16 Gifts For The Barbecue Lover In Your Life

Grilling outside may be a pivotal part of the summer season to many, but for others, barbecue is a year-round lifestyle. Cooking over an open flame and infusing smoke into food just results in one-of-a-kind flavors that are downright intoxicating. It's why those of us who are self-proclaimed grill masters don't care if it's snowing and freezing cold outside — nothing will stop us from indulging in the flavors of a good old fashioned cookout. 

The world of barbecue grilling is more high-tech than ever, meaning there are so many gadgets to amp up the experience whether you prefer a heavy-duty charcoal grill or an electric-powered smoker. It also means that if there's a barbecue lover in your life, it's relatively easy to figure out a good gift to give them this holiday season. 

If you need some help shopping, we've rounded up some of the best gifts for barbecue lovers on your shopping list. The options range from affordable stocking stuffers to all-out extravagant grills to really make someone feel special. Odds are, you'll find at least something to satisfy one of your gifting needs. 

Part of the fun of holiday shopping online is that most retailers offer their customers the ability to give reviews to let them know if the product met their expectations. Those types of reviews on Amazon, Home Depot, William Sonoma, and more are key in helping us decide what barbecue-related gifts to include on the list. Social media is a great tool for seeing products in action from real people to determine if there are any differences, good or bad, from the acutal product and its marketing material. 

We also want to offer a wide variety of gifts in the world of grilling. There are tools for grilling, books about barbecue, and even whole grills themselves. We also offer ideas like charcoal or wood pellets that make great add-on gifts for any barbecue lover and beyond. Because we are all about food too, there are also plenty of items geared toward foodies, from barbecue rubs and sauces to pieces of meat meant for gifting. Beware: the items you see ahead may cause you to open up your wallet with reckless abandon, and we take no responsibility in what happens after you click on a product. 

You can't go wrong with an all-encompassing grilling kit when it comes to holiday gifting. Cuisinart is not only just a trusted brand in the culinary space, but the brand also sells a barbecue kit with everything you could possibly need for outdoor cooking. The brand's 36-piece backyard BBQ tools set comes in a durable plastic carrying case for grilling on the go.

 The kit has the basic utensils like a grill spatula, tongs, and a two-pronged fork alongside a stainless steel grill scraper. It also has a basting brush with three attachments including two silicone brush heads and one mop brush head. There are also six skewers, 10 burger flags to differentiate rare to well-done, eight corn holders, and a bottle opener all made out of stainless steel. For protection, there is also a heat and water-resistant glove and a temperature magnet included. 

It's truly everything a new grill owner would need to get started, or replace worn-down equipment. "I feel that this set is perfect for anyone that is just starting out with their grill," one Walmart customer wrote in a review of the set. " It has items that you may not even think of if you were to buy each of the items separately." 

The Cuisinart Backyard BBQ tools set sells for $50 on Walmart, as of December 2022. 

A Dozen Cousins variety pack of seasoning sauces is a multi-purpose gift, especially if you have more than one foodie in your life. The seasoning sauces use simple and easy-to-recognize ingredients to convey flavors inspired by many vibrant cultures. The variety pack comes with a total of 10 pouches, including those intended for meat marinades and for seasoning rice. Each pack comes with two pouches of Mexican red rice, Peruvian pollo a la brasa, Jamaican jerk seasoning, and Caribbean coconut rice; it also includes one pouch each of pollo asado and arroz con gandules. 

The entire set can definitely be a thoughtful gift for one person, but it also can be easily split up to add on to other gifts for an entire barbecue-themed present for more than one receiver. The pouches are also small enough to stuff into stockings for an easy and wholesome meal idea. "I love your products. When we need to eat and don't have time to cook, the beans and rice combinations are the best — healthy and delicious," one customer wrote in a review on the brand's website. 

The variety pack of A Dozen Cousins sauces sells for $35 on the brand's website. 

The show-stopping gift on the list is hands-down the Ñuke Delta hand-made Argentinian gaucho grill. Ideal for someone passionate about cooking over an open flame, this grill takes it to the next level with its cutting-edge technology. The Delta has an adjustable grill grate raised above a heavy-duty fire basket. It is capable of using both logs or charcoal, while also saving hot coals underneath. 

