Best Charcoal Grill for 2023

But, that’s the beauty of charcoal; you can get a lot for a little because they’re so simple. Additionally, I can cook just about anything I like thanks to the ample diameter (22 inches, obviously) and the bulbous dome. Cooking with charcoal is weber q a pleasure, and this is one of the purest expressions of the craft. Other than a couple of convenience features, this is just straight-up grilling. Weber has a lot of confidence in its products, and they back it up with an exceptional warranty.

The app doesn’t allow you to alter the flame, one of the few drawbacks to the EX-325S. The Weber Original Kettle Premium Charcoal Grill is a classic option for anyone who loves grilling with charcoal, and you can’t beat the reasonable price for such a well-made product. Our rib experience with a few of the other grills was far from ideal. At times, the inside of this grill hit temperatures as high as 400 degrees F.

With this method, the coals take about 10 minutes to light and another 10 for the grill to get hot. The premium model adds a couple of upgrades to the nearly 70-year-old design. A built-in thermometer on the lid allows you to monitor portable bbq the grill’s temperature, while a hinged grill grate makes it easy to add coal or reposition embers for enhanced fire management. And when dinner’s done, an improved ash catcher makes cleaning up the charcoal mess even easier.

weber charcoal grill

Finally, we roasted whole chickens indirectly to see if the grills could create browned skin and perfectly cook meat without charring. Sam Sifton, editor for the Cooking section of The New York Times (the parent company of Wirecutter), joined us for these tests. The 26-inch Original Kettle® Premium is the charcoal grill you want at your next party. It’s large enough to grill an entire dinner during the week, or a bunch of burgers at your next barbecue. With premium features, such as a hinged cooking grate for easily adding charcoal while grilling, and the One-Touch™ cleaning system with high-capacity ash catcher. Toast to the authenticity of charcoal grilling, classic design, and taste loved around the world—the Original Kettle.

You may be wondering, why not just use a pellet grill that regulates heat much better? As much as we at Insider Reviews adore pellet grills and the flavor they offer, they just don’t stack up to good old-fashioned charcoal. I love cooking outdoors over live fire and smoke whatever the weather, using various grills, smokers, and wood-fired ovens to produce epic food. My goal with this site is to help as many people as possible enjoy and be good at doing the same.

Ideally, a quality charcoal grill (or any smoker) will keep its fire humming along close to 225 degrees F for as long as possible. Charcoal grills are also often more affordable than their gas counterparts, making them a good option for tight budgets and beginner grillers. All you need for charcoal grilling is a lighter, a bag of charcoal and your favorite ingredients. In no time you’ll be reaping the rewards of an easy meal with true smoky flavor.

Read on to see how well the Weber Original Kettle Premium 22-Inch Charcoal Grill performed under fire. Yes, you can smoke meat on a Weber charcoal grill, also known as a kettle grill. The simplest way to use your kettle grill as a smoker is to place all of your charcoal briquettes on one side of the grill and your meat on the other. Adding a few small chips of wood to the charcoal will give your meat a more traditionally smoked flavor. Placing a pan of water underneath the grates where you will be putting your meat will help to catch drippings, keep the meat more moist, and enable the smoke to adhere better to the meat. The Weber Q 2200 Propane Gas Grill is one of our top picks for portable grills by any brand.

Every few cooks, I like to use a Shop-Vac to remove any greasy ashes stuck in the bottom of the grill. As a preventative, you’ll want to oil the meats and veggies before they go on to prevent sticking and extra scraping. A clean grill is essential to flavor, and cleaning the Weber is a fairly simple affair thanks to the ash catcher. Even though it is solidly attached, the catcher pops off with ease, and its deep, bowl-like shape allows you to seamlessly pour the ashes into the trash without much spilling after they have cooled. I managed to get it all in the can every time—something I can’t say about the original plate-style catcher, with which I probably lost an average of about 40 percent of the ashes to the wind.