This lets you carry the grill from the lid handle and prevents you from having to place the lid on the ground or on another table when you need to get at the cooking area. Thanks to some clever design touch from Weber, the Jumbo Joe manages to pack a lot of the quality and features you expect from a full size Weber Grills Portable Grills Kettle into a portable package. (Camp Chef claims the heat diffuser plates vaporize grease drippings.) I didn’t experience an overload of grease in my testing, but I could see it being an issue cooking a large number of fatty burgers. This somewhat simple, unassuming grill turned out to be the sleeper in our test.
This folding GoBQ is a novel, innovative portable grill unlike any other. It packs up in a tube 8-inches in diameter and 14 inches in length, and carries easily by the handle on top or with the included shoulder strap. We set the burner on low for the 100-percent beef burgers we grilled, flipped them once, and then turned up the heat to imprint sear lines from the cast-iron grate. Generally, we found it relatively easy to grill thinner foods and, even better, convenient to turn on and off as needed over the course of an afternoon. A bottom vent and an aluminum top damper allowed us to dial in the airflow. Bagged charcoal is slightly more difficult to light but is easy to work with in that you ignite a pile of it in a charcoal chimney and pour the glowing coals onto the coal grate.
The MiniMax Big Green Egg is identical to its larger cousin in nearly every way, but smaller. It weighs 75 pounds, making it by the far the heaviest grill I tested, but the double-handle carrying system makes it easy for two people to carry it. The problem is that the 13-inch grilling surface of the MiniMax can only grill for about four people. But the Q2200 is a tabletop grill and it is so wide, even with the two side tables folded, that I wouldn’t want to carry it too far. (There is a smaller version, the Q1200, which I did not test, but has a similar design) The Traveler’s design is much smarter for someone who needs to take their grill on the go. This would be a good grill for someone who had a smaller outdoor space and needed something stationary, but smaller than a typical home gas grill.
To help you find the best portable charcoal grills for entertaining, tailgating, camping, and more, we tested 14 of the most popular options. After grilling up all sorts of food, we evaluated each model on its design, ease of use, performance, and more. There is no mystery as to why – pellet grills offer the control of a household kitchen oven but produce the flavor and texture of charcoal grills and wood smokers. Traditionally, they are not the type of grill that you’d want to tote along with you on an RV trip or to tailgate the big game, but the Camp Chef Portable Pellet changes that. With a bit of clever design, this model collapses to a size that can be wheeled around and transported into spaces that are a fraction of the size of where most pellet grills can fit. The controls for this grill are digital, allowing you to select the exact temperature you need for the cut you’re cooking.
Talk about versatility — this grill gives you a traditional propane grill grate, a cast iron flat top griddle, and a pizza oven wrapped into one. Our tester loved how easy it was to switch between the pizza oven feature and the cast iron grill with one flip of the grate, and appreciated its self-storage rack (for the grill top not in use) even moreso. You can open the pizza oven door to slide in your pie, or use the handle to lift the entire lid like a traditional grill. Some of the best portable grills come with carrying bags as part of the cost, too.
If you can’t face the prospect of going without your Big Green Egg for a weekend, the MiniMax Big Green Egg is much smaller, but it still isn’t terribly portable. However, if you want to smoke, grill, and bake outdoors, this ceramic cooker is a strong choice. If flavor is your only criterion, I would argue that charcoal is superior to propane gas.
Remember that a larger cooking space also (usually) correlates to a larger grill body to store when it’s not in use. Propane grills are lightweight (although the containers add some weight), easy to transport, and (generally) easy to light. However, trouble with fuel lines can add a level of intricacy to cooking while camping, so be sure to read up on your owner’s manual. Gas grills are easy to regulate and adjust for direct heat and indirect heat, so most folks prefer it for their cooking options.