it up and spray the solution onto the war zones. After 10-15 minutes, he can just wipe the grill clean.
A jolly good scrub with black soap or Castile soap on a dish brush will totally degrease it. Any resistance can be attacked with soda bicarb aka the miracle cleaner. He should mix 3 parts soda bicarb with 1 part water, generously smear it on and leave it for a couple of hours before wiping it off with a clean rag or some newspaper. After a good rinse, he will be bowled over by the blinding beauty of his favourite BBQ.
At the end of the season, explain to your darling that a deep clean with black soap or Castile soap is required. He needs to spread it on the hotplate and the racks, wait for 10 minute, scrub them with a dish brush and prepare himself to be dazzled by the amazing result.
Your significant other will be happy to discover more manly recipes in:
Le Dictionnaire à tout faire anticrise
