Men can be really hard to shop for sometimes, especially as they get older. Whenever I ask Jason what he wants as a gift, he replies “I don’t know.” Seriously? So, I decided to put together some of the best gift ideas related to our hobby, grilling on the Big Green Egg. This is a gift guide for the griller in your life.
How do I know these are good gifts? We bought them for ourselves and use them almost every week. These ideas are those simple splurges that made a big difference in our grilling adventure. Help your griller with one of these super-fun and useful gifts! The following are Jason’s recommendations.
GrillGrate System
The GrillGrate is one of the coolest grill accessories I own. Hands Down! It is a hard anodized aluminum grating that rests on top of your grill’s existing grate. That sounds silly, but hear me out. My food takes a bit less time to cook, and the presentation of it is out-of-this-world! I think the sharp, defined sear marks makes such a huge difference both in looks and taste.
Benefit
The GrillGrate has fins that become superheated when the grill is on, and they will leave perfect sear-marks on your food. I find it also seals the skin of whatever you are grilling which keeps the food nice and juicy. I have not had any dried-out meats when I used this.
In addition to the fins, the valleys collect most of the drippings and prevent them from falling into the flame. That minimizes the chance of flare-ups which can result in a burned meal. No one likes to have burnt dinners!
I have seen some people replace their existing grating system with GrillGrates. That requires some careful measurement, but it is probably worth it, given how great they are took cook with.
Drawback
I only found two drawbacks to the GrillGrate, and both of them can be easily managed.
First, the wider metal fins can cause your food to stick a little bit. I sprayed them with olive oil which helped a lot until they became seasoned. Also, I let the grill heat up a bit longer for the fins to come up to the full temperature. The full temperature allowed the sear marks to develop faster, which almost eliminated the sticking problem.
Another drawback was cleaning. When I first grilled with this, I let it completely cool off before attempting to hand wash it. Not good. The next time I grilled, I used the GrillGrate tool to gently push the drippings off of the grating while it was still hot and liquid. This little trick saved me a lot of time in cleaning up later. Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a big difference!
Lastly, I love to grill with a cast iron skillet. Unfortunately, the fins of the GrillGrate get too hot and can actually damage the cast iron. If you plan on grilling several recipes in a day, make sure you plan the order accordingly to minimize the need to handle the hot GrillGrates too many times.
Learn More about GrillGrate
Click here for my full review of the GrillGrate. The GrillGrate website is also a great resource.
I also used the GrillGrate when cooking delicious fall treats, like the Grilled Honey Acorn Squash – so so good!
SmokeWare Chimney Cap
I live in an area where snow and ice can impact my grilling. I have had my Big Green Egg freeze shut before and spent a long time trying to defrost it. I hate to even think what my neighbors must have thought about my antics that day. More commonly, my adjustable slide draft top damper cap vent (that came with the purchase of the Big Green Egg) would freeze in place. I solved these issues with the SmokeWare Chimney Cap, and it is one of the best gifts to give the griller in your life.
This stainless steel accessory mounts on the lid of the BGE and is held in place with a high temperature chimney felt and installs lickety-split. The two-piece system spins sideways to adjust airflow and precisely adjusts the temperature of the grill.
Benefit
Because the top of the vent has a nice, wide overhang, it will not be impacted by freezing rain or snow, and I have never had it freeze shut. Woohoo! The stainless steel also slides much easier than the cast iron cap, and doesn’t get bogged down as much with grease.
I used to have to let my grill warm up a little to heat the cast iron cap to loosen the grease. That was a pain!
Because the vents of the SmokeWare Chimney Cap open to the sides, you don’t need to worry about snow or rain impacting your grilling. Not as though a little bad weather would slow down my grill-a-thons!
Drawback
The rubber on the tab that moves the venting system is wearing out after two years of heavy use. I grill most weekends, year-round, and the rubber is cracking and starting to peel away. It doesn’t impact the functionality of the cap at all.
The cap can also be a bit challenging to clean. I have only had to clean it once in the entire time I have used it. I tried to remove some of the dried grease and smoke residue where the top and bottom components met, and it was a bit of a challenge. Even with hot, soapy water, it took a bit of elbow grease.
Learn More about the SmokeWare Chimney Cap
The Smokeware website is a great resource, and you can purchase them easily through Amazon. This makes an excellent gift for your grilling fanatic!
Big Green Egg Grill Light
Real men don’t let little things like darkness get in the way of grilling, right? For my longer grilled endeavors, like Grilling a Pork Butt, I start the process early in the morning when it is dark. It probably isn’t the best idea to be working with a hot grill in the dark, so having a nice lighting system is a good safety feature. This Grill Light attachment mounts on existing bolts and is positioned perfectly to illuminate the grilling surface.
