BBQ Grill with Side Burner: How to Cook the Whole Meal Outdoors

A BBQ grill with side burner can solve a familiar backyard problem: dinner starts outside, but part of the meal keeps pulling you back to the kitchen. Steaks are searing while mushrooms need a skillet. Chicken is nearly ready, yet the sauce still has to simmer. Corn needs a pot, onions need to sauté, and suddenly you're moving between the patio and stove.

Adding one well-chosen cooking surface changes that routine without filling the backyard with appliances. A side burner handles the jobs that normally take you indoors while leaving the main grates open for flame, smoke, and everything you came outside to cook.

That's less-is-more outdoor living in practice. Give each component a purpose, then spend the evening where you wanted to be in the first place.

A BBQ Grill with Side Burner Keeps Dinner Outside

A complete meal rarely relies on one cooking method. Different dishes call for their own temperatures, cookware, and timing. An independent burner gives pots and pans a dedicated home beside the main grill.

Consider steak night. Beef sears over the flame while mushrooms and onions brown in a skillet nearby. For burgers, a pot of chili can stay warm as patties finish on the grates. Grilled chicken pairs naturally with a sauce simmering within arm's reach. During a seafood feast, the catch can cook over direct heat while corn or potatoes boil beside it.

You don't necessarily need a larger appliance to handle those meals. Another heat source may be enough.

Bring the Whole Plate Together

Timing can make a good dinner memorable, especially when friends and family fill the patio. An independent cooking zone lets vegetables, sauces, toppings, or another side come together as the entrée finishes.

Steaks can rest while mushrooms get their final toss. Fajitas leave the flame as peppers and onions finish sizzling. Instead of preparing each dish in sequence, you can bring the plate together while everything is hot.

Leave the Main Grates Open

Premium grilling area is valuable. Filling it with pots and skillets leaves less room for burgers, chicken, seafood, vegetables, and other foods that benefit from direct or indirect heat.

A separate range-style station lets every surface play to its strengths.

Stay Where Everyone Gathers

Some of the best parts of grilling happen between turns of the spatula. Conversation carries across the patio, another plate lands on the counter, and someone inevitably checks what's coming off the grill next.

Keeping more meal preparation outside means fewer trips through the back door. You can tend the food and still be part of everything happening around you.

Sauce, Sauté, Simmer, and Stay Outside

American Made Grills' double side burners bring familiar stovetop functions to the backyard. Two dedicated zones let supporting dishes cook alongside the entrée without crowding your primary grilling surface.

Put that extra range space to use for:

• Simmering barbecue sauce, soup, seasoned butter, or a glaze
• Sautéing onions, peppers, mushrooms, garlic, and fajita vegetables
• Boiling corn, potatoes, pasta, or other sides
• Preparing skillet dishes alongside grilled favorites
• Keeping a pot warm while dinner comes together
• Cooking eggs, bacon, and other breakfast staples on the patio

Independent controls add another useful dimension. Keep a sauce at a gentle simmer on one side while vegetables cook at higher heat next door.

That's the idea behind a purposeful outdoor kitchen. Add the components that support what you love to make, then give yourself room to cook.

Side Burner or Power Burner: Match the Heat to Your Menu

American Made Grills offers both Side and Power Burners, giving homeowners two distinct ways to extend their outdoor menus.

A double side burner handles familiar range-style duties. The Estate Double Side Burner, for example, combines two 14,000-BTU burners for 28,000 total BTUs across a 210-square-inch surface. Separate controls let you manage two dishes at different temperatures.

For larger cookware and recipes that call for substantial output, the AMG Encore Power Burner brings serious heat to the patio. Its 24,000-BTU inner burner pairs with a 36,000-BTU outer ring for 60,000 total BTUs across 380 square inches. That capacity suits stir-fry, stockpots, seafood boils, and other big-pan favorites.

Match the equipment to what lands on your table:

That final choice deserves consideration. Every inch of a luxury outdoor kitchen can serve a purpose, including an open counter area.

How Much Power Should an Outdoor Grill with Side Burner Have?

BTUs provide useful information, although the largest number doesn't tell the full story.

A British Thermal Unit measures heat energy. Higher output helps with demanding recipes, while precise control lets you dial it back for gentler tasks. A glaze at a quiet simmer has different needs than a stockpot headed toward a rolling boil.

The same thinking applies to your primary grill.

American Made Grills developed the Heat Density Index to place total output in context. Heat Density compares main burner BTUs with the primary cooking area:

Heat Density = Main Burner BTUs ÷ Primary Cooking Area

The resulting BTUs per square inch show how much heat is available relative to the cooking area. AMG's Hybrid Series posts Heat Density ratings ranging from 147.06 to 153.85 BTUs per square inch across its 36-, 42-, and 54-inch models.

