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Contact grill burgers and chicken

Updated: 23 October 2026

You closed the lid on a contact grill burgers chicken cook, the outside looks done, and the programme light has already moved on. That shortcut is what this page is here to stop. At home, burgers, sausages and chicken are cooked through. A whole steak can stay rare if the outside is seared. A sensor light is not a Food Standards Agency thermometer. Preheat, loading and cleaning sit on [how to use a contact grill](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/contact-grill/sub/contact-grill-how-to-use). The model table stays on the [contact grill comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/contact-grill). A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

You closed the lid on a contact grill burgers chicken cook, the outside looks done, and the programme light has already moved on. That shortcut is what this page is here to stop.

Our top picks

Morphy Richards Morphy Richards ThermoGrill

Best overall

Morphy Richards Morphy Richards ThermoGrill
5.7/10about £120.00
View offer
Tefal Tefal OptiGrill Plus

Rank 2

Tefal Tefal OptiGrill Plus
9.4/10about £155.55
View offer
Philips Philips Contact Grill 7000 Series

Alternative

Philips Philips Contact Grill 7000 Series
8.2/10about £99.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What has to be cooked through
  2. 2.The temperatures
  3. 3.If you have no thermometer
  4. 4.Lights, programmes, and probes

What has to be cooked through

Burgers made from mince, sausages, chicken, turkey and other poultry, and pork, have to be cooked through at home. GOV.UK is blunt on burgers: steaming hot, no pink in the centre, juices clear. Mincing spreads bacteria that lived on the surface through the whole patty, so a rare middle is not the same risk as a rare steak. Children, people over 65, pregnant people and anyone with a weakened immune system should only eat thoroughly cooked burgers, including when a restaurant offers a rarer option under controls a home kitchen does not have. A whole beef or lamb steak can be served rare or pink if the outside is properly seared, because the bacteria of concern sit on the surface. Rolled joints and anything minced or needled follow the cooked-through path. Char on the outside is not a doneness test. A dark crust can hide a raw centre. Do not wash raw chicken before it goes on the grill. Cooking it through is the control, and washing spreads campylobacter around the sink.

The temperatures

The Food Standards Agency’s core combination for the middle of the food is 70°C for 2 minutes. Equivalent combinations on the same page are 60°C for 45 minutes, 65°C for 10 minutes, 75°C for 30 seconds, and 80°C for 6 seconds. Those figures need a clean probe thermometer in the thickest part, not resting on bone or the hot plate. Clean the probe between checks so you do not drag juices from a raw centre onto food that is already done. A contact-grill programme that beeps for medium, or shows a colour for steak, is a timing aid for that model’s sensor. It is not a reprint of the FSA table. Expert Reviews found an OptiGrill Elite chicken prediction longer than the meat needed in their own test. That is a reason to verify the centre, not a claim that the light knows safety. Manufacturer lines about less grease or less smoke are marketing, not temperature guidance.
Morphy Richards Morphy Richards ThermoGrill

Testsieger

Morphy Richards Morphy Richards ThermoGrill
5.7/10about £120.00
View offer

If you have no thermometer

Without a thermometer you still cook burgers and chicken through. Cut into the thickest part. The centre should be steaming hot, with no pink meat and with juices that run clear. Poultry should not show pink flesh at the bone. That visual standard is what the FSA offers when a probe is missing. It is slower than a thermometer, and it is safer than trusting colour on the plate alone. Grill marks and a browned crust are not enough. A contact grill cooks from both sides, which can brown the outside while the middle of a thick burger or a chicken breast lags, especially if the lid crushed the edges and left a dense centre. Give fatty sausages time in the middle, not only stripes on the skin. If you are feeding someone in a vulnerable group, cook thoroughly and refrigerate leftovers promptly.

Lights, programmes, and probes

OptiGrill programmes on the Plus and Elite sense thickness and beep. They are not probes. Check burgers and chicken in the centre anyway, including when you want steak rarer than the automatic cycle tends to go. A temperature probe is listed on the Philips 7000 and the Morphy Richards ThermoGrill. The 7000 pairs the probe with eight presets and carries coating peel notes in a 4.1 from 57 reviews, so check the plates on arrival under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. The ThermoGrill lists a probe and separate plate temperatures, with only three reviews behind a 5.0 and no wattage in the capture. A probe does not let you serve a home burger pink. Cleaning and the plug are on the contact grill buying guide.

Common questions

Can a burger be medium on a contact grill?
Not at home. GOV.UK and the FSA expect home burgers cooked through with no pink in the centre. Restaurant controls for rarer burgers do not transfer to a domestic kitchen.
What temperature is chicken?
Use the FSA combinations in the middle of the meat, typically the 70°C for 2 minutes path or an equivalent, until juices run clear and no pink remains. Do not wash the chicken first.
What if I have no thermometer?
Cut the thickest part. It should be steaming hot, with no pink and with clear juices. Grill marks alone are not enough.
Is a rare light safe for steak?
For a whole beef or lamb steak with a seared outside, rare can be acceptable under FSA guidance. The same light does not make a burger or a chicken breast safe to serve pink.
Do sausages follow the burger rule?
Yes. Cook them through so the middle is steaming hot. Stripes on the skin are not a doneness test.
Which grill in this set has a probe?
The Philips 7000 and the Morphy Richards ThermoGrill list a probe. The 7000 has coating complaints in reviews. The ThermoGrill has only three reviews. A probe is not a top-pick badge.
Should I wash raw chicken first?
No. Cooking it through is the control. Washing spreads bacteria around the sink and the worktop.
Are restaurant pink burgers the same as home?
No. Some restaurants serve rarer burgers under specific controls. At home, and for vulnerable groups even when eating out, thoroughly cooked is the rule GOV.UK states.

Related pages

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Contact grill buying guide: plates, hinge and plug

How to use a contact grill: preheat, load and clean

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Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures for these ASINs. Retrieved 21 October 2026.

  1. Food Standards Agency: Cooking your food (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK: Burgers (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  3. GOV.UK: Cooking food safely (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK: Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  5. GOV.UK: UKCA and CE marking by sector (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  6. OPSS: SOKANY grill maker, 27 March 2026 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  7. BSI: BS EN 60335-2-9 household grills and toasters (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  8. legislation.gov.uk: Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  9. legislation.gov.uk: Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 19 (retrieved 21 October 2026)