Barbecuing and good weather go hand in hand, but in fact, desire does not care whether this season brings sunshine or showers. If you often find yourself craving succulent char-grilled steak outside of summer, you may want to consider an indoor option, which can provide you with the same flame barbecue taste as an outdoor barbecue without the need for gas, charcoal, or an umbrella. Before you start the indoor electric grill and start to heat up, consider whether the open or contact countertop model is best for your unique needs.
Open grill: The most similar design to the outdoor grill, the open grill provides a single cooking surface, and the food needs to be turned in half. This does extend the cooking time, but because there is no thick lid to press on your food, it is best to bake flatter and tenderer foods-such as bacon, eggs, fish and vegetables.
Contact grill: Equipped with two cooking surfaces, your food will be grilled from the top and bottom at the same time for quick and even cooking. The contact grill is designed to avoid flipping, so your food can be prepared faster, and the pressing mechanism at the top will also create a beautiful shell; think about slimy, golden panini and diner-style shreds hamburger.
Just like any outdoor barbecue grill, you also need to evaluate the size you like-it depends on whether you plan to use it for single dining or large family banquets. But a unique consideration for indoor grills is how they effectively suppress smoke: some have built-in filters to achieve a completely smoke-free design, which is essential for small kitchens and apartments where fire alarms are critical.
Are you ready to shop? We turned to Amazon reviewers to determine the best indoor grills on the market and found 11 open and contact options from top brands such as Ninja, George Foreman, Hamilton Beach, Power XL, etc.
Buy the best indoor grill:
Nearly 19,000 five-star shoppers agreed: this Cuisinart grill is the best choice. It is equipped with a contact grill, Panini press, full grill, full grill and half grill/pan, so there is almost no food that cannot be cooked with this all-in-one option. Griddler is equipped with dual cooking surfaces and hinged floating lid for pressing panini or grilling juicy sausages and meats. The dual temperature control with indicator light allows you to fully control the rarity of the steak, and the non-stick dishes can drain the fat while you are cooking. After the banquet, they can be taken out and placed in the dishwasher for easy cleaning.
This round indoor grill with more than 5,000 five-star ratings is only $37, quickly reaches the temperature setting of your choice (up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit with five options), and distributes heat evenly around the grill pan. The large tempered glass cover prevents oil from spilling, increases safety and is easy to clean, while the oversized 14-inch cooking surface has a non-stick coating to eliminate sticky dirt and scrubbing. In addition, a removable grease tray can separate fat without sacrificing flavor; it can be washed in the dishwasher, as are the bakeware and lid.
Yes, the charcoal flavor and grill traces can be obtained indoors-just ask the nearly 7,000 Amazon shoppers who gave this Power XL model a five-star rating. Even more impressive: it is smoke-free. The indoor grill uses turbo high-speed smoke exhaust technology, and the smoke is sucked into the grill through an electric fan, evaporates into water vapor and accumulates inside. The glass cover on the top can also control smoke and prevent oil from splashing, but instead guide the grease to a removable collection tray.
Use this versatile George Foreman electric grill to grill all year round. The best weather for outdoor dining? Use the included stand on the outdoor terrace. When rain and cold weather come, place it on the indoor kitchen countertop. Its anti-combustion design has five heating settings to make perfect burgers every time (up to 15 servings at a time), and the non-stick coating will ensure that they slip off immediately-yes, even with burnt pieces and Cheese. Supported by more than 10,000 five-star ratings: With this indoor/outdoor grill, you can get the most benefit.
You can do many things with Ninja Foodi, barbecue is just the most basic requirement. Bake, roast, dehydrate and air-fry all your favorite foods-except barbecue! Its high-density grill grate can reach a temperature of up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit to produce grill-like burn marks and flavor, while the cyclone grill technology can burn food from all sides without turning over to speed up cooking time. If you forget to defrost your dinner, it can even cook frozen food completely in just 25 minutes. It has received more than 15,000 five-star reviews on Amazon and is one of the most popular multi-function cookers on the market.
From crispy bacon to fluffy pancakes to fluffy eggs, this electric grill is the indoor grill of choice for more than 19,000 Amazon shoppers, who gave it a five-star rating. It is the best choice for making breakfast food at home: its non-stick cast aluminum cooking surface is perfect for busy morning cleanup, although it is 22 inches wide, its detachable handle pops out, making the base slim enough to be compact Slide into a standard 18-inch kitchen cabinet. Just like the classic indoor grill, critics say it is also very suitable for small restaurant-style shredded burgers and steaks.
Use a Panini press to make standard sandwiches that are perfectly toasted, grilled and charred. Yes, it will take your traditional lunchtime grilled cheese to a new level, but it can also grill burgers, sausages and vegetables for every meal. It can cook up to four servings at a time and quickly preheat to bring the meal to the table in record time. In addition, the detachable bakeware can be cleaned in the dishwasher, and the cleaning speed is faster. I believe that nearly 18,000 shoppers on Amazon support this multitasking George Foreman model with a five-star rating.
Sometimes you just need a burger. This affordable single-serving indoor grill is perfect for people living alone, college students, and people with small kitchens. Its round shape is perfect for making sausage patties, breakfast sandwiches, and burgers, but its 4-inch cooking surface is still sufficient for chopped vegetables and panini. The entire device weighs just over a pound and is easy to carry when traveling. Its price tag of less than $15 and more than 6,000 five-star ratings make it an easy choice for budget-conscious indoor barbecues.
This large indoor grill can hold up to eight servings and can feed your whole family, and then some more. Nine preset cooking programs can grill burgers, poultry, sandwiches, sausages, red meat, fish, pork, bacon and shellfish to your favorite temperature, and it even automatically adjusts its settings to suit the correct size and thickness of the meat . When your meal is ready, the indicator will light up and the grill will beep so you can focus on the guests instead of the food. It has more than 3,000 five-star reviews from Amazon shoppers. Critics call it a "great little grill" and say it "exceeds everyone's expectations."
More than 11,000 Amazon shoppers gave this indoor barbecue grill a five-star rating, and many people recommend it because it is easy to clean. A clear observation window allows you to see the progress of the food without opening the hood, keeping the heat inside, and preventing grease from splashing on the entire table. An oversized drip tray can collect juice without spilling, and is detachable and dishwasher safe, as are the hood and non-stick bakeware, and can handle the burnt mess like a professional.
Barbecuing indoors with kids can be tricky; you want your grill to be hot enough to scorch the food for a rich flavor, but not so hot that if they happen to block your little finger, it will burn. This Presto model with more than 1,300 five-star ratings can reach commercial value barbecue marks of up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, although the cool tactile base keeps the front and back at a reasonable temperature in the event of an inevitable accident. An added bonus: It comes with a shovel, which can be flipped easily.