George Foreman GGR50B Electric Grill

Guess what? There are NO gas/charcoal grills allowed on the patios at my apartment complex! For a lover of all things grilled, this was quite a traumatic realization. My husband was equally upset, and came home a short time later with the George Foreman GGR50B Grill. Read on to see whether this grill satisfies my cheeseburger cravings…

Physical Components
This is a big ol' George Foreman grill. It measures 17 inches across the round grill portion. This gives about 240 inches of cooking spaces. My husband says the grill promised to hold up to 16 hamburgers, but I think that's a bit of a stretch. The grill can be used on the countertop or on its pedestal and base. The grill sits on a grill base, and as the food cooks grease drips into the grease tray which is located in the grill base. There is also a lid which contains a handle that can be twisted off to allow ventilation.

The grill comes disassembled, but we put it together in a matter of minutes. Mostly we just leave it assembled in the corner of the kitchen, it's pretty attractive with its black base and silver dome lid. Basically, the GGR50B looks like a very clean and attractive version of a traditional gas grill. It can be used indoors or outdoors, and is portable enough to transport between the two easily.

Time to Cook
First you simply plug the grill into an outlet and turn the dial to the appropriate setting. The dial is numbered 1 through five, and suggested settings and cooking times for various items are listed on page seven of the instruction manual. For example, hamburgers need to be cooked 5-15 minutes on setting four. Pork chops should be cooked 20-35 minutes on level 5. These charts are a good place to start, but the cooking time really depends on the thickness of the meat and your personal preferences, so getting things right takes some experimenting.

After preheating for ten minutes, all you have to do is place the food on the grill and cover. For best results, we usually flip the food over a couple times. If you want to roast your meat, you can place the meat in a roasting pan right on top of the grill.

Results
For the most part, we have been quite happy with our grill. It isn't quite the same as grilling on a regular grill, but it is quick and easy. The grill doesn't usually dry things out like our small George Foreman does. Generally, when we cook we are usually more towards the lower side of the time suggested because burned a few things early on. The best results have been with cheeseburgers, bratwurst, and chicken. One thing we do a lot is through pork chops, green pepper, and pineapple on the grill together. We haven't had such great luck with steak, however. There are several recipes in the instruction book, mostly bearing George's name in some way (as do all of his sons).

This is not to say the grill is quite the same as a regular grill. I miss the smoky taste that comes with food grilled outdoors over a gas or charcoal grill. This is definitely not better than a traditional grill, but it has its own purposes for people like me who aren't allowed to have one. I definitely prefer meat prepared on this grill to other means of indoor preparation such as with a grill pan or baked in the oven.

Ew, Cleanup!
My biggest complaint with this grill definitely has to do with the cleanup process. Stuff really tends to crust onto the grill, since there is nowhere for it to go like on a regular grill. The grill is slanted and everything is supposed to go into the drip pan, but the grease is often blocked by other food on the grill and sometimes we end up with a sticky mess. Cleaning it right away is a necessity, as we forgot one night and our whole apartment smelled like nasty spoiled hamburger meat the next day. It takes a bit of scrubbing, but we've always been able to get it clean. Generally, when its time to clean the grill, its time for me to "go study," because I absolutely hate this task.

Overall…
We use this grill at least four or five times a week. It's very easy, and a pretty healthy way of preparing food. I'm not sure if it can hold 16 hamburgers, but it can easily hold enough to feed a family. I would, of course, prefer a big old gas grill on my porch, but in the meantime this is a pretty nice substitute. I would purchase this same grill if I got to choose again.

*This grill can be found for purchase easily during the summer, but is trickier in the grilling off season. Epinions has provided links below to some online vendors carrying this product.