Hello, my lovely readers! I’ve been having a wonderful summer day these days. And do you know what that means? It’s grill season. In Norway where I live, people love grilling. There is something called “engangs grill” in Norwegian, which means “one-time grill,” and people bring it to grill by the beach, mountains, or even at parks. (It’s legal to grill almost anywhere in Norway unless it states that it isn’t!) Now that I have moved to a new apartment with a good-sized balcony, I bought myself an electric grill. It’s a great item to have to host a party, as people can grill anything they like and eat and grill as the party goes.
While I was doing my research on grills, I learned that there are so many things that I didn’t know about grills! From which grill to get, how to set up a grill, how to cook on an electric grill, and how to clean a grill, there were many things I learned along the way. Getting a grill also made me step up my cooking game.
In today’s blog post, I will go through everything you need to know to get started with a grill, so you can cook anything on an electric grill like a pro. Then let’s get started!
My Choice of Grill
There are three types of grills: an electric grill, a gas grill, and a charcoal grill.
Charcoal Grill vs Gas Grill vs Electric Grill
- Charcoal Grill: The most basic grill to choose from. You need to get charcoal every time you are using the grill and you need practice to use charcoal. But you get the authentic, smokey grill flavor from charcoal.
- Gas Grill: A gas grill is easier to handle and doesn’t need charcoal, but it is difficult to retain heat (the heat goes away when you open the lid) and you need to buy gas.
- Electric Grill: This is the easiest grill to manage the heat, and you only need to plug in the electricity to operate. It is also the most eco-friendly choice of grill.
Why Did I Choose an Electric Grill?
I chose the electric grill for many reasons.
First of all, it is illegal to have a charcoal grill on a balcony in an apartment in Norway due to the possibility of a house fire. You could get a gas grill, but I am scared of having a tank of gas on my balcony.
Secondly, an electric grill is the easiest to manage the heat. You need a lot of practice to get used to handling fire and heat with charcoal, and there is a lot of heat loss with a gas grill. You also need to keep buying charcoal or gas with a charcoal grill or gas grill, whereas an electric grill is as simple as plugging into the electricity!
Lastly, it is the most eco-friendly grill because it emits less CO2 than using gas or charcoal.
How to Set Up Electric Grill
Now that we have an electric grill, let’s set up an electric grill.
- Put down a carpet. Under the electric grill, it is recommended to put down a carpet so you can catch anything that falls from the grill.
- Plug into the electricity. Find an electric socket to connect power.
- Use an aluminum foil container. Put an aluminum foil container below the grill to catch oil or any debris from dripping down the grill.
How to Cook on Electric Grill | How to Grill Anything
Now that you have set up the electric grill, let’s get cooking!
1. Add Smokey Flavors
The smokey flavor is why we grill. You can skip this step, but it would be the same as cooking on an induction.
Charcoal is what gives the smokey flavor. So gas and an electric grill don’t naturally get the smokey flavor, and therefore you need to add smokey flavor while grilling. There are two ways to do so.
You can use liquid smoke in your sauce to cook food, and it can give some delicious smokey flavor like a charcoal grill!
- Liquid Smoke
You can buy liquid smoke at a store and use it on your food as you would with any marinaded food. The flavor is very concentrated, so ues it sparingly.
COLGIN Natural Liquid Smoke Gift Box – 4 Pack with Pecan
Get this COLGIN Natural Liquid Smoke Gift Box and use it for the whole summer! It is of great quality, made from natural ingredients, and great priced as a package.
There are many kinds of smoked wood chips, including apple, oak, maple, birch, and many more.
- Smoked Wood Chips
Another way to add smokey flavor is to use wood chips for grilling. These wood chips for grills come in different woods and smoke intensity, but they all have one purpose: to give smokey flavor to food.
Take two cups of wood chips and soak them in the water for 30 mintues. Then take the wood chips out of the water and cover them in an aluminium foil. Put the covered foil on the grill while you are grilling. This method will give you the smokey flavor to your food!
🌟 Recommendations 🌟
I use Weber Apple Wood Chips for grilling. It is a great all-around wood chips for subtle sweet smokey flavor.
