The Differences Between Charcoal Grill and Gas Oven

Advantages of charcoal grills:

Charcoal grills can reach meat surface temperatures of up to 482 degrees Celsius, much hotter than a standard gas grill without an infrared burner. Utilizing such high temperatures, steaks and lamb chops transform the skin into our favorite crispy crust while maintaining the red and pink colors on the inside of the meat.

Another major benefit of charcoal grilling is smoke, an interesting byproduct of burning. The smoke produced by charcoal contains a variety of flavor molecules, especially when initially lit. Gaseous fuels are just simple molecules (CH4 is natural gas, C3H8 is liquid propane). When they burn completely, there is only water and carbon dioxide and no taste. In order for a gas oven to produce smoke, wood must be added.

When food fats and juices drip onto burning charcoal, large amounts of smoke are produced. If the exposure time is short, smoke will not significantly change the flavor of fast-cooking foods such as hot dogs, beef burgers, or even lean steaks. The smoky flavor is clearly felt in the thick cuts of steak and chicken. There will be a noticeable difference in flavor if you use a grill for long, low-temperature smoking. The smell of gas stove smoke is dull.

Advantages of gas ovens:

Gas ovens are more convenient and easier to control, and are easy to start and can heat up in 10 to 15 minutes. It’s easy to maintain a stable temperature and heat or cool. A dual zone grill can be easily set up with 2 or more burners. Temperature control is crucial to a good grill, and it’s easy to achieve on a gas grill. Gas ovens are also easier to clean and are usually allowed on balconies.

What does a gas oven taste like? Surprisingly, about 90% of the best barbecue restaurants in the world use gas to heat the stove and then use wood to enhance the flavor. At a similar rate, the world’s most expensive steakhouses use natural gas to grill their prime steaks.

Barbeque restaurants choose gas grills for the same reasons they choose home grills: convenience and control. Steakhouses use gas grills because they require a dark surface that can be heated from above and below with specialized heaters that can achieve exceptionally high heat, reaching temperatures between 426.7 and 648.8 degrees Celsius.

Unfortunately, regular patio gas ovens don’t produce that much heat. Using specialized burners, a small portion of food may reach 482 degrees Celsius. But most gas ovens have temperatures between 232.2 and 260. If you’re buying a new oven, I highly recommend getting a dedicated burner, especially if you grill steaks a lot.
While gas ovens are slightly better at maintaining a constant temperature, they’re not perfect. The medium on the controller might be 148.8 degrees Celsius on a hot day, 135 degrees Celsius on a 21-degree day, or even 107 degrees Celsius on a cool, windy, or rainy day. But if you’re familiar with your grill, controlling the temperature is easy.