Pros: Fast, even cooking, easy cleanup, and large cooking surface
Cons: The drip cup could be a little larger.
The Bottom Line: I would definitely recommend this to families. It's a quick healthier way to cook and is easy to cleanup. It's great for cooking snacks as well as meals.
janetaba's Full Review: Hamilton Beach Meal Maker Express 25325 Indoor Gri...
I was asked what I wanted this year for Christmas and I wasn’t sure so I dragged dear hubby around to search for ideas on what to ask for. While pondering what to get the kids for Christmas, we walked past a display of the Hamilton Beach HealthSmart Indoor Grills. We stopped to look at them and noticed that the grill plates were removable for easier cleaning. That was one of the main reasons that I hadn’t bought a George Foreman Grill yet. The Hamilton Beach HealthSmart Indoor Grill was larger then most of the George Foreman grills that I’d seen also, which was a plus. Can’t imagine cooking for a family on one of the smaller grills. I’d be there forever cooking one burger at a time. The smaller grills would be fine for a college student or someone single, but not a family.
Hubby insisted that we look at other things so that I wouldn’t know what he was buying me for Christmas and kept me guessing by wrapping things in odd sized boxes.
Christmas morning came, and I was very happy that he had decided on the grill. We both sat and read the directions after the presents were open, and tried it out today at lunch for the first time.
It has a timer and a list of approximate times for cooking. You warm the grill up by turning it on for 5 minutes before using it. It can be used as a grill with the top opened up to be used as a second cooking surface, or you can cook with both sides of your food being grilled at the same time in the closed cover position. Most foods cook in about 10 minutes, so it’s good for quick meals.
The plates are removable for cleaning, and can be placed in your dishwasher. Fat drains away from your food and is caught in a drip cup that also removes easily for cleaning.
It will hold the fat from about 4-5 burgers from what I can tell. It also depends on how much fat was in the meat to start with. I’d guess that higher fat meat would produce more fat and fill the drip cup quicker.
We cooked two hamburgers fresh not frozen (80%) and a frozen Boca Burger on it so far. The Boca was the one that we weren’t sure how long to cook it, since it was precooked and frozen. I used the recommended time for a frozen uncooked hamburger and it was just fine. The food was evenly cooked, with no hard or burned spots. It cooked thoroughly but was not dry like the microwave can make it. I plan on cooking boneless chicken breasts on it a lot. I’m a little overweight again – need to get back to Weight Watchers – and this will help me cook lower fat foods.
One of the things that I noticed is that the different food listed in the booklet that came with it are all listed as boneless. It has a non stick surface, so my best guess is that the bones might scar the non stick surface. Not a major problem, just need to cut the bones off before cooking.
The surface area is 102 square inches, with it doubled to 204 square inches when used as a double grill with the top used in the flat position. The box shows the grill being used to cook 6 hamburgers in the closed cover position, so double that and you can grill up to twelve when using it in the flat position. The only thing is that the drip cup might overfill depending on the fat content of the meat.
One of the other things I like about it is when I’m not using it is that the grill has a place to wrap the electrical cord so that it’s out of the way. It is permanently attached, so I don’t have to dig through a drawer and figure out which power cord goes with the grill or have it get lost and not be able to use the grill. That’s happened to me with other appliances, and is frustrating when it happens.
There are a variety of things that can be cooked on the grill besides hamburgers or meat. You can cook fresh and frozen vegetables also. There is a recipe for Guilt free hash browns that I’ll have to try out. Cinnamon French Toast, Grilled Cheese sandwiches, Quesadillas, Chicken Wraps, and Really Easy Tacos are among some of the recipes listed in the book. Bet I could do a personal size pizza! The possibilities are endless.
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