George Foreman Grill, just hype?

I got mine at the thrift store for 5 bucks. Its a trooper. I don't cook much on it...heh I actually got it for Paninis. I have cooked chicken thigh on it, I don't care for Chicken breast in general. My son cooks bacon on it. And its great for bacon, but for really grease free bacon, you must microwave it!

Love mine for quick cooking, chicken breast or fish. My son used it a lot during football season, sometimes you need a double cheese burger before dinner or after a Friday night game. And I love to do grilled sandwiches on it. Just get the one with removable plates for easy clean up. But with anything, it only cooks low fat if you put low fat stuff on it.

We use ours most mights of the week, even for chicken. It cooks food so fast and can dry it out pretty quickly, so you have to keep an eye on what your cooking and/or set a timer. I cut check breasts super thin and cook for about 3 minutes per side and it's still pretty moist, but not undercooked. I spray it with Trader Joe's coconut oil spray first before placing on the grill for a little extra moisture. Beef burgers, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, veggies, chicken, seafood, grilled cheese sandwiches have all been cooked on mine and so far we love it. It's easy to clean, food does not stick (yet) and it's nice to see all the fat drip away instead of being ingested. Good luck!

I use mine for nearly everything. Bacon is a must on it as it's so much cleaner without all of that grease everywhere! If you use a meat thermometer on chicken it won't dry out. I just plug my thermometer into the side of a chicken breast and grill away. It beeps when it's at the proper temp and I pull them off and let them rest for 5 minutes.

I cook everything except chicken (too dry) on mine. It does a great job with burgers, bacon, turkey burgers ( I put shredded zucchini in mine so they won't be dry), steaks, and fish (gets done very quickly) . I've even done grilled cheese, and other sandwiches, I love my Foreman grill!

I've been happier with the larger one I bought a few years ago because you can adjust the temps. The small one is really only good for burgers.

I think the majority of my grilling would be between chicken breasts, steaks and burgers. Since you guys all seem to have had bad experiences with chicken I guess I'll have to find another way to deal with that. Guess it really is still good for veggies, bit more exciting than simply steaming them.

Thank you all for the help, much appreciated.

I am alittle late to the party here but wanted to throw my 2 cents in...... I have no idea what people here are talking about with it not being good to cook chicken?? I have the 5 interchangeable plate george foreman (this is my second one cause I used the first one so much I wore it out) I eat a boat load of boneless chicken breast (16-20 oz. at a meal) now during the spring and summer I prefer my Genesis Weber Gas grill but fall and winter I use the Foreman everyday.... Set to medium high and cook the chicken breast 8 minutes and pull them off, has a perfect internal temperature of 170 degree's and the juices just run out of the chicken when I cut it open.. I cook Beef, Shrimp, Fish among other things on it and they all come out great.... So my vote is most definitely invest in one, in my opinion you won't regret it.... Best of Luck.....

I've used two types of indoor grills - an original George Foreman and a Cuisinart Griddler. Having used the two, the best features you can get on an indoor grill is removable & dishwasher safe plates, hinged top so that it'll lay flat on the food verses at an angle, and adjustable cooking temp. The George Foreman had none and always overcooked the outside and left the inside raw and was a pain to clean. The other bonus with removable plates is different cooking services - flat, grill, and waffle. Love my Cuisinart, hated the George Foreman.

I had one years ago. It will cook what you need and cook it fine. But Ifound it a PITA to clean and deal with, so personally I wouldn't get another one.

I put some aluminum foil under and over whatever I'm cooking (making sure the grease will drain from the foil into the pan) so that I don't have to spend as much time clearning it up afterwards.

Works like a charm.

I am definitely going to give this a shot... that is really my only complaint! It is a total PITA to clean!

Give the foil a very light spray with PAM to prevent the meat from sticking to the foil. I learned that one through trail and error. Even burgers will stick to it.

I love mine! It grills me in a very short period of time. I used it on chicken for a recipe before I had a grill pan. I made that same recipe the other day, using the grill pan, and I had much better results with the grill.

I have a cuisinart brand that also has reversible and removable plates, so you can wash them in the sink. And it unfolds flat and you reverse the plates for a flat griddle for stuff like pancakes, etc.

Chicken breasts don't dry out because of the grill. they dry out because they are overcooked. We use a meat thermometer; the breasts don't dry out, and they are tasty.

And great for paninis.

I will say, I don't feel like it gets hot enough to cook a good sear on beef. If I'm cooking a good steak, it doesn't come out with a nice crust. If I'm cooking a single burger, it's great. But if I cover the whole plate with burgers for the whole family, it seems to cool down too much and struggles to recover, so the burgers don't get good grill marks, etc. So that stuff generally gets done in a skillet instead.

So that's what I think.

I was thinking about getting a cuisinart this week..... would you really suggest it?

Maybe this is obvious, but all of these grills have teflon coating, so if that's a health concern for you, you should stay away from these and go for stainless steel or cast iron.

I personally would check out second-hand stores or garage sales or craigslist. People are constantly unloading these things for around $5.

I have owned several of these wonderful things, used the hell out of them and never had one break! "Why have I owned several?", because of constant moving and leaving behind as part of apartmental community property. While in the Navy I lived with 4 others and this thing spent more hours on than off, "Hey man, you using the Foreman? Leave it on for me.". We put the little guy to the test and it never failed us. I have heard two legitimate concerns; drying out food and difficulty of cleaning. To reduce the drying out (pork/chicken/turkey) just cook with the top open. If you aren't throwing in items straight from the freezer, marinating before also helps greatly. Cleaning can be a pain, but once you get a "routine" it's pretty easy. I suggest while the surface is still hot, use the plastic scraper (that came with it) to get the big stuff off, follow up with a wet paper towel on the surface and wipe down the outside with a Lysol Wipe.

I have an older Hamilton Beach indoor grill and use it all the time. It's perfect for cooking for two people. I cook all sorts of different meats on it such as steaks, burgers, chicken, fish. Just have to set the timing right to keep it from drying out. I did chicken breasts on it just last night and they were very juicy. I also sometimes put my vegetables on it to cook at the same time, such as red peppers or asparagus. I love that I can close the lid and it just cooks away without having to turn or flip or do anything.

And yes, definitely get a grill with the removable plates. Makes cleanup so much easier. The grill we had before it didn't have removable plates, and we quickly replaced it with our current one that does.

Disgusting to cook chicken breasts on it... so dang disgusting and dry
Zucchini, asparagus, mushrooms, bacon, onions, burgers... all work fantastic

I have never had an issue cooking chicken on my Forman grill. Since it cooks both sides you need to really keep an eye on it. I've done chicken on it dozens of times and it's come out the same way it does on a regular grill.

I've used it for steak, pork, fish, grilled cheese. Just make sure you spray it down with some Pam before you put your food on it to cut down on the sticking. Also get the one with the removable grill plates. So much easier to clean!!

ETA: We use ours in the winter time when it's too cold out to grill.