Many people wonder if they should buy a charcoal or a gas grill. Each has its advantages and drawbacks. Ultimately, it’s really a matter of lifestyle.
Charcoal grills are very inexpensive and will produce fantastic food with wonderful flavor. You can easily reach temperatures of 700 degrees—a challenge for many gas grills—which is necessary for getting a great sear and char on your meat. A charcoal grill can also double as a smoker if you cook with smoldering wood at low temperatures. This produces an outstanding barbecue flavor that simply can’t be produced by any other cooking method. On the other hand, charcoal grills are time consuming, it may take a little while to figure out how to use them correctly, they can be messy and you have to deal with lighting charcoal. If you want to be able to fire up the grill and be eating in under 30 minutes, charcoal probably isn’t for you.
For outdoor cooking convenience and ease of use, nothing beats a gas grill. Being able to simply turn a knob, press a button and have the grill at the proper temperature in 10 minutes or less is very useful. You also don’t need to break the bank to get a good gas grill. As with most things in life, a good basic rule of thumb is to keep it simple. A side burner may come in handy but ask yourself, how often you really believe you’re going to use an infrared rotisserie.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when buying gas grills:
– A good, efficient grill is heavy. It should heat up quickly, and hold that heat. The lid should have a close fit to the body. Overall, the unit should feel well constructed and solid?
– Multiple vertical burners are the best and easiest way to control temperatures and create cooking zones. Make sure the burners are an appropriate size for the housing too. Burners that are too small will create too many hot and cold spots.
– Cast iron cooking grates are best for holding an even, high temperature and for making beautiful, well defined grill lines, but they do require a bit of maintenance to keep them clean and rust-free. A good low-maintenance option is cast iron grates that are porcelain-coated. A grate that has wider bars makes it easier to cook smaller, more delicate foods.
– If a grill is efficient and solidly constructed, you should look for about 80-100 BTUs per square inch of cooking area. But don’t get too hung up on BTU ratings. BTUs are a measurement of how much fuel a grill burns, not how hot a grill will get or how fast it will get to a certain temperature. The only BTUs that really matter are the ones that are used by the main burners—the ones that are actually used for grilling—and not the ones in the side burners, rotisserie, or other burners. Manufacturers try and fudge the BTU rating by combining all the burners together, making you think you’re getting more output than you actually are. The same is true of how they advertise the cooking area. The square inch measurement of the main cooking grate should be the only relevant number, but manufacturers will often list the “total area” which includes warming racks, and other surfaces above and around the true cooking area, making you think you’re getting a bigger grill than you are actually buying.
– Running out of propane in the middle of a barbecue is no fun, so it’s always good to have a full spare tank on hand. Better yet, you can get a grill that can be adapted for natural gas and have a plumber hook it up to the gas line in your home. This way, you’ll never have to worry about having an adequate fuel supply on hand again.
It is important to remember that the grill itself is only a tool. Only practice, patience and the experience of the person holding the spatula and tongs will produce great grilled foods.
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Elliot Chrem is a community member and professional chef who loves to barbecue.
