Hold the match or the lit end of a lighter to the burner where the propane comes out. Once the burner has ignited, replace the grate and adjust the burner as you need. The Hamilton Beach electric grill works indoors and outdoors (at campsites with hook-ups or for RV camping) making it ideal for people who live in small apartments. Regardless, be cautious with kiddos, especially as the cast iron heats up.
She is perfectly happy to leave all that behind to be a full-time kitchen-gear nerd. While the high heat setting perfectly seared burgers without burning, the Q 1200 also outperformed Grills Portable Grills the competition at steady medium-low heat for items such as bone-in chicken and sausage links. The Weber Q 1200 is flare-up resistant and excellent at maintaining consistent heat.
Attaching the gas bottle took a little manipulation that sparked safety concerns but ultimately resolved once connected. After the easy task of lighting the grill with the pushbutton ignition, the grill grates came to cooking temperature in just eight and a half minutes — a tough task for most portable grill competitors. Finally, there are other small, shallow charcoal grills that have a similar design to many portable gas grills. These typically perform the best in terms of portability, and they’re one of the best options for tailgating.
Those in need of a compact grill to fit in the trunk of a smaller vehicle or take up minimal storage space will want to consider another model. This is a bulky grill compared to many of its rivals in this review, and it relies heavily on wheels for transport. Weighing in at 47 pounds, it’s not very fun to transport it much further than in and out of a truck bed.
For searing the honeycomb-shaped cast iron cooking grates produce fantastic sear marks. Whether you’re headed camping or to a tailgate, or grilling out in your backyard, our portable grills have you covered. In our tests, steak and chicken cooked quickly and got nice char marks without any flare-ups. Ash falls through the coal holder holes onto the bottom of the grill for a neat grilling experience, and the stainless grill grate is small and easy to wash in your sink once you get home.
Though some things are inherently inconvenient about a charcoal-fueled portable grill, the Jumbo Joe has some design features that make it easier to travel with. The larger Q 2200 is a great choice for car camping and tailgating, or even for folks with very limited outdoor space that won’t accommodate a full-size grill. But it weighs 40 pounds and is quite bulky for one person to carry—we wouldn’t want to lug it very far on foot. We started by loading the grates of each with 6-ounce burger patties (without crowding, of course) and assessed the evenness of the heat, the temperature control, the searing performance, and any flare-ups.
That said, the Camp Chef Portable Pellet’s price is fairly reasonable considering its top-notch performance. Well-designed portable gas grills will produce evenly-cooked food with a solid sear and grill marks. During our testing, we even found some could rival standalone models for versatility.