304 Stainless Steel on a Kamado Grill
Why it Matters
304 stainless steel is a highly durable and beautiful material, just like the rest of Saffire’s ceramic kamado design.
Stainless Steel is Beautifully Elegant
Stainless steel has a beautiful shine due to the chromium component in the steel. This shine makes a great accent to the elegantly enameled ceramic grill body of a Saffire, whether that enamel is colored in Sapphire Blue or Onyx Black. In addition, it’s very easy to clean with water and dish detergent, so it stays looking bright, even after working hard in the greasiest conditions.
Highly Rust Resistant 304 Stainless Steel
Rust Kills Grills
Let’s face it, grills get rusty. We tend to keep them in moist areas throughout the year, and then we expose them to lots of grease and super hot temperatures when they’re in use.
We bring our grills out in the summer, and we don’t always remember to bring them back in or cover them up right away. Your grill itself is subject to grease and moisture from the food you cook, which could get trapped underneath a grill cover, potentially leading to rust even when covered for protection.
304 Stainless Steel is Saffire's Answer
304 stainless steel is one of the most durable and rust-resistant metal alloys available for use with food. While the ever-popular powder-coated steel grills begin to rust once the protective coating starts chipping away from the steel, stainless steel is a forged steel alloy. There is nothing to chip away or even peel.
Saffire does offer a powder-coated hardware option in our less expensive Bronze lineup, but for the longest-lasting kamado experience, we recommend the 304 stainless steel found in our Platinum lineup.
Built-in, Outdoor Kitchen Kamado
From the very beginning we intended our grills to optionally be used as build-in grills for outdoor kitchens and the like. Rust-resistance is a huge issue for all grills, but even more so when your grill is permanently built into a structure.
Other kamados do not fair as well in the elements as a Saffire does, greatly lowering their lifespan when built into an immobile countertop. All high-quality built-in grills should be made from high quality stainless steel, especially 304 stainless steel, but not many kamados are. This innevitably leads to rusted bands and hinges. Even religiously covered built-in kamados will innevitably rust unless made of 202 or better stainless steel.
How to Maintain a Rust-Free Saffire Grill
- Clean Your Cooking Grates — Grease build-up may look like rust on 304 stainless steel. Before each cook, fire up your grill to 500° F and scrape/brush the old food and grease down into the charcoal to eliminate it.
- Avoid Really Hot Temperatures — Temperatures exceeding 725° F can damage the rust-resistant properties of stainless steel. We suggest not exceeding 700° F to best protect your cooking grid and cooking grid rack, as such high temperatures just aren’t necessary in normal use or cleaning.
- Avoid Corrosives — 304 stainless steel is more resilient than other metals and steels against corrosives, but it’s best to avoid them if you can. Here are a few suggestions on how to avoid corrosives:
- Don’t store your Saffire right next to your hot tub, where chlorine fumes can rise and rest on the stainless steel.
- Keep salt, like ocean salt or ice-melt salt, off your grill for extended periods of time.
- If you live by the salty ocean, cover your grill when not in use.
- Avoid using pesticides, herbicides, or other harsh or highly acidic chemicals around your grill.
If you believe your grill has come into contact with corrosives, just spray it off with fresh water and wipe it down with a wet cloth before storing it, to keep your Saffire looking like new.
Food-Safe 304 Stainless Steel
The Best Material for Cooking Grids
We use stainless steel for our cooking grids and racks, specifically because it is a food-grade material. Stainless steel is often used in the food industry, where sanitization and food safety are high priorities. Most professional kitchens prefer stainless steel for their pots, pans, and various utensils.
304 stainless steel is mostly composed of iron, chromium and nickel. Nickel, when made into an alloy, is considered safe by the California OEHHA. In addition, stainless steel contains no measurable amounts of hexevalent chromium, which is known to the state of California to cause cancer and birth defects.
In addition, unlike porcelain grids, stainless steel cooking grids won’t chip or crack. Porcelain chips can get into your food, making them undesirable on a cooking surface.
Easily Clean Your Kamado
Stainless steel is easy to keep clean without using any harsh chemicals. For cleaning 304 stainless steel, we suggest avoiding strong acids like undiluted vinegar and chlorine-based bleaches.
In most cases chlorine-free dish soap and water is the preferred cleaning method. You may occassionally choose to use stainless steel cleaner to get out deep-set stains. Distilled white vinegar, diluted to 5% or less acidity, can help to clean up smudges, but be sure to wipe the stainless steel clean of the vinegar afterward.
304 Stainless Steel is Strong and Durable
Stainless steel is stronger than iron, because chromium, nickel, and manganese (it’s chief components, besides iron) are stronger than iron. Stainless steel is also a work-hardened steel, meaning the hotter the steel gets, the harder it is to cut or puncture. In addition, the rust-resistant properties of 304 stainless steel make it super long-lasting under most normal conditions. It just makes sense to pair such a strong steel with a strong, mineral composite like ceramic.
Saffire’s cart legs use a tubular metal design, for the greatest rigidity while still remaining light. Our kamado carts are as strong as, or stronger than, any other carts we are aware of on the market.
304 Stainless Steel is Great for the Environment
Stainless steel is one of the most waste-free metals on the planet! It is 100% recyclable. In addition, less energy is used recycling it than when fabricating new stainless steel.
Because of its amazing qualities, stainless steel is prized all over the world. It is used in construction, for food grade machinery, and for medical equipment, to name a few.
Not only is recycling stainless steel good for the environment, but you don’t need to worry if someone will value it enough to reuse it!
Stainless steel should never go to the dump! Recycle it!
