How to Choose a BBQ Grill for Homesteading and Emergencies

Disclaimer: I received the Yumms BBQ Mat for free or at a reduced price in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

Choosing a BBQ grill is about more than summer cookouts. For a homesteader, an outdoor grill can help with everyday meals, preserving harvest-season sanity by moving cooking outside, handling large cuts of meat, and keeping heat out of the kitchen. For a prepper, it can also provide a practical backup cooking method during a power outage or other emergency.

That does not mean everyone needs the biggest grill on the patio. The right choice depends on how you actually plan to cook, what fuel you can store safely, how many people you feed, how much space you have, and whether portability matters.

I also think about cleanup and food separation more than I used to. A removable grill mat or similar cooking surface can make cleanup easier and can help keep foods separated on a shared grill, but it should always be used within the manufacturer's temperature and placement instructions. I have a separate long-term article about using grill mats for easier cleanup and outdoor cooking.

When it comes to outdoor entertaining, or just enjoying a hot summer's day, the barbeque is an important part of the whole experience. Whether you're looking for portable and disposable models, or a stainless steal, state-of-the-art appliance with all of the latest gadgets, there is plenty of styles and colors to choose from. Remember, it isn't just your cooking skills that will dictate the success of your barbequed meals, but also choosing the proper barbecue grill and grill mats to cater to your outdoor cooking needs. After all, little is more wasteful than paying good money for added features that you'll never use, or having to try to make dinner for fifteen people on a grill that is just too small. Therefore, before heading out to the barbeque store, or even before shopping online, you will need to consider the different elements that should dictate your final BBQ grill purchase decision.

In This Article

Questions to Ask Before You Buy a BBQ Grill

Before choosing a grill, I would answer a few practical questions first:

How much do you actually want to spend? A basic grill that does the job well can be more useful than a feature-heavy model you never fully use.
How many people do you normally cook for? Think about everyday meals as well as holidays, processing days, family gatherings, or events.
How much outdoor space do you have? You need room not only for the grill, but also safe clearance around it and a place to work.
Where will you store it? Winter weather, rain, wind, and rust matter when a grill lives outdoors year after year.
What fuel can you realistically keep on hand? Propane, charcoal, pellets, and wood all have different storage requirements and different advantages.
Do you want the grill to serve as emergency cooking equipment? If so, fuel availability, simplicity, portability, and the ability to use it without household electricity become much more important.
Will you ever need to move it? A grill that stays on a patio can be large and heavy. A grill intended for camping, evacuation, tailgating, or emergency use needs to be much easier to transport.

Once you have these answers figured out, you'll be able to start thinking about the different types of grill that are available to choose from.

Portable Grills for Homesteaders and Preppers

A small portable grill can be useful even if you already own a full-size grill. It gives you another way to cook away from the house, at a campsite, during a power outage, or anywhere you need a compact outdoor cooking setup.

For emergency preparedness, I would rather have a sturdy portable charcoal or propane grill that I know how to use than depend on a disposable grill as my only backup. Disposable grills can be convenient for occasional use, but a reusable portable grill is generally more versatile if you expect to cook more than one meal.

Portability also matters if you may need to move cooking equipment quickly. Look at the weight, folded dimensions, handles, stability, fuel requirements, and how easy the grill is to clean once it cools.

Important: charcoal, propane, and other fuel-burning grills must be used outdoors in a properly ventilated area and away from combustible materials. Never move a grill into a house, garage, barn, tent, enclosed porch, or other enclosed space just because the power is out or the weather is bad.

Charcoal and gas barbeques come in many different shapes and sizes and are frequently collapsible for easy storage. Some are on casters, and while others require around 5 feet of patio space, others need less than half of that. Though some have side burners, rotisseries, griddles, hot plates, and other food warming gadgets, it's important to consider the basics first and build from there.

First, check out the cooking space. Will the space be large enough to handle what you'll be cooking? Next, have a look at the size of the entire barbeque. Remember that you'll need to have enough room for it, for yourself to work around it, as well as tables for holding your accessories, marinades, sauces, uncooked food, and naturally, for the people who will be eating your masterpieces. Remember that you'll also need enough space in your garage or shed to store the barbecue grill and accessories during the winter.