In case that isn't enough heat, the entire grill is lined with refractory bricks that channel the heat toward the cooking space even more. It comes with accessories, features more than 500 square inches of cooking space, and will enable the owner to expand their barbecue skills beyond what they can imagine.  "This is a fantastic Argentinian style grill. I've researched for a long time for a good charcoal grill and this is the best value around. It is well made, easy to use and a LOT of fun," one BBQ Guys customer wrote in a review. 

The Ñuke Delta Hand-Made Argentinian Gaucho Grill sells for $1,739 on BBQ Guys as of December 2022. 

Pure Grit is New York City barbecue joint that just happens to be vegan. The restaurant itself is buzzworthy but to get the experience of vegan BBQ at home, you can buy your loved ones the Pure Grit BBQ kit for the holidays. It comes with one jar of BBQ sauce, one jar of "The Hot Stuff" hot sauce, and one package of BBQ blend rub. 

All of the ingredients from the brand are designed for plant-based proteins and vegetables with a vinegary taste that is mild enough to allow all of the flavors of the meal to shine through. "Totally Epic Sauce!!! AND we love the vegan recipes, keep 'em comin!! Pure Grit RULES," one Reviews IO post about Pure Grit BBQ sauce reads. Other Yelp reviews also suggest that whether you're dining in Pure Grit or eating at home, the BBQ rub makes a great topping for French fries. 

Pure Grit sells its BBQ kit for $36, as of December 2022. 

Firing up the grill doesn't have to be limited to outdoor cooking. With a decent vent hood and a little imagination, indoor grilling can yield just as tasty results as the backyard barbecue in a pinch. A good grill pan helps too, which is why the IRIS Megastone stovetop nonstick grill pan makes the perfect gift for the barbecue lover in need. It's an oven-safe pan with a nonstick coating that is compatible with most gas, electric, and induction stovetops. It's large enough to grill big pieces of meat, but also deep enough to make pan sauces or steam vegetables in. "I've only had these pans for a short time but so far so good. Worth every penny. Might turn out to be the best pans I've ever used," one Amazon review of the grill pan reads. 

At the time of this writing, the IRIS Megastone stovetop nonstick grill pan sells for $50 on Amazon. 

Some people are dedicated to using their outdoor grill regardless of the weather outside. It'd be useless to buy them tools for grilling indoors because they'd insist to do it their way instead. To make the experience more comfortable for them, the Zgrills essential winter grilling gear kit is the perfect gift. It features a fire-resistant grill insulation blanket for the 600 series, heat-resistant gloves, and a large grill mat for the patio. The gloves can resist more than 1400 degrees F and the mat is totally heat-resistant and leakproof. 

Amazon customers who purchased the Zgrills cover state that it helps temperature control and consistency with burning pellets during the winter. Additionally, the gloves have plenty of fans too. "My husband BBQs for a living. He absolutely loves these gloves. They are long enough to cover the lower part of his arms and are perfect when he has to move hot and heavy things," one Amazon review reads. 

ZGrills sells its essential winter grilling gear for $130, as of December 2022. 

Not every barbecue lover is equipped with the perfect backyard setup for an entire grilling operation. Sometimes, we live in apartments or other small spaces, or we prefer to bring our grill to the park for an on-the-go feast. The ideal gift for that kind of grill master is definitely the Lodge Sportsman Pro cast iron grill. Right off the bat, this grill is heavy. It's not the type to throw in your backpack and bike with to the park. It's meant to load in a car, and if that works, then it's the best grill for your buck.

The Lodge Sportsman Pro is a four-piece totally cast iron grill that is naturally seasoned. The grill grate is removable and there are multiple air vents to control the heat. It's a small grill, but you will be surprised by the amount you can cook on its surface. "This is a great grill for small group or a couple," one Amazon review of the Lodge grill reads. "It is of course very heavy as expected. This actually helps with it not sliding around though. I love cooking on it and have had great results."

The Lodge Sportsman Pro cast iron grill sells for $150 on Amazon.

