I’ll continue to use my gas grill for weeknight dinners, but turn to the Weber when hosting things that I want to feel more like an event. In doing so, hopefully my kids will absorb the same Dad-imbued, charcoal-infused summertime impressions that waft through one’s memory weber genesis 2 for a lifetime. The other day as I was cooking burgers in a far more antiseptic fashion on my gas grill, I started waxing nostalgic about these Weber Grill-related memories of mine. I decided I wanted to try cooking on one myself, to see if it was as good as I recalled.
We carry the best brands at the best price, including Traeger Wood Pellet Grills, Weber Grills, Big Green Egg, Blaze, Napoleon, RCS, and many more. While the Weber is a very basic cooker, it does have a few helpful features. There’s the elevated ash catcher, which makes dumping the remnants easier than with the original model (see the Ease of Cleaning section). The lightweight construction and wheels on two of the three legs made the Weber reasonably easy to move or reposition on pavement.
One thing to note is the inaccurate temperature on the built-in dial. We observed off readings and ended up relying on a secondary thermometer. Two aspects we didn’t like are the smaller hood can translate to too-high heat when kept closed, and the built-in thermometer was consistently inaccurate. You’ll want to make sure you have a second thermometer on-hand and be prepared for a small learning curve.
This’ll give you more temperature zones, and make getting everything to the table so much easier. Lastly, you need to make sure your grill fits your allotted space, and/or is able to move, should you need to store it or bring it on a roadtrip. This grill’s open cart design weber charcoal grill provides additional storage space for your favorite tools, and it has integrated hooks on the side tables, as well. The grill is available in several colors, and it has an easy-to-read fuel gauge next to the propane tank to let you know how much fuel you have remaining.
We got good results in one or another respect with the other models, but they didn’t perform consistently great on everything the way the Weber did. It’s compact yet big enough to cook an entire elaborate meal for a family, a simple spread for a party, or even a whole Thanksgiving turkey. Over the course of two days, we put three charcoal grills through a battery of tests designed to demonstrate their qualities and highlight their differences. We cooked burgers on high heat to see how well the grills seared meat and how even and intense a heat they could generate across the whole grate surface. Then we slow-grilled cut-up chickens to see if our contenders could hold a low temperature evenly across the whole grate.
Charcoal grilling meets everyday life with the Performer Premium charcoal grill. Simply light a charcoal chimney of charcoal, arrange your briquettes or lump charcoal based on what you’re grilling/smoking, adjust your vents, and you’re off to the races. “Grilling is all about high heat and using direct heat to cook each side of the meat, so you don’t need to use the lid. If I were grilling steaks, I might use the lid to get some oven-like cooking while I’m grilling the meat. In that case, I’d put the lid on and open up its vents,” Karl told me.
On cart-style grills, we modify the snake to run in right angles to match their rectangular-shaped fireboxes. The best charcoal grill for weber genesis 2 steak searing in our lineup was the Weber Classic Kettle. The steak had nice grill marks while keeping a medium doneness on the inside.
Masterbuilt’s Gravity Series charcoal grills work similarly to how an electric-powered pellet grill works, minus the auger that pulverizes the fuel ahead of it hitting the firebox. The grates are made of cast iron, but they are coated in porcelain. The porcelain coating prevents food from sticking, so the grates don’t need seasoning.