Do Not Use a Bristle Brush to Clean Your Grill
The burgers are good, but the bristle burgers are definitely not. It turns out that the small, coarse, spiky bristles on barbecue brushes can fall off the hand and get stuck in food, potentially getting stuck in the throat and tongue. This is obviously not ideal.
To make matters worse, they are extremely difficult to remove from the mouth or throat while in there. As Dr. Ian Dempsey, an otolaryngologist based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, told CBC: “It’s a tricky structure to fish, especially when it’s deeply rooted.” Ouch.
The simplest solution is to discard the brush and clean the grate in a different way. Luckily, there are plenty of bristle-free brushes and scrapers on the market – Epicurious has five favorites! – but you can also wet some aluminum foil, hold it with tongs and start cleaning ( as I do in this video ). You can also take an extremely natural path – as this clever Deadspin commentator suggests – and use the bow. Cut it in half, dip it in oil and use tongs or a fork to rub the wire rack to clean and oil. There are many options for keeping your mouth free from tiny spiky bristles, so pick your favorite and protect your mouth.