Guest blog by Greg.
Like me you may recall the adverts for the George Foreman Lean & Mean Grilling Machine grill. I had always had a vague feeling that it would be good to have one but had never got around to it. Discussing menu planning for the week, whilst also trying to stay healthy, my wife suggested that we have a healthy burgers for dinner one evening. It was then it hit me that we should cook them on a George Foreman grill.
The grill that I selected was the George Foreman 18471. It cooks up to four portions of food on non-stick, easy-clean griddle plates and was the ideal size for our family of 3 consisting of me, my wife and our daughter, aged 4.
Once the grill was unpacked I had a quick read through the instruction manual which confirmed my hopes that this would be a simple to use grill – even for me! I also noted that it would be more energy efficient than many conventional ovens or grills and as an added bonus can be used as a toastie and panini maker. Lunch tomorrow sorted too, I thought! I set the drip tray in front of the grill and powered up. The idea of the drip tray being there was to catch all the fat that the grill channelled out of the meat. There is an indicator light that shows when the food is ready to cook and I was ready to start a new culinary adventure! I had chosen some healthy burgers (made with 5% fat beef and simple seasoning). The burgers were pretty thick but thanks to the floating hinge it enabled the grill to close over them with ease.
In what seemed like no time at all, the food was cooked with a nice griddle effect and piping hot throughout. Judging by the amount of fat in the tray at the bottom of the grill there must have been almost nothing but goodness left in the meat! This was confirmed when I created the “Greg Special”. When the burgers were almost cooked, I added some sliced halloumi to the griddle and cooked alongside the burgers. Whilst they finished cooking, I mixed low fat, natural yoghurt with a little crushed garlic and then removed the burgers & halloumi from the grill. I then warmed the (wholemeal) burger buns on the George Foreman grill. As soon as I they had the lovely griddle marks on, I dropped a dollop of the mixture on the bottom half of each roll, topped with the burger and halloumi, followed by some crispy lettuce and some juicy tomatoes. I can honestly say that it was one of the best tasting burgers I have ever had – and that is a long, long list! The consensus from the three of us was that it was a great choice and has revolutionised the way that we grill our food. The “Greg Special” is certainly one recipe that we will be repeating many times in the future.
To start your own kitchen revolution (and to watch as fat literally runs off your food BEFORE you eat it) then the George Foreman grill is ideal. I used the 4 portion George Foreman grill which you can buy online or Click & Collect in store, in as little as one hour!* With the grill available in up to ten portion sizes, view the George Foreman range to find the perfect grill for you or chat to your local store and ask about a demo (”Greg Specials” not included!)
* – selected locations; terms apply