Barbecue experts can pretty much agree, that lighter fluid should be used as a last-case scenario in grilling. Sure, it makes it quick to light the coal, wood, or pellets you're using as a heat source. But the chemicals in the lighter fluid can impact the flavor and end up in your food if you don't wait long enough for it to burn off, not to mention the safety risks involved with dumping fluid over an open flame. The solution is for every grill master to own a chimney starter, which can be one of the most practical gifts you can give this year. 

One solid option is the Weber RapidFire chimney starter that is made out of aluminized steel. The chimney has two handles for controlling the flame, which is best utilized alongside heat-resistant gloves. "I've never found a better way to start a charcoal fire! I like this so much that I bought a friend one for her grill, and she loves it," one customer wrote in a review on Weber's website. "Never fails to light the charcoal. And without the smell, chemicals, or fire risk of expensive fluid starters."

At the time of this writing, the Weber RapidFire chimney starter sells for $27.59 on Amazon.

Sometimes, there are party hosts who spend the entire backyard barbecue laboring away over the grill in order to deliver an outstanding meal for a crowd. It's only right around the holidays to show that person you're appreciative of them, and you can even do so with a gift that will likely yield tasty rewards for your future self. The OXO Good Grips basting pot and brush is a simple yet thoughtful gift for that person who is always grilling for a crowd. It allows for a mess-free way to slather marinades and sauces onto whatever you have on the grill with ease. 

The OXO Good Grips basting pot and brush can hold up to 18 ounces of sauce and marinade, so it should be plenty up to the job. It also comes with a lid to keep the bugs away from the tasty sauce inside. To make the ease of cleaning even better, the entire thing is dishwasher safe. "These are the perfect compliment to any grill. They are well constructed with high-quality material," one Amazon customer wrote in a review. "Don't waste your money on some other brand, this is what you need."

The OXO Good Grips basting pot and brush sells for $27.95 on Amazon.

Some people think of the grill as solely as cooking meats over the open flame. When it's too hot outside to even think of being in your kitchen, you can easily utilize the grill to cook your entire meal. Vegetables are particularly tasty on the barbecue, you just need to have the right equipment so that your side dish doesn't end up falling through the grill grates. One ideal gift for the person who loves cooking everything outside, especially vegetables, is the Outset jumbo outdoor grill basket. 

The basket has a nonstick coating and mesh design that prevents delicate ingredients like seafood and vegetables from falling through the cracks while still giving them direct contact with the heat. It can be used for both indoor and outdoor cooking and comes with a detachable handle for even more versatility. "I have been using this since the day I received it. This is great for cooking vegetables on the grill. I have recommended this to at least 20 people since using it," a customer wrote on the brand's website. 

The Outset jumbo outdoor grill basket sells for $22 on Home Depot, as of December 2022. 

Part of the fun of grilling for some people is sipping on a drink while you wait for time to pass. Some people prefer an iced cold beer while others go for straight whiskey on the rocks to complement their smokey meal. The perfect gift for those types of barbecue lovers is the Traeger x WhistlePig whiskey barrel pellets. 

Traeger teamed up with WhistlePig for this collaboration that features oak pellets made from WhistlePig barrels from Vermont used to age rye whiskey. That wood is added to the maple hardwood pellet blend to give a distinct whiskey kick that translates from pellet into the food on the grill. "The flavor profile from these pellets is an absolute game changer. These are pellets to be used for the absolute rarest occasion," one review on Traeger's website reads. "If you know Traeger like I do, these pellets will literally blow you away. There hasn't been and will never be anything like you've had in the past. I just ordered 10 more bags. Phenomenal."

Home Depot is selling the Traeger x WhistlePig whiskey barrel pellets for $23, as of December 2022. 

The ultimate gift for the barbecue lover is a prime piece of meat, and Golden Steer Steak Company makes it even easier to give the gift of high-quality beef for any occasion. To really wow the foodie in your life this holiday season, check out the Gunslinger ribeye pack of four steaks and the accouterments to go with it. It's by far not a cheap gift, but it sure is a show-stopper. 

