Explainer
How to Clean an Indoor Electric Grill
Unplug it, empty the drip tray, and wipe the plate while it is still hand warm, when steam does the work and set grease has not yet formed.
By the Lush Editorial Team·Researched & Compared
Clean it warm, not hot and not cold
Unplug the grill, let it drop to hand warm, and wipe the plate then, because the window between too hot to touch and cold enough for grease to set is where the job takes two minutes instead of twenty. Pour a little warm water onto a still warm plate and the steam lifts most of what is stuck; leave the same plate overnight and you are scraping set fat off a nonstick surface, which is how coatings get ruined.
Take the drip tray out first, before anything else, and empty it. On a smokeless grill that tray holds water as well as grease, and one model in our smokeless grill guide publishes exactly that water-filled tray as its smoke control mechanism. Carrying a full one across a kitchen is the accident waiting to happen, and these grills are light enough to tip: our indoor grill guide publishes weights from 7.8 lbs to 18 lbs for the countertop models.
Find out which parts actually come off
This is the difference between a grill that stays clean for years and one you give up on, and it is published on the listing. Several grills in our guides publish removable, dishwasher safe plates: one searing grill publishes a removable nonstick plate described as PFAS free along with a dishwasher safe hood and drip tray, one contact grill publishes removable plates as dishwasher safe, and one indoor grill publishes a detachable structure where all removable components are dishwasher safe. Another publishes a perforated mesh lid that detaches and goes in the dishwasher.
Not every grill offers this. Models with fixed plates have to be cleaned in place, which means a damp cloth, patience and never letting water run toward the element or the thermostat probe socket. If you are still choosing a grill and cleaning is what you dislike about grilling, removable plates are the single feature worth paying attention to.
The plate: nonstick, cast iron and stainless are three different jobs
A nonstick grate or griddle wants a soft cloth or a nylon brush, warm water and washing up liquid, and nothing else. No wire brush, no scouring powder, no oven cleaner. For baked on marks, lay a wet paper towel on the plate while it is still warm and leave it for ten minutes, then wipe. A paste of baking soda and water handles the rest and is safe on coatings.
Commercial style flat tops are a different animal. One griddle in our indoor grill guide publishes an 8mm thickened non-stick heating panel, another publishes a 0.3in non-stick coated panel and a 10 mm thick cast iron plate at 21.7 inch by 14.2 inch, with an oil leak hole and a removable oil collecting box. Those you scrape with the edge of a stiff spatula while warm, push the debris into the hole, then wipe with oil rather than washing down to bare metal. They are also 39.68 lbs and 39.82 lbs appliances, so they get cleaned where they stand.
Stainless surfaces around the plate take a damp cloth and, for discoloration, a little vinegar. One grill publishes a smooth stainless surface you wipe with a damp towel and a removable grill and grease catcher tray that can go in the dishwasher, which is the easy end of the category.
The four things that ruin an indoor grill
Submerging the base. The element, the thermostat socket and the cord entry are all down there, and no grill in either guide publishes a submersible base. Wipe it, never dunk it.
Wire brushes on nonstick. A scratched coating sheds and then sticks, and once food sticks to a grill grate you stop using the grill. Metal tools on the plate belong to cast iron only.
Leaving the tray. Grease left in a tray goes rancid, smells when the grill next heats up, and on a smokeless model an unwashed tray refilled with water is a tray of stock rather than a quench bath.
Cleaning around the probe. On grills with a removable temperature control probe, the socket has to stay dry. Pull the probe, clean the plate, and let everything dry fully before it goes back together.
A routine that keeps it to two minutes
After every use: unplug, pull the tray, empty it, wipe the warm plate, wipe the hood if there is one, and leave the parts apart until dry. Once a week if you grill often: wash the removable parts properly, in the dishwasher if the model publishes them as dishwasher safe, and clean the inside of the lid, because the grease that condenses there drips back onto the next meal.
Once a season: look at the vents and the underside. Fat mist settles on the outside of the housing and on the feet, and a grill that is tacky to the touch attracts everything in the kitchen. Warm water with a little dish soap on a cloth, then dry.
One last note on heat as a cleaning tool. It is tempting to burn residue off by running the grill empty at its top setting, and the published ranges go high enough to do it: 450 degrees Fahrenheit on two of these grills and 500 degrees on another. It works on cast iron and it is a bad idea on nonstick, where high dry heat is what degrades the coating. On a coated plate, warm water and a cloth do more good than heat ever will.
Common questions
Can I put grill plates in the dishwasher?
Only if the model publishes them as dishwasher safe, and several in our guides do: one searing grill lists plate, hood and drip tray, one contact grill lists removable plates, and one indoor grill states that all removable components are dishwasher safe. Where the listing is silent, assume no, because dishwasher detergent is harsh on nonstick and on printed control panels.
How do I get burnt on grease out of the grooves?
Steam it rather than scrape it. Lay a wet paper towel or a damp cloth over the warm plate for ten minutes so the residue softens, then work along the grooves with a nylon brush or the corner of a cloth. A baking soda paste helps on the second pass. Anything metal in a nonstick groove leaves a scratch that makes the next clean harder.
Should I oil the plate after cleaning?
On cast iron and bare stainless flat tops, yes, a thin wipe of neutral oil prevents rust and keeps food releasing. On nonstick plates, no: oil left on a coated surface polymerizes into a sticky varnish over time, which is the tacky brown film people mistake for a worn out coating. Dry is the right finish for nonstick.
Does the water tray need washing every time?
Every time, and with soap. It holds water and grease together, which separates and goes rancid faster than grease alone, and on a smokeless grill that tray is part of the cooking system rather than a catch pan. Rinse it, wash it, dry it, and refill with clean water at the start of the next session rather than topping up the old.
What if my grill has fixed plates that do not come off?
Clean in place with the grill unplugged and still warm, using a damp cloth and as little water as possible, tipped so nothing runs toward the element or the cord entry. Steam from a wet paper towel does most of the work. Then dry it with a towel rather than leaving it to air dry, since standing water around a fixed plate finds its way into the housing.