Gas Vs. Charcoal Grills

With warm weather just around the corner, there’s no doubt that many chefs enrolled in online cooking courses are itching to fire up the grill to give meats and vegetables a smoky, summery flavor. However, there are a few grilling tips you need to know before purchasing and using a grill.

Gas vs. charcoal
According to Allrecipes, there has been a longstanding debate between cooks in the culinary academy about whether to use gas or charcoal grills. Usually you’re one side or the other, and people typically don’t change their minds once they’ve picked a method. Here’s the breakdown of both:

Gas grilling
Like with a gas stovetop, using gas to grill meats and vegetables is extremely fast and convenient. It’s also much cleaner and quicker than charcoal grilling, since all you need to do to get started is turn a knob connected to a refillable liquid propane container. Once you’re done cooking, you simply wipe off the counter with a metal brush and you can call it a day. Gas grills are also much safer than their charcoal competitors, as you don’t have an open flame. There is a downside to gas grilling, however. This method doesn’t add much extra flavor to dishes, which is one of the most important parts of cooking.

Charcoal grilling
Fans of charcoal grills love this method for several reasons, but the main one is the smoky flavor. You also get crusty, caramelized edges on meats and vegetables that simply can’t be achieved with a gas grill. Charcoal grills are also much more affordable than cooking with gas. The downside to charcoal grilling is that you have to pay special attention to the open flame and briquettes to get the temperature just right. It also requires a time-consuming and messy cleanup process.