Sanyo HPS-SG2 Indoor Barbeque Grill with 120-Square-Inch Nonstick Cooking Surface
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Sanyo HPS-SG2 Indoor Barbeque Grill with 120-Square-Inch Nonstick Cooking Surface
Customer Review: A Work Horse
Summary: 4 Stars
For years I've been cooking outdoors. When weather does not permit lighting off the outdoor grill its good to have other options. I've used several of the so-called indoor grills a time or two. Everything from the high ticket models on down to the cheapies, we gave them a serious test run. Needless to say, they did nothing for me and soon found a place on the shelf of the local thrift store. Surprisingly, the Sanyo HPS/SG2 Smokeless Grill has changed our minds about indoor grilling.
Powered by an 850 Watt heating element and with an easy to use adjustable temperature control, this little kitchen gadget is simple to operate. The grill plate rests on a plastic frame. The aluminum drip pan fits inside and on the bottom of the frame. The unit is also equipped with two cool to the touch handles. Clean up is a breeze. The grill plate must be hand washed. It is not submersible. Even though we've not done it, the drip tray is machine washable. As with any new cooking device, there is a slight odor when warming up. This is primarily caused by the newness of the product. It goes away. I suggest cleaning the unit before use
Weighing in at 4.6 lbs and measuring at a little over 18" x 13" x 3" inches, its perfect for counter tops. I maxed out the grilling area and cooked four burgers in no time. I've also had great success in grilling boneless chicken breasts and steaks too. To keep food from sticking I coated the grill plate with a non stick spray. I used a pot lid to speed up the cooking times on larger items such as the chicken breasts. Even the familiar grilling stripes of meats and vegetables are there. The non-stick grid surprisingly does a great job of allowing fat to drain down into the drip pan. To keep smoke down, just fill the aluminum drip pan with water. It actually works at keeping smoke at a minimum. Even while doing this, I strongly suggest using this grill in a well ventilated area.
If there is a weakness to this product, its the plastic frame. It hasn't been done yet, but one drop of the frame and its no more grilling. Its also a good idea to keep an eye on the handles. The mounting hardware is sure to work itself free over time. The coated drip tray could be an issue as well. I'm not sure why the manufacturer opted for not using a non stick coating on the aluminum pan. Other then those possible problem areas, its a good working product. The Sanyo HPS/S2 Smokeless Grill comes packaged with the grill grid, drip pan, frame, power cord, instructions, and a one year limited warranty. A couple of good recipes are posted in the instruction booklet.
When those rainy days do bring us inside, the Sanyo HPS/S2 Grill has surprisingly been a reliable go to kitchen appliance. With the exception of the problems areas that I mentioned earlier, this grill has been a workhorse for us. I'd recommend it to anyone that feels the need to grill.
Customer Review: I love this GRILL ~ Great for Korean BBQ
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this grill because I wanted to make Korean Barbeque, like the style they do at Gaya. In korean restaurants, which are plentiful near me but also very expensive, they have these grills at your table, where you can put your raw meat and have it charred in front of you. There's nothing quite like the taste of crispy grilled meat.
I've had my Sanyo grill for a little over a year now. Since then, I have used it quite regularly and it is still going on strong. I take my grill out every month. I use it to make korean barbeque and also burgers, on occasion. The grill comes with an instruction manual that outlines the basic cooking temperature and times you want to target before cooking. I found the manual that came with it to be easy to read, as it gave a chart format for all the info you needed. The cooking times tend to be a little high. You have to watch your food and adjust as you see fit, from experience.
The grill works indoors because you put a tray underneath it that is filled with water. Before you use the grill, you need to pre-heat it, like all electric appliances. It takes a while to warm up depending on what final temperature you want to use it at. I would give it about 20 minutes to warm up. You want to make sure the temperature is consistent throughout the cooking surface. At some point, probably before it gets too hot, you want to lightly oil the grill surface. Some people use cooking spray, but I find it dangerous to put an aerosol can near high heat. I just use a paper towel that is coated in some olive oil and wipe the grill surface. The grill surface tends to hold the oil anyways.
Some small amount of steam will come out of the food you put on the grill. I have never had the fire alarm in my house go off because of cooking on this. The smoke seems to be minimal, in my opinion, all factors considered. The only thing I would be careful about is the fact that the oil that you use to coat the grill can splash back, in the form of tiny droplets. I would make sure whereever you set this grill is not close to anything that is bad to get oil on, otherwise you might ruin whatever is nearby.
Food tastes great if properly prepared on this grill! I love it! It's super easy to use, very intuitive, and cleans easily.
In my opinion, this is much better and safer than having a regular grill with charcoal.
