Reducing Grease Spatter

If you have ever cooked bacon, hamburgers, or any kind of meat in your kitchen then you know just how easy it is for the grease to get everywhere! It is not only messy to have grease end up getting all over the place, it can also be extremely dangerous. Just in case you didn't know it, grease fires are the single most common reason for home fires in the United States.

There are several ways that you can reduce grease spatter, the best of which are listed below. Follow these methods and you will reduce the chance of grease spatter, reduce cleanup time, and reduce the dangerous possibility of a grease fire.

• Spatter screens. Spatter screens are fine wire-mesh screens designed to keep grease and oil spatter from going all over the place. These pieces of equipment have been specially designed to keep the grease in while allowing the steam produced from cooking meat to get out. As opposed to regular lids, these kinds of lids are usually designed to fit on sauce and frying pans. An average thirteen-inch spatter screen can cost anywhere from as low as $4.99 to as high as $199.95.
• Metal colander. An inexpensive alternative to spatter screens, metal colanders are able to perform the task in a similar manner. To use this method, all you need to do turn the colander upside down with the bottom facing up. Just as with the spatter screen the colander will allow the steam of the cooking meat to escape while keeping the grease inside. This is an inexpensive alternative since most people already have a colander in their kitchen, but if you do have to purchase one, then the price range will run in a similar manner as the spatter screens. (Hint: Don't use plastic colanders for this purpose; you should use metal only.)
• Lower temperature. By simply lowering the cooking temperature from high can reduce the amount of spatter that is produced. It may take a little longer to cook the meal, but it will help reduce the mess and chance of accidental kitchen fires.
• Be careful. Finally, simply being careful when cooking with grease or oil can reduce or even eliminate any grease spatter. Avoid dripping any water into a pan of hot grease or oil, since it will immediately turn into steam that could cause grease to go everywhere. For this reason, keep all liquids well away from the stove when cooking. Also, don't leave pan handles where they could be bumped and knocked over, and be careful when adding salt to any heated grease. Believe it or not, salt will cause grease to act in much the same way that water will.