Gas or Charcoal Grill

Grilled food tastes delicious.  And for some, grilling is a form of art. For others, it’s the perfect answer to an easy and quick meal.
 
A grill is a device used to cook food by applying heat directly from below.  Two varieties of grills are available to choose from: gas-fueled and charcoal-fueled. When buying a grill, some are faced with the big question of what to purchase, a gas or charcoal grill. Each has its own advantages.

A gas grill is by far the most popular. It has a portable firebox, fuelled by a refillable liquid profane tank. The gas burner is located at the bottom of the firebox. It is covered by ceramic briquettes or lava rocks.  These rocks absorb the heat of the flame and radiate heat up to the food.

A gas grill is used much more often because of its convenience. It offers a push-button ignition, quick preheating and a steady heat supply that is controlled with the simple turn of a knob.  It is the most convenient type of grill.  You just turn on the gas, select your temperature and start cooking. 

A gas grill can be simple with a single heating element, or some are more elaborate with multiple burners that allow you to regulate heat zones or temperatures while cooking. Higher-end gas grills have helpful features like side burners and rotisseries. The side burners allow you to cook pasta or rice or to prepare a sauce while you are grilling.  This feature allows you to stay by the grill, rather than go between the grill and your cooking stove.

Furthermore, a gas grill is clean, ready to use and adds less carbon product to the food than charcoal. There are no fires to stoke or ashes to empty.

On the other hand, a charcoal grill uses coals with a cooking grate (grill) above it.  The principal fuel is either natural lump charcoal or charcoal briquettes (compacted ground charcoal, coal dust, and starch).
 
Natural lump charcoal burns hotter, which means you use less. Briquettes produce more consistent heat, but many people feel charcoal gives a better flavor to grilled meal. 

A charcoal grill uses natural food fuels, since it is the wood smoke that infuses the meat with flavor.  Barbecue lovers will want to grill in a long, slow heating process. The coals—and the smoke they create—provide flavor that many barbecue enthusiasts swear by. That is the reason many people choose to buy and own charcoal grills.

A charcoal grill is also less expensive compared to a gas grill. A built-in charcoal grill is not as readily available as its gas counterpart, but the number keeps rising.  For the average family, many have opted to personally make their own charcoal grill at home.

However, there are also multi-fuel grills designed to use both gas and charcoal. So you can have two in one.  You can get the ease of gas while still being able to enjoy that charcoal flavor. 

As a whole, the more you plan to use your grill, the more you’ll enjoy the benefits of your gas grill. In a year of regular use, a gas grill pays for itself in dozens of saved hours even if you spend more than what you would for a charcoal grill.

Those who use it only during the summer or on outings may prefer charcoal.  The choice is yours to make depending what fits your personality. Investigate both options, read brochures and talk with friends or better yet, try out the grills and then decide which type of grill is right for you.