If you are new to grilling, I recommend getting several packs to see which one you like the best. This Bangerz Sunz Wood Chips Variety Pack has 2 lbs each for Apple, Mesquite, Hickory & Cherry Flavor Wood Chips.
2. Preheat the Grill
Just like you need to preheat an oven, you also need to preheat the grill. Otherwise, the temperature is low and all the juice in the food will be lost while cooking for too long.
Close the lid and put it on medium-high heat. Most electric grills these days should be ready in 10 minutes.
3. Oil Grill Grates
Once the grill is preheated, now you can oil the grill grates. This prevents the food from sticking and makes it easier to clean the grill grates later on. This might not be necessary if your food is very greasy to begin with. Otherwise, oil the grill grates!
4. Use Grill Tools to Cook
There are many grill tools to cook on grills. They are usually made of stainless steel and are big and long to keep your hands away from the direct heat from the grills.
GRILLART BBQ Tools Grill Tools Set
This compact grill tool set has tongs, a spatula, a fork, and a brush. This is a great start kit!
5. Match Grill Temperature
Now your electric grill is ready to be cooked on. You can cook anything on the electric grill now; you just need to know the grill temperature.
Once the grill is heated up, medium grill temperature works on many different types of food, including patties and sausages.
High Grill Temperature
High grill temperatures work great for cooking lots of vegetables. As vegetables contain lots of water, it is best to cook them at a high temperature quickly. That way, you can cook them while keeping the delicious juices inside.
Some of my favorite grilled vegetables include paprika, eggplants, onions, and mushrooms.
Medium Grill Temperature
A medium grill can work well with most of the ingredients aside from vegetables. Starchy vegetables such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn could work at medium temperatures. Grilling some burgers or sausages could work very well too.
Low Grill Temperature
Low temperatures on a grill allow the smokey flavor to be infused into food better. Also, you can use low temperatures on large foods that can take a long time to cook.
There are many grill brushes to choose from for cleaning!
How to Clean Grill
I recommend cleaning the grill almost right after you use it. Here are steps to cleaning the grill efficiently.
1. Heat the grill at a high temperature. Close the lid.
2. Leave it for about 15 minutes. Let all the debris on the grill burn ashes.
3. Turn down the heat and open the grill.
Grillart SteamWizards Grill Brush
4. You can now clean the grill with a brush. Spray some water to make cleaning easier. There are some brushes with a sponge that you can soak up the water to clean easier, like this GRILLART Grill Brush Bristle Free.
5. Once you have cleaned everything, put the grill cover on. Alternatively, you can move the electric grill under a roof where it won’t rain.
Other Questions About Cooking on Electric Grill
My brother-in-law bought a pizza tool for grilling. But, as you can see, it wasn’t quite cooked.
Q. Can I make pizza with a grill?
A. “You could, but it won’t make a great pizza. You could buy a pizza tool for a grill, but it’s not the same as using a pizza oven. Grill has its heat coming from the bottom, and you need all-around heat to make a great pizza. When using a grill to make pizza, it is very easy to have uncooked toppings and cheese. It might be better to use just a regular oven or an outside pizza oven.” says Andreas from The Pizza Heaven.
Q. Can I cook rice with a grill?
A. Yes, you can. Unlike pizza, which needs heat from the air as well, you can cook rice with some heat from the bottom. So you can cook rice on a grill. Remember to use a pot with a lid that can withstand the heat!
In a pot, pour the same amount of water as the rice. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes. Put the heat on the electric grill until it starts to boil. Then, put it on a simmer for 10 minutes if it is white rice. Let it simmer for 20–30 minutes if it is brown rice.
Summary of Grilling on Electric Grill
I hope you enjoyed this post about grilling on an electric grill. Once you know all of these, you can now grill anything you wish! I’ve been trying lots of different things on my grill and getting to know how to cook well. I will keep learning and share my knowledge with you all on this blog.
I will see you soon with another post. Until then, I wish you a wonderful day!
Affiliate Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you if you choose to purchase the recommended product. The support allows me to research and continue working to provide the best information for you. Please rest assured that I only give my honest opinions and recommendations.
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