apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

The Foreman grill was the workhorse of my last apartment.

I've cooked many a steak, salmon fillet, burger and chicken breast on it. It was a makeshift toaster as well.

It's basically a simple panini machine.

i have grilled many a vegetable, veggie burger and sliced bread on it. i couldn't live without it.

when I lived in a hotel for a few months after an apartment fire the Foreman sustained me. I love it.

I love my George Foreman--in fact, I'm on my third. In addition to the meat everyone's already mentioned, I love grilling lightly seasoned eggplant slices on it.

Okay, for those of us without one, please explain why it's worth taking more space in my tiny house for one. What does it do that a good ole frying pan can't?

I know it's not really relevant but that kitchen looks so grimy!

it seems like an unnecessary gadget to me. why wouldn't a skillet or grill pan work just as well? (although, I do see the relevance for a dorm room or hotel)

We also love ours for grilled sandwiches; be it a fancy panini or a gooey pb, banana and honey. We also use it for chicken breasts and salmon burgers. It doens't get a TON of use but we definitely utilize it-I'd say once/week.

Yeah - I have one in storage - I'm just not a fan. I find it a pain to clean, and it consistently dries my food out. Or dried, rather.

I've never commented here before, and this prompted me to because - wow, that's a disgusting photo. A rotten towel under a fat-encrusted George Foreman grill in a grime-spattered kitchen? Are you trying to make me lose my lunch?

Again, late to the party, but still relevant: Guys, when you're taking photos for use on the internets, have a care and clean up a little, would ya?

We use ours almost daily for chicken, thin steaks, sandwiches, and veggies. For all the people that are asking why not use a skillet or grill pan, I use the Foreman because its nonstick and I cook more at one time. I frequently will use it to cook chicken breasts for dinner and then make extra for lunch the next day,

yes. this picture is pretty gross

Agreed. Never commented before, but HAD to log in and comment on the dirty, dirty kitchen.

Yike, I actually liked the used-looking kitchen. I found it a refreshing change from the unrealistically clean shots we so often see.

We have a MONSTER sized George and love it. You can cook a ton of chicken breasts, for example, at once without having to work in batches or taking up any room on your stove. And with the timer on the big model, and no need to flip, you can work on other things without having to worry about overcooking.

We have a Cuisinart Griddler, which is the same concept, and we love it. You can use grill/pannini plates or swap them out for griddle plates, it has a floating hinge for big items and can open flat for use as a flat grill/griddle, which is perfect for making everyone's pancakes at the same time. I didn't want one but my husband talked me into it when we were registering for our wedding. I'm glad I let him win that time!

I had a large one with removable grilling plates for easy clean-up and it also had a temperature control (unlike the earlier models that are "plug-and-play" as far as temp goes). It was great when I was single, and I was lucky enough to have a spot where I could leave it out all the time. One of my favorite things to make on it: grilled, thick-sliced, sourdough French toast. Yum!

I use my Foreman twice a day. Steak and grilled cheese sandwiches.

Thanks for the tip on putting the towel/rag under the Foreman . . . it will help with the clean up.

How did that photo make it to the front page on The Kitchn?!

that kitchen is ferral !!!!!

And I thought I was going to be a big downer clicking through to comment on the photo. I am by no means a germ-phobe, but that is truly unappetizing.

We bought a DeLonghi panini press that we used for a while. Since the new kitchen (plus new yard and real grill), it hasn't really made it's way out of the basket where I keep it. But I'd love to have it out, especially for grilling veggies and sandwiches.

I had to check. The Flickr photostream caption:

"Cousin Ricky's apartment — in need of a little TLC. TLC which someone else can give. "

C'mon guys, there had to be a better pic of a Foreman grill around.

I have a tiny knock-off version that's the perfect size for two burgers. It's the best thing I've found for veggie burgers because I like them a little crispy. And it's small enough that I can just put it away in the cabinet when I'm finished.

