Gas Grills are comfortable and very easy to use
It is easy to see why gas grills outsell charcoal grills. Convenience and control are what gas grills offer. They are simply more comfortable and very easy to use.
From starting them up to heating in between 10 and 15 minutes and holding steady temperatures gas grills have the edge. But they are also easy to clean and can be adjusted for both indirect as well as multi-zone cooking.
If you need to get dinner ready in say an hour, the gas grill can do it with aplomb. The cheaper gas grills usually have a top-end temperature of 400-600F. While you can expect expensive grills to reach 700F.
The majority of gas grills use lava rocks, metal plates and ceramics to generate heat, so you don’t have to concern yourself about open flames, flare-ups. Cleaning is easier thanks to any drips being generally vaporized.
Because they create hardly any ash, gas grills are easy to clean, but they benefit from grease buildups being scraped or pressure cleaned every few months.
Some people choose to dispense with the ceramics or lava rocks every 12 months or so. Others consider the buildup of grease in the porous materials helps the flavor of the food they cook.
Gas grills are offered with a wide variety of accessories. The majority are set up so rotisserie accessories can be easily attached. Some come with side burners so sauces can be kept warm or side dishes can be cooked. Night lights, spice racks, side tables, drawers, burners, are all possible additions.
One problem with gas grills can be that only the very best models are able to achieve the heat that can get a steak crispy on the outside without overcooking it on the inside. If you are one of those who prefer well-done steaks, a gas grill is probably ideal for you.
It is possible to find more expensive gas grills that come with “infrared” burners. Infrared burners work by using a gas flame to heat a metal or ceramic plate that then radiates much more heat than a standard burner.
It can be as much as twice the heat and in the 700F plus range. It’s similar to the heat that steakhouses are able to cook with. And it’s how you can achieve those deep dark steaks while retaining red/pink insides.
While infrared burners are ideal for steaks, they can become much too hot for the direct cooking of many fish and most vegetables. Even when cooking steaks, it’s important to keep watching how food cooks over direct infrared. It’s very easy for the food to incinerate. Some infrared burners can be used to handle rotisserie cooking and for indirect cooking.
It’s possible to find gas grills that come with smoke boxes for wood chips, but it’s common when using most gas grills to put a pan of wood under the grate near the flame or even make small packets.
Beware if your gas grill’s lid does not seal well. It means you will lose a lot of smoke which leads to a need for more wood. With more complex mechanisms, gas grills can be more expensive than charcoal equivalents grills, but one thing is for certain they are more comfortable and very easy to use.
