Portable charcoal and gas grills from Weber offer the same grilling power you get from your larger home model at a fraction of the size. This makes them easy to load up in the car on game day, take to a friend’s place or just change your grilling location at home. Portable grills by Weber are all grab-and-go-ready, but you still have a few different size options to choose from. Look for a classic 14-inch grill for easy transportation and cooking to feed small groups.
For the gas grills, we also placed slices of white bread over the entire surface to map out the heating pattern. Grills with even heating really shined here, creating predictable patterns without noticeable hot or cold spots. There were a lot of things to like about the Fire Sense HotSpot Notebook. If this contest were all about portability, this one would win! It folds down completely flat and includes storage space inside for the three-hinged grill grate. Not only that, but it’s available for a fraction of the price as the other portable grills.
The Smokey Joe makes it easy to remove the cooking grates, dump the charcoal, and wipe everything mostly clean. The carry handle latches across the lid to lock everything in place, so the grill won’t spew ash around the back of your car. The classic kettle shape is hard to position in a tightly packed vehicle, but we were able to fit it into the truck bed without a problem. The Broil King Signet 320 is a modestly priced, 3-burner gas grill that packs a lot of value and power under the hood. Broil King’s proprietary, dual-tube burners get hot fast and are able to achieve high, searing temps that rival most comparatively priced gas grills. The quality cast aluminum housing carries a Limited Lifetime Warranty.
We were pretty happy with the way the vents were positioned, but the ash catcher isn’t removable, making it pretty difficult to clean when you’re done cooking. It’s small and simple—fitting about six burgers—but we’d rather upgrade to the Jumbo Joe to get the extra ease-of-use features. The Weber Q 1200 is one of the highest-scoring in this category due to the adjustability of its control knob and a sound electronic ignition system. We appreciate weber genesis 2 the naturally non-stick porcelain-enameled grilling surface, and that the cast iron grates distribute a consistent temperature across the entire cook surface. A portable grill could be just mobile enough to load it in and out of your truck bed with a friend, or it might be compact enough to fit inside a large backpack. We then put ourselves in your shoes and put each model through an array of creative real-life cooking scenarios.
This creates set-it-and-forget-it functionality—you don’t need to fiddle with dials or vents to reach the desired temperature. It also means you’ll need access to an electrical outlet, so keep that in mind before picking up a portable pellet grill. Pellet grills are usually used at low temperatures to smoke weber q meat, but they can also be used at higher temperatures. Most manufacturers cap out between 400°F and 500°F, which is comparable to cooking over gas but the grill won’t get quite as hot as cooking over charcoal. They also often have heat deflector plates that prevent direct searing and grill marks.
The light will turn on and off periodically, as the heating element adjusts to maintain the temperature. Place the grill grate over the electric heating element, making sure the support hooks are aligned. Never leave the electric heating element control in the ON position when you are not cooking. 13¼” square cooking surface fits up to 9 burgers made with the Burger & Slider Press. The base and lid structure is made from durable yet flexible silicone-coated fiberglass fabric, which can withstand very high temperatures. This type of fabric is already used in the food and restaurant industry for oven conveyor belts and grilling mats, so it’s safe for cooking.
It’s a miniature version of our favorite pellet grill, and it’s capable of cooking at temperatures ranging from 165°F to 450°F. We tested it at both high and medium temperature ranges, and it maintained consistent temperatures without wavering more than 10°F from the setting. Pricewise, the Ranger is one of the more expensive portable grills we’ve tested, but it excelled when it came to performance. For a great portable grill that won’t break your budget, the Weber Go-Anywhere Gas Grill should be at the top of your list. This affordable grill comes from one of the most well-known brands in grilling, and it has all the features you need to cook up delicious meals on the go. It features 160 square inches of cooking space over one stainless steel burner, and it kicks off 6,500 BTUs per hour.
Keeping coals lit in the Weber Smokey Joe Charcoal Grill 14″ was a challenge for us. This smaller Weber kettle comes equipped with only one vent, located in the lid. The lack of airflow meant we couldn’t keep the coal bed lit throughout a single cook, leaving us with pale burgers and undercooked chicken. Regularly cleaning your grill will ensure great-tasting food. Before or after each use, crank it up to high for five or 10 minutes to incinerate all the drippings and stuck-on food.
We’re curious if its build and functionality could be worth the cost. More space between the coal bed and the grilling grate lessens your chances of ending up with charred food. The extra room also allows for more coals, so you have the option of longer cooking time. You can also create hot and cold spots for searing and indirect cooking. Portable gas grills come equipped with a coupling that fits 1-pound liquid-propane canisters . These mini propane cylinders are lightweight and packable, and they’re available at most hardware stores.
We had some trouble with the griddle-like design in the middle of the cast-iron grates; the flat portion transferred more heat than the spaced grates, creating an uneven heating pattern. The removable water pan is designed to catch grease, but it was a complete mess after our tests. Overall, Ginevra recommends looking for a heavy duty grill with a steel grilling surface, which brought us to this small propane gas table-top grill. According to the brand, this grill comes equipped with two stainless steel, independently adjustable main burners, large enough to cook up to nine hamburgers at once. Weighing only 20 pounds, this lightweight grill is great for bringing out to the patio for a night of barbecue. While we don’t usually test or develop recipes on a small grill, we’ve seen strong reviews of this small, portable Weber grill.