Your barbeque grill should be tough enough to handle the outdoor weather elements, as well as the wear and tear that you'll inflict upon it. This means sturdy construction, metal work, and corrosion resistant paint and fittings. A cover is often very beneficial to keep out rain, so you might consider that a good investment.

Think About Fuel Before You Think About Extras

Fuel choice is one of the biggest differences between grills. Gas grills are convenient and quick to control. Charcoal grills are simple, widely understood, and can be useful when you want a grill that does not depend on electricity. Pellet grills can be very convenient for smoking and temperature control, but many rely on electricity to run their auger and controls, which matters if emergency cooking is part of your plan.

For a prepper, the best grill is not necessarily the most elaborate one. It is the one you can safely fuel and operate when normal household cooking is unavailable. If you store propane, charcoal, pellets, or firewood, follow appropriate storage practices and rotate supplies rather than assuming fuel will still be usable years later.

For a homesteader, fuel may also tie into what you already have available. If you routinely cook outdoors, smoke meat, host events, or want to keep summer heat out of the house, your priorities may be very different from someone who grills hamburgers a few times a year.

Cleaning and Fire Safety Matter Too

Look at how easy the grill is to light, shut down, clean, empty, and maintain. Grease buildup, ash, clogged burners, damaged hoses, and worn parts can all turn a simple meal into a problem. Whatever style you choose, learn how that specific grill is supposed to be operated before you need it in an emergency. To help with ease of cleaning, I recommend the Yumms BBQ Grill Mats. They are tough. While trying it out for the first time, we had a bit of an accident - and I thought for sure the Yumms grill mats were toast - quite literally. We were BBQ'ing pork ribs. They were still slightly frozen but my husband was getting in a hurry so he put the grill mat on the grill thinking the flames from the coals were gone. He then put the ribs on the grill mats, put the lid on the grill and walked away. When we went back to check on the food we noticed a huge pile of liquid in the center of the Yumms BBQ Grill Mats and the ribs were getting slightly too dark on the bottom. I told him to remove the ribs and let them thaw a bit more before we ended up with food cooked on the outside and not the inside. I got him a plate and he removed the ribs. What happened next almost cost us our home. As I was walking away with the ribs he decided to remove the Yumms Grill Mat from the grill grate because it now had a large flame burning on top of it. When he picked up the mat using tongs, the flames leapt into the air right towards the house. I had put the grill on the deck for connivence and there was wood all around that the flames were licking. I turned around and told him to get the lid on the grill quickly which he did. Once we knew the flames had died down we lifted the lid to see the grill mats in a folded up mess. I about cried. He picked the grill mat up using tongs - and this time there was no flame. He carefully used his silicone gloved hands to separate the grill mat where it had folded over on itself. He then brought the yumms bbq mat indoors and put it in the kitchen sink. He washed it with warm soap and water, then laid it flat to dry. There are a few rough spots and one area where it started to unravel at the edge but otherwise it is still useable. All of the burned on mess came off easily - and I am super happy with these mats.

For those who don't believe or want to see with their own eyes, here is a video for you.

The Best BBQ Grill Is the One That Fits More Than One Need

For me, a grill earns more value when it can do more than handle a summer cookout. A homesteader may use it for everyday meals, large cuts of meat, garden vegetables, food-preservation days, or gatherings. A prepper may look at the same grill as backup cooking equipment when the power is out.

That is why I would choose function before appearance. Make sure you can fuel it, store it, clean it, move it if necessary, and safely cook the amount of food your household actually needs. Then worry about color and how it looks beside the house.

If emergency use matters to you, practice with the grill before you need it. Know how much fuel a normal meal uses, keep the necessary tools together, and remember that every fuel-burning grill belongs outdoors with plenty of ventilation and safe clearance from the house, deck railings, dry grass, and other combustible materials.

A simple grill that you know how to use can be far more valuable than an elaborate outdoor kitchen you cannot operate during an outage.