Weber Lumin Compact review: a top portable electric grill that sears, smokes & steams

After testing this in our Lab and on an apartment patio, the Weber Q 1400 Electric Grill is one of the best tabletop electric grills around. The 189 square inches of cooking area is enough space for half-dozen burgers, with the cast aluminum lid and body retaining heat throughout your barbecue. When it’s time to move the grill around, a large grip handle and ergonomic side handles make it easy.

We have found the 7112 covers to protect your Weber from all-weather and make it last for many years. This newer model of the Q320 has the same great feature as the older model but is restyled weber bbq and looks a lot nicer.The control knob and handle are larger and easier to use. You can boil water on any type of grill as long as you have a pot or kettle with no wooden or plastic parts.

The porcelain-coated cast-iron grill grate is quite non-stick, with even delicate fish filets releasing pretty easily. What makes this grill special is that the telescoping VersaStand holds the grill at ideal cooking height, yet shrinks down for easy transport and storage. Our tester did find the grill was a bit wobbly at its full height, but it put great sear marks on a variety of food, from tofu to Brazilian-style steak skewers, with minimal sticking.

Put the chips in the drip tray ear the side where the vent is formed in the lid to give it oxygen. Crank the heat to get weber gas grill the grill to full temp and get the chips burning. Once the chips are smoking good, add your meat and adjust the temp.

weber portable grill

The grill was responsive to changing the temperature between tests and left good browning on the onions, grill marks, and caramelization on the burgers. There weren’t any particular hot spots, but one area at the top-right ran cool, and while the burger in that spot cooked, it lacked caramelization. During our tests, we discovered the Q 1400 performed better on zucchini strips and flank steak, leaving both with intense sear marks. This is because it’s able to achieve reach over 600 degrees when left on high for a few minutes. When it was time to clean up, the drip pan was incredibly easy to remove and wipe down. One downside was it was difficult to read the temperature controller in bright daytime light.

It also has a built-in thermometer that’s reasonably accurate, but I still suggest getting a separate instant-read thermometer. While slow-cooking on the Takibi would be challenging, you can at least adjust the grill height to control temperature. My only real complaint is that without a lid you can’t smother your remaining charcoal and reuse it, but in most cases when the food is done I load up the Takibi with firewood and enjoy it as a fire pit. Because it’s a pop-up model, there are a few pieces to fit together, but the instructions are pretty simple, and attaching the propane bottle is as easy as it should be. It’s not a large grill, but we fit 10 of the allotted 12 burgers on without significantly overcrowding it, and 12 large onion slices in the test previous to that.

This Weber Q3200 review shows that it is the newer model of the Q320. In this Weber Q3200 review, I will give you all the pros and cons of this Weber gas grill and updated customer reviews. The Spruce Eats commerce writer Jason Horn updated this roundup. He’s been grilling since being put in charge of the hot dogs at a family party when he was probably 7 years old, and he’s been writing professionally about food and drinks for nearly two decades. He lives in Los Angeles, where it’s feasible to grill just about every day of the year. That said, most of the time when I hit the road I grab Weber’s Connect Smart Hub ($100).

Whether you’re an avid tailgater or off-roading enthusiast, the HitchFire Forge 15 is a worthwhile splurge for those who are always grilling on the go. This heavy-duty propane grill can be used on a table, but what makes it special is its included mount, which attaches to a 2-inch vehicle hitch. Once installed, you can drive, off-road, and cook with the grill mounted to the rear of your car. We were truly impressed at how secure the HitchFire felt when mounted to a truck, and it never budged on a 350-mile drive. Ever wish you could get your grill on outside of your backyard?

There was one person who asked if he could hook the propane version to his large propane tank for his house. I personally see no problem because the grill comes with its own regulator, but I advise you to call Weber or a local installer to make sure this is possible. Cast aluminum is also better at retaining heat than pressed aluminum because weber bbq it is thicker. This lid is not welded but made out of one piece of aluminum.The light on the grill handle was mentioned as very handy. As I mentioned I am not a big fan of a battery-operated ignition, but the one on this Q3200 seems to work pretty well. 1 or 2 of the almost 150 reviews I read mention the grill not getting hot enough.

Finally, we judged the grills on how easy they were to clean up after cooking. We vetted standalone and portable gas grills for more than a month to find the best value buys. In fact, the only caveat is that you need an electricity supply that can handle up to 2.2 kilowatts of continuous output. For my first test, I whacked the heat up to the highest setting, threw on some chicken wings with a good dose of Nando’s hot rub for good measure and closed the lid.