A handy little worktop grill that makes healthy eating a little easier . (George Foreman Junior Health Grill)

Member Name: thehonesttruth

Product:	George Foreman Junior Health Grill
Date:	17/09/09 (46 review reads)
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This is a product I've noew been using for about 6 years . I frequently mention it in my food reviews, as I cook with it very often, so I was amazed to suddenly realise that I'd never reviewed the product itself .

I was given this as a present from my parents shortly after I moved into the house I live in now . I think at the time they were currently quite a new product - I certainly remember having seen them advertised on television before I got one, so was delighted to get this little gadget.

As you can see from the product image, the main body of the product is a silver effect, and there is a colourful lide on the bun warmer section - this actually comes in a variety of colours, mine was pink. On this you see the words Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine . Opening it up, it has two non stick grill plates with ridges down them, which create channels for the fat to drain off .

It has a little indicator light that lets you know when this is at the right temperature for cooking - however, there is no temperature control, so unlike an oven grill you can't select how hot you want it to be .

It comes with a little grey plastic spatula, and a little plastic drip tray that you slip under the lip of the grill plate to catch any fat that drains off . It comes with a plug already attached, and the black power cord is rougly 70 cms in length, so it is quite flexible for positioning . It doesn't take up too much space on a work surface, and once cool is small enough to be put into a cupboard easily. It's 17 cms high by 23 wide, and has a depth of 31 cm , so it's really quite a compact little product . You can still comfortably cook 5 rashers of bacon or four small sized beef burgers on it .

So - how easy is it to cook with ? Well, stunningly easy in fact - all you need to do is turn it on at the wall, and wait for the little light to show you that it's ready to cook . Then stick whatever you want to cook on the non-stick plates (no oil needed), flip the lid down, and wait for your food to be cooked .

You do need to bear in mind that with an ordinary oven grill, the heat only comes from one direction which makes it neccessary to turn items over to ensure even cooking . However, with this, the two plates make contact with the food, cooking from both sides at once . So, no turning over, and cooking time is effectively halved, which of course is very convenient .

You can see the fat draining off as you cook . It's actually pretty yucky to see it draining off - but its also reassuring to know that thats how much less fat you're eating compared to if you oven cooked the product.

I've never had any problems cooking here - it has a floating hinge which makes it possible to cook even quite thick cuts of meat. However, I do find that when cooking certain products, especially things like fishcakes and vegeburgers of the mashed potato kind, it can squash them a bit, making them flat and out of shape . This makes no difference to the taste of course, but if you're a stickler for presentation, perhaps it may be an issue .

It's not just meat I've cooked on here - I've also cooked veggies, toasties, and even done a sort of stir fry noodles on it . The bun warmer I have found useful for defrosting frozen bread rolls, and it does this so much better than defrosting them in the microwave .

I've also found that if I forget my cooking for a few minutes, it never burns anything , and nothing gets stuck on the plate .

Once you've finished cooking, cleaning this is easy . Its a case of simply taking a cloth and soaking it in warm soapy water, then wiping the non-stick plates clean . Obviously you can't scrub these with a scourer, but you really shouldn't need to - if you do get something that gets stuck to the plate, I tend to spray it with a little fry-light, and then gently loosen it with a dry cloth .

I've had this for six years now, on a daily basis . It has completely replaced my oven grill which now never gets used, and almost totally cut out the need for a frying pan (the only thing I need them for now is eggs!). It has not a scratch on it, due to careful cleaning on my part, and still works perfectly , cooking food quickly and conveniently and in a healthy way . I shudder to think at how much fat I've thrown away that I would otherwise be eating - and it's so nice to know that the fat is in my bin and not in me .

I have once or twice forgotten to turn this off at the wall, and left it on . I think this is because there is no actual on-off switch on the product, and if I could make a change, this would be it , as it would make it harder to forget it was still on .

Mine was a gift, but a quick look on amazon tells me you can get one of these for £29.99 , a £20 saving off the recommended retail price displayed of £49.99 . While I think this was very worth it at the imte of purchase when George Foreman was the only brand making these, now there are cheaper and probably equally good alternatives out there , as worktop grills have become increasingly popular, so it may well be worth looking around at alternative products .

This product is the junior grill, and is ideal for my needs, cooking as I generally do for myself and one child, or occasionally for 2 adults and one child . I find this gives me enough space to get all my meat products cooked, although I am considering upgrading to a larger version of this product if my boyfriend moves in on a permanent basis as then I will be needing more space to cook .

However, for a family of two, or perhaps for a student or someone that cooks mainly for themselves, I really do highly recommend this product. It's made cooking healthily easy, simple, and fast , and I love it .

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