I love my George Forman Grill - in fact I just used it tonight with pork chops. It cooks a lot faster than trying to fry on the stovetop, and you don't need any oil.

in my first apartment at 18, my roommate and i found a george foreman at the goodwill outlet that worked perfectly and wasn't broken in the least - we paid a dollar for it! don't worry, we cloroxed and dish soaped the crap out of it before we used it, but we became so dependent on it that when i switched colleges we had to get our own! another goodwill trip later and we have almost the exact same candy-colored foremans that we both use all the time. in a tiny 500-sq ft university apartment i don't really have room for much more than my french press and my hot water kettle, but this baby definitely has his spot.

This picture reminds me of my first roommate. He had a Foreman grill and used it almost daily. Sadly, he would never clean out the little tray that collects grease. It was awful!

For this very reason it was a couple years before I could stomach buying one of my own. I finally gave in and I couldn't live without it! I find making (boneless) pork chops a lot easier with my grill than on the stove top. I also love to grill red peppers on it. Yum! My only complaint is that sometimes it cooks the seasoning right off of the meat.

Hi, all - Just wanted to pop in and say thanks for the feedback on the photo for this post. It does come from Flickr, and in my defense, it was late and I was having a hard time coming up with a good shot (even in my own kitchen)! We try our best to come up with good photos for you to enjoy, but sometimes...we miss the mark a bit.

we got our big one as a wedding present. i love that i can take out the plates and wash them. this posts reminds me that i should use it more.

I rarely use mine...but one of my friends said he used to fry eggs on it...WOW. now that's creative!

Oh wow, I'm so glad that photo came from Flicker and not from the writer's kitchen...I was thinking I should never come here again and I do love it here!

I use my GFG only for making burgers - but even at that, I'm not good with the timing on the darn thing. Maybe it's not me, maybe it's because it's an old one?

Wow -- I'm certainly in the minority of not being a Foreman fan. I had one in college, which seemed appropriate there, but I got rid of it as soon as I had my own apartment. It doesn't get hot enough for a good sear, so it just dries food out. I also remember it being really hard to clean.

In support of EmmaC: that's a realistic in-the-trenches photo of a Foreman Grill in action... Why is everyone complaining? Don't you guys cook? It's messy!

We live in Germany and received one as (I think) a gag gift (230V). Gag or not, it is quite useful. It is nothing more than a ribbed electric grill mounted at an angle (for fat reducin') with an articulated top. Ours has a timer and temperature control.

I don't use it very often, but despite its chintzy name association, it can be a real help when four burners are not enough.

k

I like the GF grill as well. I live in an apartment and we can't grill. So it's as close to a "grill" as I can get. And I'm SO SO glad this isn't the writer's kitchen. I dunno why, it's not really my concern, but I was so grossed out by the dirtiness of the kitchen. Sure, cooking is messy, but before you take a photo of something, clean up around it, please. Then again, I'm a bit of a neat freak...

We used to have a George Foreman Grill until it crapped out on us. I liked it best for splatter free bacon but it our was large and it was hard to find space for it.. Now that its gone I dont miss it that much at all.

I found it dried out chicken breasts too:(

I would however love a Cuisinart Griddler for Paninis and it looks smaller and more competent too

The George Foreman Grill (and not just the one in that photo) grosses me out. I hate the way meat smells when it's cooking, I hate the accumulation of grease, and I hate the clean up. I will take the extra time to bake or grill (on a real grill) any day.

Agreed re photo.

I use my GF grill all the time now. Make sure that if you cook chicken or salmon you use some oil when you marinate. It makes a world of difference. I always marinate my chicken breasts in sesame, peanut, or olive oil along with garlic, fresh herbs, fresh ground sale and black/green pepper. The oild makes all the difference--moist, incredible!

On cleanup--if you clean immediately it's really not a problem. Unplug and after scraping off bits of food place two or three wet paper towels in the grill and close the top. Once you remove them after 30 sec to 1 minute it's really quite easy to clean.

I love the GFG. I only have a tiny one I inherited from my grandparents and it doesn't have the removable plates (for easy cleaning) but its wonderful. I like how if I'm rushed I can take completely frozen piece of chicken and if you put in on the GFG when you first plug it in and it'll thaw your chicken (while its heating up) and it will make it perfectly cooked and juicy.