Is this messy? When you are grilling? Does it smoke?
1719880
Not messy. Some smoke. So keep ventilator hood or with stove on to avoid it. But that usually has to do with how much fat is in the meat you may use or how high you have temp.
2016732
There's a perforated sheet under the grates. It prevents direct flames from hitting food, and it catches most of the grease. That means twice as many parts to clean up. It's such a hassle to use and clean that haven't used mine enough to know if much drips into the bottom or not. Because of the metal sheet under the grates, you have to preheat much longer than with any regular grill. I tried mine a few times and started using a stovetop grill pan, which I love. (Calphalon 1877038 Contemporary Nonstick Dishwasher Safe Panini Pan and Press)
961396
If you foil the rack the smoke doesn't surrounded the food as well and the temperature above the foiled rack may be affected. The drippings from that rack may also make a mess for you.
258243
Interesting question-------one I would have never thought of. It has a shiny finish that with time and use has become not so shiny anymore. It is a black porcelain look. True, when cleaned, it doesn't come completely clean, but, most of the stuck on food comes off. I do wish I had started spaying the grate--from the very first--with a non stick spray. The grate size is good for soaking in the sink before cleaning. Oh! I absolutely love this grill! It gets much hotter than any I have ever had and cooks quickly and more evenly than any I have had before. It is ideal for searing a steak and leaving the center rare--very rare, the way I like it.
198597
I have never had a problem with my griddle creating too much smoke, but I don't use a lot of oil. I usually spray it with Pam and maybe drizzle a little olive oil on the meat and that's it. I absolutely adore my Calphalon griddle pan and have recommended it to all my friends.
231923
Depends on what you mean by "clean." If you want it to keep its clean chrome out of the box shine upon repeated use, very hard. Plus, the wire mesh that expands and contracts with the fish tends to catch a sponge and tear it up a bit when you get to work on it. However, if you are willing to accept that grill items like this will become cured like a wok with repeated use, becoming brown, then cleaning is a very straight forward affair of hot water and soap and a bit of light scrubbing.
851992
Never used that type grill. A fair amount of air flow is needed to keep the smoke going.
1582767
None at all. We use it for burgers and bacon, grilled cheese etc. and it has never smoked.
2016733
I don't grill a lot of super-greasy food, but in general, no. Most of it lands on the emitter plates and is eventually burned (or cleaned) off. I have not had to clean grease on the bottom of the grill.
1066925
There is a little metal cup that fits on the rear bottom of the grill. It is removable for dumping. The drip pan below the heating element will need periodic cleaning because it needs to be hot when the juices from your meat hit it so that the smoke will give it that good smoky flavor . I also occasionally add some pre wetted wood chips onto the drip pan for extra smoke. Either way gives a good flavor. I've had my grill for several years with no problems and have bought another for a camp house we have. I like this grill.
1341992
I don't worry about the build-up inside the smoker since I don't do any fish in it...and if I did, the residue would have to be bad enough to drop onto my cooking foods before I'd clean it. The grates-I usually bring my smoker to a little higher temp than I'll cook at & let the grates get hot, then just clean them off with a grill brush. It's actually pretty low-maint cooking once you get the hang of it.
2184926
It's an outdoor grill, so smoking shouldn't be a problem. You can't use it indoors, obviously.
1759343
I've not experienced that. I don't put anything I'm cooking over the holes. There could be a little splatter, but that happens with any meats being fried, grilled, etc., and it's not been problematic.
1582766
I try to keep the temperature low enough to avoid burning but high enough to get a good "crust". I spray the pan with Pam for the grill. Being a widow, I make one hamburger or piece of steak at a time. I haven't had a smoke problem but do have a spatter issue with meat that is too fatty. I think you get that regardless of the pan used. I love this grill pan.
1032717
IF let's off a fair amount of smoke. I was not very happy, and would net rocommend. For me, the problem I had was it got too hot, even on the lowest of settings for my gas burner. Also, it's impossible to clean, without scraping of the coating. the last time I used it was to sear tuna. I let it sit for a day and scrubbed very hard to remove the residue. I used a sponge,then a soappad, becasue the sponge did nothing for the black residue ledt behind. I scrubbed so hard some of the costing rubbed off, and there is still residue left? Hope you have better luck and this was helpful
810443
Never had any problem I suppose you could get it to smoke if you had a lot of meat at very high temp or a lot of bbq sauced burning on the grill.
1169397
There is a lift out tray in the grill section and a slide out tray if you have the side smoker. Both sections are easy to clean.