5 Top-Rated Recipes for Indoor Grilling

Indoor grilling can be a great substitute for the real, smoky thing — the key is just knowing when to stay in and when to step out. Steaks, chops, fish fillets and thin cuts of meat are ideal for cooking on a stovetop grill pan or indoor electric grill. Larger cuts and whole poultry taste best when grilled on an outdoor barbecue, where you can use indirect, ambient heat to cook the food evenly.

And the flavor difference? Our Test Kitchen cook Sandra Wu offers her two cents: “You can get grill marks pretty nicely on an indoor grill, but you won’t get the smoky flavor. If you wanted the smoky flavor you could use a smoking gun after cooking the food, or smoked sea salt.”

Heat up your indoor grill to try one of the recipes below. Each is designed for the quick searing described above, and they have all earned an excellent rating from our customers.

Grilled Chicken with Ancho Barbecue Sauce Ancho chilies lend a balance of heat and sweetness to this dish, which is perfect for a classic summer supper — inside or out.

Lime-White Pepper Scallops with Bell Pepper Sauce A sauce made from roasted red bell peppers lends color and flavor to these grilled scallops. The scallops cook in just a few minutes, making this dish ideal for a quick meal.

Pork Saltimbocca Traditional saltimbocca is typically made with veal in Italy, but boneless pork chops are easier to find and just as delicious. These are wrapped in prosciutto before grilling for even more savory flavor and a crispy texture.

Lemongrass Shrimp Skewers Serve these spicy shrimp skewers with peanut sauce, a favorite accompaniment to satay seafood and meats that have been skewered and grilled. Be sure to spray the grill with nonstick cooking spray for easy removal.

Bone-In Rib-Eye Steaks These steaks are prepared simply to showcase their natural beefy flavor. The recipe calls for cooking them in a grill pan, but you can also try using an electric grill — just keep an eye out, as you may need to adjust the cooking time.