The Gunslinger comes with four steaks adding up to more than 5 pounds of beef that can feed up to six people. It's the top 6% of the beef that is butchered in-house into steaks and wet-aged for 30 days to add even more umami flavor. The package also comes with Maitre D' butter, au jus, and Sergio's seasoning to have the ultimate steakhouse experience at home, best cooked over the grill. "When I first saw the ad for The Golden Steer Steak Company I thought they were just another run-of-the-mill online company selling their shoe leather meat they called steak. I couldn't have been more wrong," one user review on Golden Steer's website reads. "I've never tasted steak as tender and tasty as this and I've tasted a lot of steak in my time but not like this."

The Gunslinger ribeye package is being sold for $285 from Golden Steer.

Cleaning supplies don't always make the best gifts for the holiday season, unless you're blessing someone who is a little too obsessed with their grill the Grand Grill Daddy steam cleaning brush. There is no other tool on the market that will clean a grill as well as this without added chemicals or scrubbing. Any barbecue lover will be pleased to have a tool that actually cleans their equipment with ease, especially because the brush heads are dishwasher safe.

The Grand Grill Daddy brush gets filled with water so that it steams while you're scrubbing with stainless steel bristles. "Best grill brush i have used in 30 years," one Amazon user wrote in a review of the product. "Excellent product! Steam cleans the grates with ease!"

The Grand Grill Daddy steam cleaning brush sells for $79 on Amazon.

Traditionally, someone receiving coal as a gift for Christmas would be considered a bad thing — unless you're an expert in barbecue. Charcoal is always a welcome gift to someone who isn't a fan of using a gas grill, and Cowboy Charcoal is some of the best you can buy. The best charcoal to gift someone this year is Cowboy's all-natural range-style hardwood briquets and it won't even break the bank. 

Cowboy's hardwood briquets provide a long-lasting heat source and don't contain chemicals and filler like some other brands. The company uses 95% hardwood charcoal with a vegetable binder to create these briquets with a natural woody flavor. They also get hot quickly, making it almost too simple to fire up the grill and start crafting a meal. "Best ever charcoal," one Tractor Supply customer wrote in a review. "Long lasting & love the mixture of sweet woods used in them. Just that little extra umph of flavor for all your grilling needs." 

Tractor Supply sells Cowboy all-natural range-style hardwood briquets for $10, as of December 2022. 

Charcoal is just one of the popular heat sources for grill masters who forgo anything gas-powered. Wood pellets are a popular heat source to use when smoking, as they burn at a controlled rate and infuse rich flavor into the foods they are accompanying. Give the gift of smoked meals this year by picking up the variety pack of Zorestar smoke pellets for someone on your list. The six-pack of pellets includes bags with pellets made with wood from peach, cherry, apple, alder, oak, and maple trees. 

The fun part of Zorestar's variety pack is that it allows the pit master to mix and match pellets to develop their own signature smoke flavor. "I got this as a Christmas present for my family and they love it. It's been a fun process finding new flavors we enjoy and ones were not so fond of," one Amazon review of Zorestar pellets reads. "It's been a great spend of money getting a variety of wood chips instead of purchasing a single big bag and taking the chance of disliking them only to waste them."

A six-pack of Zorestar smoke pellets sells for $31.59 on Amazon, as of December 2022. 

One thing we've definitely taken away from this list of barbecue-related gifts is that there is so much to learn in the world of giving. One foolproof gift for anyone with a strong hobby or interest is the gift of knowledge, or a book about that subject. For the barbecue lover, one must-read option that makes a great holiday gift is Steven Raichlen's "Project Smoke." Raichlen is also known for his PBS show of the same name which is all about cooking with smoke. 

"Project Smoke" features techniques and recipes for smoking every dish from drinks to desserts. It's the book that spawned several follow-ups from Raichlen, so it should be a staple on any barbecue lover's bookshelf if they don't have it already. "Awesome book, very detailed and lots of information and recipes," one Amazon review of the book reads. "I'm an average smoker, now am stunning family and friends with the techniques and knowledge I have inquired from this book." 

At the time of this writing, "Project Smoke" sells for $18.29 on Amazon.