Why We Love the Lotus Grill BBQ

While being at a barbecue is universally understood as an easy-going experience, the actual set-up of a barbecue is... a bit less so. If you’re a seasoned barbecuer it doesn’t feel too fussy, but for beginners — or a barbecue expert looking for an easy-to-set-up grill to take on camping trips, impromptu picnics, beach holidays, and the like — the Lotus Grill barbecue is just the ticket. 

The Lotus Grill can be summed up in three words: efficient, user-friendly, and safe. This is a result of good design and smart engineering. In this blog post, we’ll show you how and why the Lotus Grill matches up to these three adjectives. But first…

It’s a lightweight, portable charcoal barbecue that takes just 4 minutes to light up, as opposed to the standard 10-15. It does this with the assistance of a battery-operated fan that blows air directly onto the charcoal and circulates that heat through the grill.

The Lotus Grill is available in two versions: the classic Lotus Grill charcoal-only barbecue, and the Lotus Grill Hybrid barbecue, which also includes functionality to grill with a gas flame. 

The Lotus Grill is efficient in two ways: time and resources. As mentioned above, it takes half the time to heat up as other charcoal grills. That’s because the fan promotes more oxygen flow onto the coals, causing the grill to heat up faster. Because the fan is circulating the heat, less charcoal needs to be used to heat up the grill – about 80% less charcoal than standard grills, in fact. A filled inner chamber of charcoal will last an hour of cooking, and a 1kg bag of charcoal will see you through 6 cookouts on a Lotus Grill. The charcoal sits in a closed inner chamber with holes that allow air to pass through. You can control how hot the coals get by controlling the fan’s speed via a simple dial. Less coal is also what makes the Lotus Grill more lightweight.

The Lotus Grill Hybrid takes even less time to heat up when using the gas flame setting: just 60 seconds. It's a great option for when you've run out of charcoal, or want to carry less when you're taking the Lotus along for a picnic or holiday. To use, swap the charcoal container for a burner container with an integrated gas pipe. Remove the outer silicone plug in the base, and attach the brass adapter that enables hookup to an EN 417 butane gas canister (not included). Then it's ready to go. Note that the dial will not regulate heat with the gas grill setting.

Both Lotus Grill barbecues come with four AA batteries and handled carry bags.

The dial only applies for the charcoal grill setting in the Lotus Grill Hybrid. 

Less charcoal means less mess, and the other major factor contributing to the Lotus Grill’s user-friendliness is the stainless steel inner bowl. In a standard grill, oil, herbs and other ingredients fall through the metal grid onto the charcoal, generating smoke. In the Lotus Grill, most of the oil, herbs and other ingredients fall into the inner stainless steel bowl. When you’re done cooking, you can empty the stainless steel bowl and clean it – it has the added benefit of being dishwasher-safe. However, the ingredients that do come into contact with the coal – due to the fan circulating them around – generate some smoke, especially ingredients that are high in fat, like sausages. This contact is minimal, but not absent; therefore the smoke is minimal but not absent.

The Lotus Grill’s fan is operated with AA batteries that are included with your purchase, and they can be replaced with any standard AA batteries when needed. Every purchase also includes a handled carry-bag, making transport of this lightweight machine even easier. The best charcoal to use in a Lotus Grill is natural hardwood briquettes, ideally beech.

When using a Lotus Grill, the chances of coming into contact with hot charcoal is rare. Due to its placement in a concealed inner chamber that’s surrounded by the metal bowl, the exterior stays cool even during cooking. You can even lift it up by the base when in use. (Please note that the metal parts stay hot and should not be touched.) The grill grid has a metal plate in the centre that covers the charcoal chamber and clips on either side that attach it to the base – another safety feature that keeps the coal hidden.