My comments in red below..
For my camping purposes, I bought a neat tabletop Stainless gas grill at Lowes for just under $100 at the time a few years ago. Looks similar to the pix below..
Can find that HERE ON AMAZON
Never have used the propane burners, have exclusively used my charcoal pan.. The stainless grates however have rotted out (more like stainless COATED grates as they are not 100% solid stainless).
Just bought through Amazon some Porcelain coated Cast Iron grates.. Couldn't find the exact fit so I will have to cut them down a bit to make them fit. Did that also for my home gas grill, love the cast iron grates!
MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Is the "stainless" steel construction actually rust proof? I've not seen data like 304, 18-8, 18-10.
No, just because it may be constructed of "Stainless Steel" it does not mean that it is "rust Proof"!
Generally Stainless steel grill bodies will last a long, long time, however, stainless grill BURNERS AND COOKING GRATES tend to fail at amazingly high speed.
I have replaced over 35 yrs of cooking on gas grills way more burner assemblies and grill grates than I care to admit.
Here is my recommendation..
You want a Stainless grill body.
However you WANT CAST BRASS BURNERS!!!!
Cast brass burners will easily outlast your lifetime and the grill body will have rusted out around them before the brass is gone.
You WANT PORCELAIN COATED CAST IRON GRILL GRATES!!!
The problem is, in table tops, you will get NEITHER!
You do not want the cheaply stamped stainless burners, they will disintegrate to rust in the matter of one or two seasons and same goes with ANY Stainless grill grates.. They use the cheapest stainless you can buy in those two items and that is pretty much 95% of your working parts!
Regulator works at 11" water column?
Propane portable break down to small units that use 1 lb disposable cans or standard refillable cylinders like 20 lb, ones that use the 1 lb disposable can be adapted to 20 lb cylinders with an adapter hose.
All portables have built in regulators which directly connect to cylinder.
Can they tolerate rain?
Yes, they are designed for outdoor usage so a little to a lot of rain should not be an issue.
To keep it cleaner and dry, you might be able to buy a grill cover.
Good temperature regulation? Like when cooking a whole chicken?
I would say "fair" on temp regulation, not super precise but will typically get the job done, just use a meat thermometer on your choice of meat in the thickest spot and follow normal guidelines for food safety.
However, large items like whole chicken or whole duck might be a stretch on a small table top, the tops tend to be pretty shallow in height so you might not be able to close the top making the cooking time a lot longer..
I suppose duck is off the menu? Tons of fat and a 4 alarm fire?
Never tried Duck, but I suspect using a Rotisserie accessory it most likely could be done (might be able to find an universal after market Rotisserie accessory), just have fire extinguisher handy if the experiment gets out of hand..
However, I suspect small table top grills A whole Duck might be a stretch..
Most grills will have some means of handling extra grease, typically a removable tray or catch can. Just make sure you clean the grease try often if doing a lot of super greasy items.
Summer is here with 90 degree high humidity. Kitchen cooking is undesirable.
Totally understandable!
I am not in an area with mesquite, oak, or guisache an acacia tree.
Charcoal grill?
You CAN use charcoal and or most any wood with the exception of say Pine/Conifer family which would not taste very good.
I made charcoal pans to fit above (on top of the burners) my gas grill burners when I am not in a hurry and really want more flavor than burning grease flairups.
I start with charcoal, then I will add in a couple of small pieces of Maple, Apple, Cherry to give some extra wood smoke to the final product.
I use the gas for those times I am in a hurry and don't wish to wait 15-20 minutes to get white coals on the charcoal.
Best of both worlds!
And maintenance? Main burner cleaning? Is it better to remove chicken fat before cooking? With wood, the fat pulled right off after cooking.
Burner cleaning at end of cooking season works for me OR if I notice the burner not evenly lighting.
I typically leave the fat and skin on, adds extra flavor and depending on the type of meat prevents you from burning the meat as easy or drying it out (Some Chicken parts dry out fast since it can be very lean without the skin).
Other maintenance is just a wipe down of the exterior and periodically cleaning the grease tray.
Grill grates I tend to heat them up good then use a stainless putty knife I bought NEW for this purpose only (no used ones please, don't want lead paint chips in my food) to clean off any old stuck food, the high heat cleans and sanitizes the grates..
NEVER, EVER use those grill BRUSHES!!!!
I almost had to take my Daughter (10yrs old at the time perhaps?) to the hospital when a tiny stainless grill brush bristle got stuck in her throat! We were lucky that she was able to cough up that little bugger! I could not see those bristles as they broke off on the grill grates..
I will never, ever use a grill brush again!
I'm hoping to get the model from Costco.
Can't help you on Costco, my experience with Sam's club is they have extremely limited options on grills.
Home depot, Lowes might get you more options.
For my camping purposes, I bought a neat tabletop Stainless gas grill at Lowes for just under $100 at the time a few years ago. Looks similar to the pix below..
Can find that HERE ON AMAZON
Never have used the propane burners, have exclusively used my charcoal pan.. The stainless grates however have rotted out (more like stainless COATED grates as they are not 100% solid stainless).
Just bought through Amazon some Porcelain coated Cast Iron grates.. Couldn't find the exact fit so I will have to cut them down a bit to make them fit. Did that also for my home gas grill, love the cast iron grates!
