You Can Grill Fourteen Hot Dogs at Once (But Can You Eat them All?)

The George Foreman GR44TMR Indoor Grill is not just the largest George Foreman grill around, it's the largest indoor grill I've ever seen. It's so large it has two separate sections with individual controls. Each side has its own timer (in minutes only) and its own on/off switch. Despite this, it's really just a single large grill surface.

The two sides together are large enough to fit 14 hot dogs right next to each other in the grain of the grill (so they fit between ridges; hot dogs tend to roll if oriented in the other direction). Alternately, it can fit five hamburger patties if you overlap the two grill sections with one of them, but otherwise fits four. I've never used this grill for anything other than hamburgers or hot dogs, but it should fit a reasonably sized flank steak or other flat grill items. Because it closes and has grilling surfaces on both sides, I wouldn't try more rounded or three dimensional foods like chicken pieces (skinless breasts should work without problems) or corn on the cob.

Food on this grill cooks quickly. I've made well done hamburgers in 7-9 minutes and well done hot dogs in 6-8 minutes. The hot dogs seem to retain more moisture than with other cooking methods and have a very different texture. They're also very smoky. They're better than microwaved hot dogs, but I definitely prefer hot dogs cooked on a real grill or in a broiler. Hamburgers cooked on this George Foreman grill also taste a bit smoky but it's not as noticeable as it is with hot dogs. The taste of the hamburgers seem to get better the more well done they are; I think perhaps the smokiness comes from an initial sear of some sort and starts to fade off over time.

One major disappointment with this grill is that it doesn't leave grill marks on food even though the grill itself has ridges that should produce such marks. Even when the grill is closed tightly you don't get anything. That's a big part of the grilling experience for me and it doesn't feel like I'm really eating grilled food without them.

This grill comes with two drain trays to collect fats and oils cooked out of the food. They're not connected to the grill in any way and have an ovular shape that makes them difficult to line up to the edges of the grill well enough to catch all of the grease falling off the surface. Every time I've used this grill I've wound up with a bit of a mess on the counters near the drain trays. Part of the problem is that this grill really does squeeze out most of the fat; I was amazed at the amount of drippings that fell out of the grill when using 90% lean hamburger patties. It seemed like the volume of grease was greater than the volume of the hamburgers themselves.

As might be expected from food that's draining so much fat, hamburgers also leave a fair bit of greasy residue on the grill itself. They wipe off fairly easily once the grill cools off and, in general, this grill is very easy to clean just with a bit of towel paper. The grill does come with a scraper, but it's not necessary most of the time.

If you like to grill and live in areas where weather makes that difficult much of the year, this is a decent indoor alternative, but it's not going to give you a real grill experience. On the other hand, food cooks quickly in this grill and it definitely drains out a lot of fat and thus produces healthier food than just using a skillet. You can make large portions of hot dogs at once - enough to feed four people with leftovers - or make hamburgers for two in mere minutes. I've never tried to make chicken breasts or steak, but I imagine it would do well with them as well. It also has a very easy cleanup, usually requiring just a quick swipe once cooled. That alone makes the George Foreman grill appealing on a busy day when even one extra task might seem overwhelming. If you want a quick cooking method that drains excess fat out of meat, give this grill a try.