If you live in a place that doesn’t get year-round warm weather, the opportunities to grill outdoors are few. On the contrary, if you live somewhere that feels like summer practically every day, you may get a lot of use of your grill. No matter which group you fall in, you should always shop for the best non-toxic grilling tools to do it.
Instead of reaching for spatulas, tongs and serving trays by name or price, look for durable alternatives that don’t melt, break off into your food or potentially leach toxic chemicals — like PFAS, bisphenols and phthalates — into what you’re cooking.
To learn more about what makes grilling tools potentially toxic or hazardous and which ones are the best and most durable non-toxic options, I talked to food scientists and culinary experts for their guidance and recommendations. Below, I selected grilling tools based on their advice.
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The best non-toxic grilling tools
All of the products below have at least a four-star average rating from 500 or more shoppers on Amazon. To align with guidance from our experts and select products that are non-toxic or have low toxicity risks, I made sure to include products made from durable heat resistant materials, like stainless steel, and excluded ones made entirely of plastic or non-food-grade silicone.
This set from Hexclad comes with a spatula, lockable tongs, fork and four skewers made of stainless steel. It also comes with a silicone basting brush, which is heat-safe up to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. All of the tools, which are rust-resistant, have loops on the ends to hang them. The spatula also has serrated edges on each side, making it easy to hold meat and poultry in place and slice it. Plus, all of the tools are dishwasher safe.
This set includes a 16.5-inch long spatula and an 18.7-inch long pair of tongs (that let you reach food from a good distance), both of which are made from heat-resistant stainless steel. The spatula has a beveled head and slotted lines that make it easy to flip food, while also allowing excess grease to drain through. The end of the tongs have scalloped edges, which help it grip onto foods well and prevent slipping.
They both have hanging rings on the ends and they’re dishwasher safe. Since they’re made of stainless steel, they don’t leach in the same way as plastic tools. Plus, the handle of the tongs has a bottle opener on it, so you can grab yourself a beer while you’re grilling without ever putting down your tools.
This griddle set from Made In includes a 19.6-inch long and 10.5-inch wide (a small to medium size) griddle made from PFAS-free carbon steel with no chemical coating. The griddle has raised handles on each side that make it easy to transfer it off the grill, even while it’s hot. It weighs around 10 pounds and comes with a stainless steel griddle lid, which is great for melting cheese or creating steam on the grill.
Caraway is an NBC Select favorite brand, and its stainless steel grill press is worth highlighting, because you can use it for grilling and cooking indoors. It has a 6-inch diameter and weighs around 3 pounds, making it perfect for smash burgers or getting a great crust on a steak. Like many of Caraway’s products, the grill press is free of PFAS, BPA, cadmium and lead, according to the brand. While the grill press is technically dishwasher safe, the brand recommends washing by hand to help preserve its finish.
Hexclad’s Hybrid BBQ Grill Pan is great for grilling meat and poultry, but it’s especially helpful for sauteing vegetables like asparagus and carrots directly on the grill without them falling through. It’s made from a combination of stainless steel and aluminum, and has a PTFE- and PFAS-free non-stick ceramic coating, according to Hexclad.
It works similar to a stainless steel or cast-iron pan: It helps deliver a great sear) but without food adhering to it (similar to a regular non-stick pan), according to the brand. This grill pan is slotted and has small holes throughout the bottom to allow grease to filter through.
This grill-cleaning brush from GrillArt doesn’t have any wire bristles like traditional grill cleaners. Instead, it has a brush head that is made from durable, heat-resistant fiber that is safe to use on all grill types. Instead of coarse metal bristles, the brush uses steam to help release residue from grill grates.
You simply turn up the grill to 400 degrees, turn it off, and while the grill is still hot, scrub it to get rid of large pieces of leftover burnt food, then dip the brush head in water and scrub again to release any residual food. The other side of the brush has a scraper to further help clean tough residue. The brush head is also removable and dishwasher safe.
Orange peel is the not-so-secret, natural yet effective ingredient in this cleaning kit from Citrusafe. The cleaner spray in the kit is suitable for gas and charcoal grills as well as smokers and even ovens and microwaves. It’s only meant to be used on the grill when it’s cold, according to the brand.
After leaving the spray on for a minute, use the brush pads to scrub away grease residue and burnt food from grates and other areas. Shoppers say they enjoy the fragrance of the spray and that it does a great job of getting off tough food residue.
How I picked the best non-toxic grilling tools
To pick the best non-toxic grilling tools I talked with culinary and food science experts for their guidance. I also used my previous experience reporting on “forever chemicals” in food and kitchen tools to inform my list above. Here’s are the factors that went into this list:
Material: Material is the most important factor in selecting grilling tools that are both durable and non-toxic. This means using products that are made of materials that can withstand high heat without melting or breaking apart, like carbon steel, cast iron and pure ceramic, according to Dr. Li Li, an associate professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Nevada’s School of Public Health. Li recommends using products made from these materials because they don’t use Teflon (or have coatings made from it), a synthetic material and a form of “forever chemicals” like PFAS, that can release toxic fumes when exposed to high heat. These chemicals can get into our bodies when exposed to high heat through three main pathways, according to Li.
These include leaching (when substances transfer onto food through direct contact, for example, putting hot chicken off the grill into a plastic tray), off-gassing (when material release toxic fumes into the air) and particle shedding (when physical pieces of plastic or other materials break off into food, like when wire bristles from a brush get into food after grill cleaning.
To align with Li’s guidance I made sure to include tools that are made without PFAS and/or are made from durable, high-heat resistant stainless steel, cast iron or carbon steel. Plus, some food-grade silicone products are safe since they’re often heat resistant up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Michael Handal, certifications chef at the Institute of Culinary Education.
Utility: Regardless of your skill level, there are four main tools everyone should have when grilling in order to do so effectively, according to Handal: a spatula, tongs (with long handles), a grilling fork and a brush (for sauces). These tools will help make most grilling projects easy, so I made sure to include high-quality versions of each of these or a kit that includes all of them.
The products above are made from materials like stainless steel, carbon steel, cast iron and/or food-grade silicone (with the exception of some of the cleaning products). Additionally, Handal says a silicone pastry brush is best over one made with traditional bristles since they’re hard to clean grease off of.
Frequently asked questions
The best and most durable non-toxic grilling tools are made of materials like stainless steel, carbon steel, cast iron, pure ceramic and food-grade, heat-resistant silicone, according to Li and Handal. These materials hold up well against high heat and often don’t have non-stick coatings or compositions made from PFAS (such as Teflon, for example).
The materials to avoid are plastic and anything made with bisphenols, PFAS and other types of “forever chemicals” that can leach into food and/or off-gas at high temperatures, according to Li. “Plastics are polymers that often rely on chemical additives like bisphenols or phthalates (many of these chemicals are toxic) to make them flexible,” says Li. “Silicone, on the other hand, is a synthetic rubber made from silica and oxygen without containing these traditional chemical additives.” While silicone isn’t zero risk, it’s lower compared to plastic, according to Li.
Meet our experts
At NBC Select, we work with experts who have specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also take steps to ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
- Dr. Li Li is an associate professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Nevada’s School of Public Health and an expert in industrial ecology and exposure and health sciences.
- Michael Handal is a chef and culinary arts instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education
Why trust NBC Select?
I’m a commerce editor at NBC Select, where I write about home, kitchen, cleaning and lifestyle. I also write about sustainability in home and kitchen appliances. I’ve written about the best plastic-free sponges, how to clean stainless steel, travel-friendly coffee makers and more. For this story, I talked to culinary and environmental chemistry experts about what to look for in non-toxic grilling tools.
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