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How to use an infrared grill

Updated: 23 October 2026

The patio is dry and you are about to cook on a gas infrared barbecue or an electric top-heat grill. You want a crust, and you want the fat to stay smoke rather than a flare. This is how to use an infrared grill when the heat comes from an emitter plate, a ceramic burner, or an element above the food. The [infrared grill comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/infrared-grill) sorts those machines; these steps are for the one you already have. Gas stays outdoors and closes at the cylinder before the knob. Electric comes off at the plug. The lid number is chamber air, not the grate. A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

The patio is dry and you are about to cook on a gas infrared barbecue or an electric top-heat grill. You want a crust, and you want the fat to stay smoke rather than a flare.

Our top picks

Char-Broil Char-Broil X200 Grill2Go

Best overall

Char-Broil Char-Broil X200 Grill2Go
8.8/10about £157.97
View offer
Klarstein Klarstein Hannibal

Best value

Klarstein Klarstein Hannibal
7.6/10about £406.19
View offer
Solaire Solaire Everywhere

Alternative

Solaire Solaire Everywhere
6.7/10about £734.07
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Light it in the right place
  2. 2.Preheat and read the lid gauge
  3. 3.Fat, marinade, and a grease fire
  4. 4.Verdict: place, then the clock

Light it in the right place

A gas infrared barbecue stays outdoors, whether the heat sits behind an emitter plate or in a ceramic portable. GOV.UK keeps a cylinder barbecue out of the house, a tent, an awning, or a caravan. Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue add balconies, and say you stay with it. Set it on open ground and use the hose and regulator on the data plate. Electric top-heat is a separate sequence, set out on electric infrared grill vs gas. Read the rating plate and use a sound UK 13 A socket. A warm lead or a scorched plug means you stop and call an electrician. Piped gas, or a hose that hisses, is the same stop. A Grill2Go staged for a 16.4 oz disposable cylinder is not a full patio bottle. UK reviewers describe the flame blowing out in wind, so use sheltered open paving. Which bottle and plug belong to which listing is on the infrared grill buying guide.

Preheat and read the lid gauge

Char-Broil UK asks you to preheat a TRU-Infrared grill with the lid closed, on high, for 15 to 20 minutes. In good weather the lid gauge often settles around 220–270°C. That figure is chamber air. The grate can be hotter. A drop of water on the bars tells you they are ready. Do not plate the food because the gauge matches an oven setting you know. Low is still a hard heat. UK comments on the Grill2Go put low at about 250–300°C. Lift the lid briefly, shift the food, and take small pieces off sooner. Electric tabletops do not inherit that gas preheat. They show a timer of 0 to 10 minutes. A ShaiVrissian sear of 40 to 60 seconds a side is a sales bullet, not a time we measured. Kitchen smoke and the 800°C wording are on the indoor infrared steak grill page.
Char-Broil Char-Broil X200 Grill2Go

Testsieger

Char-Broil Char-Broil X200 Grill2Go
8.8/10about £157.97
View offer

Fat, marinade, and a grease fire

Drain the marinade, trim the fat, and do not pour marinade over food already on a lit grill. Fat still smokes, because the emitter vaporises what remains. Trim on the board before you light. Do not use water on a grease fire. Shut the cylinder valve first, then the control knobs. Step back and stay until it dies down. Do not carry a burning tray indoors, and do not drill a grease hole. Electric shut-down is the plug. If the fire is the lead or the socket, leave it and call for help. After cooking, Char-Broil's burn-off is about 15 minutes on high, then a cool-down, a nylon brush, and a light coat of high-heat oil. A wire brush that sheds bristles is worse than carbon. A cracked plate is a replacement.

Verdict: place, then the clock

If the fuel is propane, you are on open ground, you stay with the burn, and you close the cylinder before the knob. If the fuel is mains, you are on a sound 13 A socket and you stop when the lead or the socket runs hot. Preheat a TRU-Infrared gas grill for 15 to 20 minutes with the lid shut, and treat the gauge as chamber air. Do not put water on a grease fire.

Common questions

How long should I preheat?
Char-Broil UK specifies 15 to 20 minutes on high with the lid closed for a TRU-Infrared gas grill. Wind or a cold evening will stretch that. Electric tabletops show a timer of 0 to 10 minutes, and you watch the food.
Is the lid gauge the cooking temperature?
No. On a Char-Broil TRU-Infrared the lid gauge measures air in the chamber, not the grate. In good weather that air often sits around 220–270°C, and the bars can be hotter. Doneness is what you see on the meat.
Why does low still burn the food?
UK reviewers of the Grill2Go describe low as still about 250–300°C. That is searing heat, not proof you misread the knob. Thin cuts darken in a couple of minutes. Lift the lid briefly, move the food, or take it off.
How do I stop a grease fire on an infrared grill?
Do not use water. Close the cylinder valve first, then the knobs, and keep clear until the flame drops. An electric top-heat grill has no cylinder, so switch off and unplug. If the plug or the socket is burning, do not douse it. Call for help.
What gas bottle do I connect?
Connect the cylinder the data plate names, not the spare in the shed. The Grill2Go is staged for a 16.4 oz disposable cylinder, sold separately, not a full patio bottle. If the hose hisses, turn the cylinder off and leave the grill unlit. Piped gas belongs to a fitter.
How do I clean the emitter plate?
Char-Broil's burn-off is about 15 minutes on high after cooking, then a complete cool-down. Brush with nylon, then a light coat of high-heat oil on the grates and the emitter plates. Skip a wire brush that drops bristles. A cracked plate is a parts replacement.
Can I use it under a gazebo?
Not when the gazebo is closed in, and not on a balcony. A fabric gazebo with the sides down acts as an awning, which GOV.UK rules out, along with tents and caravans. Stay with a lit barbecue on open ground, with the cylinder clear of any structure.

Related pages

Best infrared grill

Infrared grill

Infrared grill buying guide: plate, ceramic or plug

Electric infrared grill vs gas: place, then the plug

Indoor infrared steak grill: crust, smoke and plug

Sources

Public UK sources on outdoor fire safety, BS 1363 plugs, and socket load, plus maker notes on preheat and a published test of one portable gas grill. Prices, stars, and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines saved with this comparison, shelf date 21 October 2026. This is not a laboratory cook.

  1. GOV.UK — Fire safety outdoors (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  2. Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service — barbecues (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  3. Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016, regulation 35 (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  4. GOV.UK — Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  5. Electrical Safety First — plugs and fuses (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  6. Char-Broil UK — TRU-Infrared (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  7. Char-Broil UK — preheating (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  8. Expert Reviews — Char-Broil X200 Grill2Go (retrieved 22.10.2026)