Make the remodeling process easy by downloading this step-by-step buying guide. Select 2 or more products for side-by-side feature comparison. Catch up on Select’s in-depth coverage of personal finance, tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date.
With little more than a metal container full of hot coals and a cooking grate, there’s not much that can go wrong. There are no gas valves to leak, portable bbq no tanks to refill, and no wood pellets to soak up water and jam your smoker. All you need is a bag of charcoal and your favorite recipe.
With this type of charcoal grill, the grill temperature can be set, changed and displayed on a smartphone through an app-based application. A probe can send internal meat temperature readings, giving you the freedom to do other things instead of being chained to the grill. Gas-assisted charcoal grills are usually fueled by a small screw-on propane tank. “This allows you to fire up the charcoal portable bbq with a quick twist of the knob as opposed to using a charcoal chimney or other lighting methods,” Lilly said. The thickness of metal that the grill is made from is measured as the “gauge.” As the gauge number increases, the material thickness decreases and this makes comparing grills easy, explained Lilly. “Thicker metal makes for a longer lasting grill and better insulation,” he said.
For the high-heat, whole-grate burger test, we lit a chimney’s worth of briquets—the equivalent of six quarts, or about 90 coals of a former runner-up from our extensive briquet tests. We then oiled the grates and distributed 10 to 12 six-ounce patties across the whole cooking surface . While the burgers cooked we kept an eye out for undesirable flare-ups, which can char the meat and create acrid smoke, and examined the evenness of cooking on the different areas of the grates. After about 10 minutes of cooking , we compared how well each grill had seared the burgers, looking for any patties that were charred or unacceptably raw, and took a taste. Testing charcoal grills requires a lot of hands-on cooking, and your results will obviously vary based on your technique and ingredients, among other factors. Depending on the season and how your charcoal grill is set up, your experience cooking and grilling will likely be very different from ours.
But the open-top design of these devices left the meat vulnerable to weather. Big winds could kick up ash or set the precious meat ablaze, and rain would fill the grills with water. Even worse, backyard chefs had to breathe in the excessive smoke from the grill top and the meat rarely had an even cook.
They’re handy, no doubt, but if your patio or deck already has a table or countertop, you’re paying for something you don’t need and giving up valuable living space, too. On balance, gas is probably the better choice if you favor no-fuss cooking or grill often . If you’re an occasional griller or you enjoy getting hands-on with your cooking, charcoal is an economical choice that, with a bit of practice, produces superb results. Napoleon delivered excellent cooking results in our ribs test.
Most charcoal grills have two dampers, one near the bottom and one at the top, which work in tandem to direct the flow of air. Kamado grills also have two dampers, they tend to have a more airtight design, and most hold more charcoal than a conventional charcoal grill. For a while, Weber-Stephens Products claimed the original kettle grill’s round body was superior to other grills on the market. “The unique dome shape reflects the heat evenly all around, just like a kitchen oven,” according to a Weber ad from the 1970s.