| Product: |
George Foreman Junior Health Grill |
| Date: |
22.01.06 (1001 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: A healthy way of cooking
Disadvantages: The bun warmer is a little fragile .
Cook your meat and two veg and warm your buns at the same time! It is small and compact but this little appliance does "Pack a Punch" in our kitchen.
The George Foreman range of health grills has been around for a while now, but I must admit that up until a few months ago I had avoided all the hype. "it's just an electric griddle pan" I told the Mrs, "And anyway what good is a health grill from a ukulele playing, window cleaning funnyman anyway?". Yes it's an obvious joke but you would be amazed just how many times a day, when I worked for a famous electrical shop, that people asked for the "George Formby grill". And anyway, I love the obvious jokes. Let's get cooking shall we?.......
-----It's just an electric griddle pan isn't it?-----
Well, erm, yes. It is really. But isn't a food processor just an electric knife? The GR20 grill or "Junior" as it is known is about the size of your average Toasted Sandwich maker. It is a lot smaller than it's counterparts but ideal for occasional use. The advantages of having this over a conventional griddle pan are not that huge to be honest. A griddle pan cooks in the same way by raising the item to be cooked on ridges above the hot cooking surface and allowing the fat to drain off underneath. However, what that cunning little chubby boxer did was revolutionise the pan by tilting it AND electrifying it. GENIUS. Sheer genius.
-----How does it cook the food?-----
Pretty good really. The two hot grill plates "sandwich" whatever you decide to burn for dinner inside and the grease and fat runs or dribbles revoltingly out the front and into a little tray. Walk into any kitchen that has a George in it and someone will say "you should see the amount of FAT that comes out of it!" as if they never realised that double fat fat burgers contained fat. You do end up with little ridges reminiscent of a barbecue grill on your food of choice, but it is clearly cooked. This is because the combination of pressure from the plates and the heat it reaches do a remarkable job. Yes I was surprised when the instruction book said "Chicken breast pieces (boneless/skinless 12mm thick) 5-7 mins"........and they were cooked properly in that time. As a man I know they were cooked properly because I asked the wife, and she said they were. That and the fact that I never spent the night on the toilet with food poisoning!
-----What is it like to use?-----
Very easy. Even a man can use it. Essentially it is just a glorified sandwich maker. But the range of foods it suggests you can cook on it opens up a wealth of possibilities;
The obvious burgers, chops and steaks are all listed in the booklet. So are salmon fillets, hot dogs, peppers and kebabs (not the Donner Elephants Leg variety but the ones on sticks). The average cooking time after the grill has warmed up is about 5 to 10 minutes. We found the Junior to be really handy as "another ring on the hob" when cooking a large meal. Fire the peppers in it while the rice is cooking and the chicken is simmering away. I don't think that the George Junior would be used every day, but it does deserve a place on the worksurface as a glorified quick grill.
On top of the grill is a little compartment called the "Bun Warmer". After suffering slight burns to my buttocks and reading the instruction book, I discovered that this area is quite handy. If only for novelty value. When you are cooking burgers you surprisingly put your buns or rolls in it .......to warm them up. WOW. Inspired. The catch on this little plastic compartment is terrible. It feels flimsy and you know it wont last years of being taken in and out of kitchen cupboards.
Yes the grease and fat do run out of the front into tiny little trays. Yes the grease and fat are what we would call in Scotland "clatty or minging". But this gunk would normally end up under the grill plate to be crusted up and washed off by someone later. You do get two fat trays with the GR20 so when one fills up you just swap them over. My handy tip for what it's worth is to fold up a bit of kitchen roll and dip it into the tray. This makes disposal a lot easier. Remember never pour hot fat down the sink.
Cleaning is a breeze, get the wife to do it........only kidding. The plates are non stick, so if you follow the advice in the booklet and wipe it with a damp cloth AFTER it has cooled down, it will be fine. Do not scrub it with a brillo pad or a scourers as this will damage the coating. Give the underside a quick wipe at the fat run off or you will regret it! Gristle stalactites YEARGH.
-----What else do you get with it?-----
A book entitled "Bloody obvious advice". Nah only kidding, but there are rather too many pages in the instruction book that say things like " The plates get hot" and "Keep out of reach of children and stupid people". The instruction book contains cooking guidelines for Beef, Fruit, Lamb, Pork, Poultry, Sandwiches, Seafood, Snacks and Vegetables. Also in the book are a few recipes Cherie Calbom......no I have never heard of her either. But you do get instructions on how to cook....
"The Champ's Sausage Without Guilt" ( I am sure the champ would be delighted if you cooked his sausage! )
"George's Sausage Texas Style"......yeeeehaaaarrr !!!
"George Foreman's PowerBurger" AA cell batteries not required
and some basic recipes like...
Rosemary Lamb Chops, Mustard Lemon Chicken Breasts, Sole with Tomatoes, Strip Steak Polynesian and finally Burritos.
So there IS a reason to read an instruction book after all, if only for the recipes !
The two drip trays come along with a little spatula and fork that do come in quite handy for cleaning the grill and taking stuff out.
The final surprise in the box that made my day were the, and I quote "STOP PRESS - Extension feet". Yes you too can get another 15mm. What man can refuse?! Oh , they are to raise up the grill for the purpose of " cooking mince or anything which needs to be put in pita bread". I will be honest with you they look like little grey plastic nipple covers ! ( Not that I have little grey plastic nipples that require covering.) I suppose they were included as a post design afterthought.
-----Final thoughts-------
The GR20 is a bit smaller than the conventional models of more recent years. This to my mind is it's big advantage. To be honest with you I know that in a few months this grill may end up like the sandwich maker, breadmaker or even the trusted foot-spa as Car Boot fodder. At the moment we do use it a fair bit. It could be handy to give to a student if they are limited to cooking space in their digs, because of it's compact size and it's ease of use. There are also a range of coloured bun warmers out to choose from if you like a bit of colour in your kitchen.
All round I must admit it didn't knock me out, but it did impress me more than I thought it would.
Thank you for reading........
"If you could see the grease I get, when I'm cooking burgers" (sung to the tune of if you could see what I could see when I'm cleaning windows) ;-)
Summary: Easy to use and a lot more compact than its counterparts in the range.
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