If you have a propane tank connected to the grill, simply remove the tank and disconnect the hose from the grill. Four bold colors, unmatched grilling performance, and upgraded features are what make the Genesis II E-330 your grill of choice. Backed by a 10 year warranty on all parts of the grill and lifetime of customer support, your search for the ideal grill ends here. Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions.
One of them, the Spirit S-315, is similar to our top pick, the Spirit II E-310, but has a few cosmetic differences, such as a stainless steel lid and metal dials. In our eyes, the S-315 seemed likely to perform about the same as our pick—and did not seem worth the higher price. The advantage of stainless steel over the porcelainized cast-iron grates on the Spirit II E-310 is its resistance to rust and corrosion. Weber Q gas grills come in portable or freestanding configurations. Whether you are camping or tailgating, the Weber Q gas grill is one of the best options for you. The Weber Q has a rust-resistant cast aluminum lid with a lightweight body.
If you do want something a bit cheaper or smaller, we’ve also tested and recommend the Q 1200. As you might know, starting a charcoal grill usually begins with simply getting the coals warmed up in a chimney starter. It comes with an auto-start gas ignition that consistently lit the coals for us. You can place the lid in different positions for the best top damper placement, with the bottom damper easy to adjust when your flame gets too hot. During our smoking test, we were able to keep the grill within a range of 10 degrees for several hours, making this a great option for cooking with indirect heat. The Sear Zone on the Genesis E-325s has an extra burner between the middle and right-side burners, which puts out the same 13,000 Btu as the others do.
To start, the grill is embedded within an easy-to-move cart that features an extra-large side table and enclosed charcoal storage. PureBlu burners with a unique, tapered design, create a consistent flame and even heat across the grilling surface. Raised flame weber traveler openings keep food debris falling away, minimizing clogs and corrosion. From burgers on the grate to chicken on the rotisserie, or even adding a touch of smoke to the dish, a Weber gas grill boasts an abundance of features for whatever you have a taste for.
The portable models also come in a variety of colors, and they offer great optional accessories. The grates are made of cast iron, but they are coated in porcelain. The porcelain coating prevents food from sticking, so the grates don’t need seasoning. Only very old models of Weber grills would require seasoning, and because they are very old, that surely happened a long time ago.
If you have limited outdoor space or don’t want to commit to a larger grill, the Weber Spirit II E-210 is a smaller, two-burner version of our pick, and it’s a great choice. We grilled a grate full of chicken pieces on a 90-degree afternoon in July, and the Genesis E-325s did an excellent job at maintaining a steady medium-low heat from beginning to end. To some extent, all grills run cooler toward the front of the grate, but in our tests the Spirit II E-310 offered the most consistent heating across the entire grate surface. After 10 minutes, the burgers at the rear, the hottest part of the grill, were medium-well, and those at the front were medium-rare to medium. (If your diners have various preferences, this difference might even come in handy.) In contrast, lesser grills produced nearly raw burgers in the front and well-done patties in the back.
Our reader survey revealed high satisfaction with Weber grills’ performance and reliability. Of the 1,000-plus Wirecutter readers we surveyed, over 60% said they owned Weber grills. And of those Weber grill owners, 69% reported that they were extremely satisfied, and another 29% reported that they were moderately satisfied. At the 2017 Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Expo, we interviewed senior product managers from almost every major grill maker in attendance. And in 2022 we surveyed over a thousand Wirecutter readers about their grill use.
The good news is that no matter what kind of grill you’re looking for, Weber has one, whether it’s a charcoal grill, an electric grill, or a gas grill. Yes, you can smoke meat on a Weber charcoal grill, also known as a kettle grill. The simplest way to use your kettle grill as a smoker is to place all of your charcoal briquettes on one side weber genesis grill of the grill and your meat on the other. Adding a few small chips of wood to the charcoal will give your meat a more traditionally smoked flavor. Placing a pan of water underneath the grates where you will be putting your meat will help to catch drippings, keep the meat more moist, and enable the smoke to adhere better to the meat.
A sturdy shelf under the grill and a side table, which folds down for storage, give you some outdoor “counter space” while you’re cooking. We brought the grills to temperature with their two outer burners lit and the middle burner unlit. Then we placed a chicken weighing 3 to 4 pounds in the center of the grate and closed the lid. We monitored the grills’ temperature for the hour-long cook, and we noted the depth and evenness of browning at the end.