Checklist

What's a health grill?

Health grills are marketed as a healthier way to cook. Their sloping non-stick cooking surfaces drain away fat - and little or no oil is needed.

With many foods, you can achieve the same results using a ridged grill-pan on the stove, a barbecue, or your oven grill. But health grills take only 3-5 minutes to heat up; and they save time by cooking both sides at once.

Health grills don't produce the smoky flavour you get when you cook with flames on an outdoor barbecue. But the ribbed surfaces give food a chargrilled look, so if you don't have room for an outdoor barbie one of these could be the next best thing.

What to look for

If you're considering buying a health grill, here's what to look for:

Size

Size is important. How much food needs to be grilled at any one time? And how big is your kitchen bench? (The bigger models take up a lot of room.)

Temperature

Adjustable temperature lets you adjust the cooking temperature to suit what you're cooking. For example, the temperature can be set higher for searing meat and lower for toasting sandwiches.

Drip trays

Removable drip trays that click into the machine are better than separate ones (they won't get knocked over).

Grill-plates

Removable grill-plates make for easier cleaning.

Grilling height

Adjustable grilling height locks the top plate a fixed height above the bottom plate. That means you can control the pressure on delicate foods, preventing them from getting squashed. And you can toast open sandwiches - including melting cheese - without the top plate touching the food.

Adjustable bottom plate

Allows the bottom plate to be adjusted so that it sits flat or sloped.

Storage space

Vertical storage takes up less space in the cupboard or on the bench.