Chicken and cast iron grates - does it ever NOT stick

[pugsbrew]

OK, I can't figure out how to cook chicken, on ANY grill, without it sticking to the grates. I preheat the grates, coat them with some type of oil/fat. My wings, I coat with an oil. Place on hot grates, STICK EVERY TIME.

So, how does anyone cook their chicken without leaving half of it on the grill?

Yes I seasoned the grates, cleaned and recoated, recoated, and everything else I could find to do.

 

[johnmeyer]

Is the grill really hot? One paradoxical thing I found out a few years ago is that protein (the chicken in this case) will stick more to a "sort of hot" pan (or grate) but will release if you get that pan or grate a lot hotter.

As part of this same idea, you can often get food to release if you let it cook a little longer. Of course this may not be possible if you get a flare up and the food is burning.

 

[pugsbrew]

I preheated pellet grill to 375. How HOT would one recommend?

 

[fivetricks]

Stuff sticks to my CI grates every time too. I do a oven cleaning on mine because I'm too lazy to clean grates after cooking, so more heat isn't the answer.

 

[BandCollector]

Cast Iron grates need to be seasoned just as a cast Iron skillet does. Even though it is a pain to clean and re-season the grates after each cook it really should be done. A little TLC goes a long way.

John

 

[retfr8flyr]

My CI grate on both my Akorn Jr and when I had my full sized Akorn, were well seasoned and I never had things stick to them. When I do High temp sears I always re-season the grate.

 

[Unique Name]

Take your grates off and FULLY clean them.
Place them in a lye tank for a week or two. This will remove or loosen 99% of the chud that accumulates on them. Take them out, scrub with a soap pad several times. Dry well and season those bad boys with your preferred method.
However...
Many "cast iron" grills and grates are porcelain coated. If so, DO NOT put them in a lye tank. Take them to your local DIY carwash and blast them to hell.

If you're interested in setting up a lye tank, simply Google it. There are a few precautions that MUST be taken.

 

[johnmeyer]

I preheated pellet grill to 375. How HOT would one recommend?

At least 500º, but I don't know if a Traeger (or other pellet grill) can get that high.

 

[gmc2003]

Try starting with indirect heat and the skin side up. Then when the chicken is almost done(or the skin is dry) put it skin side down over the hot charcoals. If you want to add BBQ sauce to the chicken then put them back over to the indirect side and add your sauce.

Chris

 

[pugsbrew]

Try starting with indirect heat and the skin side up. Then when the chicken is almost done(or the skin is dry) put it skin side down over the hot charcoals. If you want to add BBQ sauce to the chicken then put them back over to the indirect side and add your sauce.

Chris

My entire cook, on the pellet grill, is indirect heat.

 

[johnmeyer]

To provide a little more weight behind my recommendation that you try to get the grates hotter:

How to Keep Chicken, Steak, Fish and Meats from Sticking to the Grill

From that link comes this quote:

The three biggest reasons that food sticks to the grill grates are:

• It’s not hot enough
• The grates are dirty
• There is no oil on the grates or the meat

Here's another article:

How to Keep Food from Sticking to the Grill

Key quote:

"... try these three steps to prevent food from sticking to the grill: Keep it hot, keep it clean and make sure you oil up your food."​

Note that in both articles, "keep it hot" is at the top of the list.