For over 30 years, grill enthusiasts have obsessed over the egg-shaped grill, also known as a kamado grill.
Kamado grills are a combination of a charcoal grill, smoker, and outdoor oven. Their airtight design gives them the ability to deliver controlled heat, extremely high for searing meats or low and steady for smoking them.
Consumer Reports tested eight kamado grills that you might see in your home and garden centre, wholesale club or hardware store. You can pay anywhere from hundreds of dollars to nearly $2,000 for one of them.
There are heavy ceramic models and lighter steel versions. Which ones did best in CR tests ranging from grilling pizzas to slow cooking roasts?
Topping CR's list is the Kamado Joe Classic II. It features a spring-assisted lid that makes it easy to lift open. The upper and lower dampers adjust easily, and split racks let you cook at different heights, and testers give it excellent marks for cooking performance. It costs $1,600.
The Vision Kamado Professional also got an excellent score for its cooking ability. It has two lower dampers for fine-tuning the temperature. The Vision is $900 and comes in five colours.
For just $640, Char-Broil introduced its first kamado, the Kamander. It got high marks for cooking, convenience and cleaning. It's made of double-walled stainless steel with a powder-coated finish. Airflow is controlled with upper and lower dampers.
Consumer Reports says that no matter what type of grill you buy - be it egg-style, gas, or charcoal - don't just look it over in a store.
Grasp the handle and give it a shake.
Open up the shelves, too, and check to see whether the grill feels like it's built to last.
Does it seem like it will be easy to maintain or will you have to get way underneath it to reach the ash pan? In addition to cooking well, your grill should be a pleasure to use.