Benefit
The light connects very easily, so you don’t have to keep it stored outside, exposed to the elements. I keep it in my grilling drawer in the kitchen and carry it out with me when it is time to work on the grill in the dark.
Drawback
I really can’t think of a drawback. This is reasonably priced, easy to use, and serves its purpose perfectly.
Learn More about Grill Lighting
This gift is a no-brainer. It is very inexpensive and extremely useful. There are a lot of different options out there, from table mounted to wearables, but this is the light that always illuminates the surface area of the BGE and makes grilling a lot safer in the dark.
I had to use the grill lights when starting and finishing my pork shoulder on the Big Green Egg. Winter months make for shorter days and my longer grilling sessions begin and end in the dark.
Big Green Egg Temperature Gauge
After a couple of years exposed to the cold, wind, rain and snow, my temperature gauge’s seal broke and I had moisture inside the glass cover. It was time to get a replacement.
The stock gauge was easy to remove. After donning a pair of disposable gloves (the inside of the dome lid can be dirty), I pinched the metal clip-spring and the thermometer slid right out of the lid. It took all of about 30 seconds.
The new gauge is installed in exactly opposite order. Slide it in through the outside and pinch the clamp as you slide it over temperature sensor.
I chose the Tel-Tru Large Dial Temperature Gauge as the replacement, mainly because the face of the gauge was a full 3” across. That was a lot bigger than the original face. Heck, my eyesight is definitely not as good as it used to be, so the larger gauge face helps a lot!
Benefit
The larger face is the biggest benefit. Have I said that before? I’ll say it again – the bigger face is much easier to see. I can’t believe how many times I used to have to tip my glasses in order to read the temperature. With the larger face, reading it is much easier.
The removal of the old Big Green Egg temperature gauge and replacing it with the larger face could not have been easier. There are instructions, but I doubt you’ll need them. It is important to note that this gauge works with all sizes of the BGE. This is one of the few Big Green Egg accessories that does not change with the size of the grill.
Drawback
The only drawback I can think of is that this temperature gauge is about $10 more than the smaller one. Given that my previous gauge lasted a couple of years, the cost difference is very minor.
Learn More about Large Dial Temperature Gauge
The best place I have found for this gift is your local BGE dealer (and it gives you the opportunity to look at the other Big Green Egg accessories in the shop).
Tel-Tru’s website is great, but the largest face available for the Big Green Egg is 3”. Maybe if we ask enough, they will provide a 5” version? Dare to dream!
Grate Stacker by SmokeWare
I spend a lot of time grilling. A lot! My numerous attempts to convince my better half that I need the XXL Big Green Egg have failed. That beast will cook 35 burgers, 14 whole chickens, 18 steaks, 20 racks of ribs or (of course) a whole suckling pig. For a family of three, my arguments have fallen on deaf ears. My son is a teenage boy who can eat half of the refrigerator by himself, but it is probably time to give up on my quest.
The next best thing is to maximize the utility of the existing space in the grill. Sometimes, my Large BGE just isn’t big enough for what I want, and I end up cooking meals in shifts. This can really extend out the day.
That is where the Grate Stacker comes in. This stainless steel swivel assembly bolts to the existing grilling grate, and comes with a smaller grate that bolts to the upper half of the swivel. When you want to use it, just slide the top half of the assembly into place, and you get a double decker grill area.
Benefits
You almost double the cooking area. That is huge, and will save you time. The fact that this two part swivel is removable is awesome. I have replaced my grating a couple of times over the years, and being able to unbolt this and attach it to a new grate is smart.
Drawbacks
It’s not the XXL BGE! But seriously, the only real drawback I see is that the bolt-on eats into your surface area a little bit. It is bolted at the edge of the grating, so it doesn’t impact too much real estate, but it does take some getting used to. It is still easy to remove the top grating for when you want to grill without it.
That nice flame-kissed meat definitely needs the lower grating. Reserve the top for vegetables or other recipes that don’t need that nice sear.
Learn More about the Grate Stacker by SmokeWare
I have another SmokeWare product listed above. This company just nails it! Definitely visit your local BBQ store to see if they have these in stock.
Top Gifts for Big Green Egg and Kamado Grillers
These gifts will definitely help your favorite griller dish up some delicious meals on the Big Green Egg. We all could use a bit more grilling in our lives, right? I have no doubt that these will be VERY well received! Please follow me on Pinterest to see how we use these tools every day.
Drop me a note to let me know how much your griller enjoyed these ideas and what other cool accessories you found!