Numbers matter most when they tell you something about the experience at the grates. Cooking area, heat distribution, burner design, and temperature control all contribute to how confidently you can move from a slow cook to a hard sear.

American Materials from the Inside Out

A luxury grill lives through intense heat, grease, moisture, changing seasons, and countless meals. Material quality and manufacturing consistency matter long after that first cookout.

American Made Grills builds its products in the United States with a domestic supply chain. Nearly all components use American stainless steel manufactured under strict ASTM and OSHA standards. Domestic sourcing also supports tighter tolerances, reliable fit, consistent assembly, and long-term replacement-part availability.

AMG complements that stainless construction with high-density ceramic briquettes sourced from the U.S. and Canada. Their density promotes strong heat retention and uniform distribution beneath the food.

The company's manufacturing model also meets Buy America, Build America requirements, with documented domestic sourcing at the component level. That BABA certification reflects a commitment that goes beyond final assembly.

For owners, those decisions add value year after year. Reliable fit makes replacement components easier to source and install. Consistent materials stand up to repeated use, while domestic production gives AMG greater oversight from sourcing through assembly.

Handcrafted in the USA means knowing what goes into the grill and where it takes shape.

Build an Outdoor Kitchen Around the Meals You Love

Your favorite foods should shape the kitchen, not the other way around.

Frequent hosts may appreciate multiple heat zones, generous counters, refrigeration, and easy access to storage. Someone who often makes sauces, vegetables, or skillet sides could get regular use from a double side burner. If seafood boils, large pots, or wok cooking appear on the menu, a Power Burner may earn that counter space.

Placement counts, too. Keep prep surfaces near the grill, storage within easy reach, and enough open area around burners for cookware and serving pieces.

This is where the less-is-more approach pays off. A few carefully selected components can create an outdoor kitchen that feels generous without becoming crowded.

Leave room to prep. Leave room to serve. Most of all, leave room for people to gather.

Handcrafted in America for the Way You Cook

American Made Grills brings substantial power, premium materials, and American craftsmanship together in an outdoor cooking lineup designed for real meals and lasting use.

Start with an AMG grill at the heart of your outdoor kitchen. Pair it with a double side burner for familiar stovetop cooking, or choose a Power Burner when large cookware and serious output fit your menu. Storage, refrigeration, and other components can fill out the kitchen according to your priorities.

At the center sits a grill made for more than a single season. Domestic materials, substantial Heat Density, precise construction, and American manufacturing support years of Saturday steaks, Sunday breakfasts, holiday gatherings, and quiet dinners outside.

You don't need to fill every available inch to create a remarkable place to cook. Choose what serves your table, keep the flame close, and make more of dinner under the open sky.

Handcrafted in the USA. Built for the Whole Meal.

BBQ Grill with Side Burner FAQs

What is a side burner on a BBQ grill used for?

A side burner brings familiar range-style cooking outside. Use one for sauces, sautéed vegetables, soups, skillet dishes, toppings, and other sides while the primary grill handles the entrée. Keeping pots and pans on their own heat source also leaves more grate area available for foods that benefit from flame and smoke.

Is a side burner on a grill worth it?

A side burner can add meaningful versatility if pots or pans regularly appear in your grilling routine. Think about your usual menu. Sauces, vegetables, skillet dishes, pasta, and boiled sides all benefit from having another heat source nearby. If your meals stay almost entirely on the grates, an open prep area or storage may be more useful.

How many BTUs should a BBQ side burner have?

Ideal output depends on the foods and cookware you use. Moderate heat suits simmering and everyday stovetop duties, while larger pots and demanding recipes can benefit from greater capacity. Consider temperature range, burner design, surface size, and intended use alongside the BTU rating.

Can you boil water on a grill side burner?

Yes, many range-style side burners can boil water. Results vary with burner output, pot size, weather conditions, and the appliance itself. Follow the manufacturer's cookware and operating guidelines, particularly when using larger pots outdoors

Can you use a skillet on a BBQ side burner?

Yes. A range-style model can accommodate appropriate skillets for onions, mushrooms, peppers, potatoes, eggs, seafood, and similar foods. A double configuration adds flexibility when two pan-based dishes need different temperatures during the same meal.

What is the difference between a side burner and a power burner?

A side burner suits familiar range-top cooking such as sauces, vegetables, and skillet dishes. A power burner provides greater capacity for large cookware and recipes that call for substantial heat. AMG Power Burners deliver 60,000 total BTUs across a 380-square-inch surface, making them a natural fit for stir-fry, stockpots, and seafood boils.