Grilled Romaine
Clean Grillin’
We hope you enjoy this previously published Zola recipe and column!
I’ve never been that fond of the grill. I think I can trace it back to when I was about 20 years old. I bought a charcoal grill that came in a box. I had to put it together. Even with perfectly clear directions, it still took me five hours to get that thing ready to cook a hotdog. It wasn’t the most expensive grill so it didn’t last more than one summer either. I was so disappointed.
I’ve always had a healthy respect and even a fear of propane. Now that we have a gas grill I’m never the one to change the tank. I leave that to my husband.
Some people grill out all year round. I used to be that kind of person. When I lived in Madison, Wisconsin, we had our grill on a big, concrete back porch. It was easy to buzz out the back door to grill a steak. You could stay warm and cozy and just bolt out to turn the steak at the proper moment.
Ever since I was a little kid I remember the day that the grill got cleaned was a big, dirty deal. Now I realize you really shouldn’t wait for a big day to clean the grill. It should be done much more often than that. But as a kid I can remember my mom getting out the bucket, the big rubber gloves, a hose and cleaner. I think she used oven cleaner on the grates. I can still conjure up that smell and see the grit and grease and goo. There was lots of grunting involved in cleaning the grill. It was all a big YUK.
So now that we are all trying to be more “green” and not use things like smelly chemicals on the grill, I thought I’d do a little research on grill cleaning. I found a couple of You Tube clips that had some neat grill cleaning advice.
One of these has hints for when you’re the chosen one to do the grilling at a party but you’re not at your own house. Or maybe you’re using a public grill in a park.
Another one is done by our Chicago buddy Lou Manfredini. He’s pretty famous in the "do-it-yourselfer" world. He owns an Ace Hardware store in the Chicago suburbs, and is their spokesman. He does a Saturday morning “Mr. Fix It” show that I try to listen to as I drive around doing my errands. I learn a lot from Lou.
So now that we’re in the peak of the grilling season I hope these things give you the incentive to take good care of your grill. I know I’m going to do a better job with mine.
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