Kettle Charcoal Grills Your mileage may vary, but with proper care and maintenance you can expect your Weber grill to last for many years. Be the first to hear about special offers, events, popular new items and helpful home improvement tips. Select 2 or more products for side-by-side feature comparison. To my knowledge, nobody else does this full time, and nobody else has cooked on as many grills and smokers as I have. I assemble products, measure temperatures, slam lids, turn dials, kick casters, study warranties, take pictures, and cook a lot of food. If the burners are deprived of oxygen, the flame goes out, but the gas fuel keeps coming, building up under the hood and creating a serious fire hazard. This grill has enough room for a three-zone charcoal fire—and a handful of beer-can chickens, multiple racks of ribs, or 20 burgers. It’s also a great grill for slow cooking a whole pork shoulder and then some with or without Char-Griller's optional side fire box. If you're committed to charcoal, but envious of your neighbor's shiny gasser, the Napoleon Charcoal Professional Cart Grill may be the answer. Only a few premium and luxury BBQ brands offer stainless steel charcoal grills. Napoleon's Professional is one of the more beautiful models we've seen in this price range. This stainless steel charcoal burner feels right at home in a shiny outdoor kitchen ensemble. We tested six kettle-style charcoal grills because when it comes to grilling, simpler is just better. After a handful of cookouts over the last few weeks, there were two clear winners. While still not small enough to fit in a day pack, it makes for the perfect city-living, can-only-grill-in-the-park grill. It’s got Weber’s charcoal-standard ash catch at the base and airflow dampers on the lid (there aren’t any on the base, sadly). After the grill was heated up for 10 minutes, the steaks were ready to hit the grill grate. Napoleon delivered excellent cooking results in our ribs test. It prepared a tender and juicy rack in 4 hours, 30 minutes. In our chicken test it held a high temperature for longer than any other grill in the lineup. But the biggest problem is that the instructions completely overlook what we found to be a potentially dangerous design flaw. The Napoleon’s vent assembly consists of two metal collars, one inside the other. We also found the built-in temperature gauge to be accurate. This grill gave both our burgers and chicken a really nice sear. During our testing, hamburgers cooked to medium, while it took the chicken about 32 minutes to come up to temperature. The Ranch kettle comes in one size and it’s absolutely enormous. Easily the largest of Weber’s kettle-shaped grills, the Ranch is overkill for all but Weber brand loyalists that need to make more than 40 burgers at a time. Deanna McCormack has reviewed dozens of products for The Spruce and thoroughly tested her portable grill out in her backyard and a beach campsite. You'll also want to wipe down the inside of the lid and bowl using a mild soap. Easy to Clean- With the patented One-Touch Cleaning System in Weber Grills, charcoal ash can be removed quickly with one hand. The porcelain-enamel blast-fired coating allows for effortless removal of soot with just some soapy water. Prices and availability of products and services are subject to change without notice. This roundup was written by Camryn Rabideau, product tester and grill expert for The Spruce Eats. She's done firsthand testing of the Weber Q2200, Masterbuilt Bluetooth Digital Electric Smoker, and more. 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. Finally, we roasted whole chickens indirectly to see if the grills could create browned skin and perfectly cook meat without charring. Sam Sifton, editor for the Cooking section of The New York Times , joined us for these tests. Toast to the authenticity of charcoal grilling, classic design, and taste loved around the world—the Original Kettle. Its ultra-durable, porcelain-enameled lid and bowl retain heat, while the dampers can be easily adjusted for precise temperature control.