Customer Review: Love this grill!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been using the Sanyo-SG2 grill for over a year and using it a lot. You can cook great tasting pork chops, steaks, hamburgers, and chicken once you get used to it. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes grilled food but can't use or hates messing with outdoor grills. The food doesn't have the smoke taste of an outdoor grill but that is to be expected. At the same time, in my opinion, it grills meats much better than a Foreman grill, which tends to steam foods. (I love my Foreman grill, also. A good idea is to have one of each.)
I have had no major problems using the grill. It cleans easily if you wipe the grill down while it is still warm and then wash all parts (except the cord, of course) in the sink. I have a small kitchen sink and have no problems cleaning the grill even though the parts don't fit all the way in. One thing I should mention is that the paint on the drip tray is coming off and the tray is rusting a wee bit and so that may have to be replaced sometime in the future, but that is a minor quibble seeing all of the use I'm getting out of the grill. Oh, and it is not entirely smokeless but the smoke I get is little.
A quick tip: What I do when grilling meats, let's say, pork chops, is to season the chops well, make sure the grill is oiled and hot, and then grill the chops on high heat on both sides to get nice line marks on the meat surface (make sure you have put water in the drip tray). This doesn't take long so watch that you don't over cook. I then turn the temperature down to medium (maybe 300 degrees)and cover the meat with a cover to an old electric skillet. (Any lid will do. It doesn't have to be a perfect fit. Only large enough to cover the meat.) Cook the chops until done which takes only a few more minutes. Using a lid this way helps a lot. Give it a try.
This is a great grill for a great price. I highly recommend it for anyone who likes grilled food.
Customer Review: Awesome indoor grill!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've used this several times already within a month of getting it, mostly for Korean style BBQ. Each time it's turned out GREAT! I also cooked up some tri-tip on it the other night and it came out nice and juicy.
The downsides are that thinly sliced meat can fall through fairly easil and also, the grill can be a bit tedious to clean. But I'd imagine, compared to most other grills out there, this is probably still easier to clean (i.e. than a George Foreman grill). That aside, the benefits of this grill far outweigh those menial downsides.
Be careful removing the water tray and make sure you let the thing cool off after you're done cooking. It's really fun to cook on though. I set mine up on a table right by the window with a window fan exhausting air and another Vornado fan pushing air towards the exhaust/window. It works well but my place still does smell for a couple days after. I imagine this would work pretty well outside where there's an outlet or extension cord. One of the best buys I've ever made! Get one!!!
UPDATE: The paint/coating on the drip pan started peeling off and the pan is now rusting out. We've been covering with foil every time. I contact Sanyo customer support even though the grill was a month or two outside of the warranty period and the representative was very helpful and was going to have a new replacement pan sent out. It took a while but he got back and said they were having trouble locating that particular part. About a week later I got a package at my doorstep and it was a brand new grill!!! I couldn't believe it... I emailed the representative about this asking if they meant to do that and he suggested that they probably just sent out a new one to avoid hassling with finding a replacement pan. 5+ stars for Sanyo customer service! We'll probably keep using the grill we have been using - not sure what to do with the extra one!
Customer Review: better grill than its big 200 square inch brother
Summary: 5 Stars
I have the larger Sanyo electric grill and it is great, just a little too big for my kitchen counter. (it is out in my RV, working great) But this baby is just right for my kitchen.
It has a little less wattage than the bigger model but actually seems to heat up a little faster. I like the design of the grilling surface better than the design of the bigger unit (deeper grooves, and a good lip around the edge). I like the water tray that is black instead of aluminum in color, and it is easier to remove and pour the little amount of water out (1/2 cup of water is used to keep the smoke down).
My cooking routine is to set it up, pour a 1/2 cup water into the tray, spray a little canola oil on the grill, turn the control up to high to pre-heat for about 3 minutes, then slap the seasoned steak, burger, chicken, ribs, etc. on the grill. I sear in some good grill marks on each side, then turn the heat down to medium and finish cooking at a slower pace, depending upon thickness of the piece being cooked. My first try was a T-Bone steak, and it was great!
After the food is done, I turn the heat control off. For cleanup, I place a couple of dripping wet paper towels on the grill surface, turn the heat control back to high for a minute or so. When the steam starts rising of the wet towels, I shut of the power, and just wipe down the grill with those same paper towels, then dry, it cleans very easily.
Nothing is quite like the burning and flames of a good charcole fire, but indoors or out, this cooks very, very well, with bare minumum of effort.
I do recommend aluminum foil to cover the grill and the food to speed pre-heating and to keep splatters down. I think I may get some disposable shallow metal foil trays that match the grill size, to use as lids, they look like they should work well.