Grilling

Grilling means broiling food with direct heat. In the United States, grilled food is usually cooked on a grill, gridiron or a metal plate with flame applied from below, fueled by wood, charcoal or gas. Outside USA, the term refers to cooking directly under a source of direct, dry heat. The grill or griller (also called a broiler) is usually a separate part of an oven where the food is inserted just under the element.

The door of a grill unit is normally left open during cooking to increase dryness. Until the advent of toasters, and toasted sandwich makers, grills were the main method for making toast and toasted sandwiches. The main disadvantage of using a grill for toasting, is that usually there is no cut-off mechanism or timer, and hence one can successfully set bread alight if the grill is left unattended.