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Spring BBQ Cleaning...  If people treated their grills like they do their stovetops, there would be a lot less grills wearing out. Every time you use it, clean it, at least lightly. Then once a year, do a more thorough cleaning. Follow these 5 spring cleaning steps...
Step One: Assess Your Equipment. Does anything need to be replaced? Are the hoses for the propane on your gas grill fully intact? Does the igniter still work?
Step Two: Tightening it up. How is your grill structurally? Is there a handle loose? Do you need to tighten the legs?
Step Three: Cleaning. A trip to any BBQ supply store will offer both new grates for most grills and solvents specifically made for cleaning BBQ grates.
Grates need to be cleaned completely after every use. This prevents food from sticking on your grill, making it much easier to cook. There are many products on the market for cleaning your grate, but really any good stiff wire brush will do. It's better done after you grill and not before. Once your grill has cooled down a bit, but is still warm, take your brush and clean off any remaining food particles. If you have a cast iron grate clean completely then brush on some oil with a paper towel to keep your grate in proper shape. Bare cast iron grates need to be inspected regularly because they are more likely to rust.
Charcoal Grills - One of the great things about charcoal grills is that you clean it out after every use. However, many people don't take advantage of the situation and simply dump the ashes out. Keeping a good wire brush handy to sweep out the cooked on remains will make additional cleaning jobs much easier. At least once a year, get out a bucket of soapy water and give it a really good cleaning.
Gas Grills - Once a year you need to do a good cleaning of your gas grill. This requires that you take portions of it apart. First, start by disconnecting the gas and then lift out the grill parts layer by layer. Once you get down to the burners, make sure you inspect them thoroughly. There shouldn't be anything blocking the flow of gas. If the burner is clogged it will give you uneven heat and make for poor grilling. If you can clean it, do so, if not, then replace it. If your grill uses lava rocks or ceramic briquettes you need to make sure that these are not too heavily encrusted with cooked on foods. If they happen to be, replace them to avoid bad tasting smoke that dirty rocks can produce.
With everything out of the grill, clean it completely with soapy water. If the paint is coming off, or if your grill is showing signs of rust then you need to do some painting. If you need to touch up the color, simply get a can of grill safe paint. After that, put everything back in, check to make sure that all connections are good, and then turn it on. Let the grill heat completely before you cook again to make sure that any left over soap residue burns off.
Stainless Steel presents some special challenges to cleaning. Follow your manufacturer's special instructions on cleaning stainless steel.
Step Four: Tools - If you are checking out your equipment, you might as well take a look at your tools. Go over your spatulas, forks, brushes, baskets, rib racks, etc. Make sure that they are clean and in good working order.
Step Five: Start Cooking! If you follow these tips, your grill will last for many years and produce great results!
Now go get grillin with Gayle's!
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Gayle's Sweet 'N' Sassy Foods
269 South Beverly Drive, Suite 472
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
310-246-1792 (office) 310-246-1794 (fax)
email:
info@gaylesbbq.com
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Try this easy appetizer recipe, perfect for Spring time BBQ! 
