Mobile Nomad Bake is to bake what Yeti is for cooling: better in every way, but expensive. The fact that both companies are from Texas is a coincidence. Maybe.
Nomad is a new approach to what a portable grill should be, or even can be. It’s low-tech and compact, it cooks wonderfully, and unlike many “portable” grills, it can really go anywhere. It’s almost as perfect a portable grill as anything I’ve tested.
grilled wandering
I have tested a lot of portable grills over the years and the Nomad is the best built portable grill I’ve ever used.
From the perforated, anodized aluminum housing to the die-cast aluminum baking tins inside, everything about the Nomad feels solid and well-built. The handle is heavy and the latch is very sturdy. Even the baking surface is securely fixed with high-temperature magnets.
Photo: Nomad
Nomad’s design is different from most ovens. It’s essentially a suitcase, which means you can carry it with one hand. The sturdy construction doesn’t make it light — it weighs 28 pounds with one grill, 31 pounds if you opt for a second grill — but it’s not as unwieldy and bulky as the most popular portable charcoal grill right now. our present, Weber’s Jumbo Joe ($89).
When shrunk into a suitcase-carrying pose, Nomad looks like a hybrid between something Jason Bourne will be used as carry-on baggage and certain types of live animal cages. I told someone who asked about it that my kids have a wolf. For a second, I thought they believed me.
When you get to where you want to go with your Nomad, you can set it up on any flat surface. Thanks to the engineering behind the grill, it never gets hot enough to harm wood, metal, stone or sand. I wouldn’t put it on a plastic table, but it will work well anywhere from the back porch of your truck to a picnic table in your local park. While flat ground is the hardest way to cook on Nomad, it works just as well.
Nomad is also pleasant low tech. No Bluetooth temperature sensors, apps or anything else. This is the old school way of baking, based on your skills and experience. Nomad has a built-in thermometer on the left side of the “top”. but there isn’t anything digital here. Fortunately.
Outer space
For typical high-temperature grilling, the Nomad folds open, allowing you to grill on both sides. The catch is that the second side grill is sold separately and will keep you coming back another $130. If you add the grill, you’ll have a total cooking surface area of 425 square inches. Nomad claims this amount is enough for 30 burgers. I didn’t test the second grill, but cooking on one side leaves enough room for 12 burgers for about 1/4 pound each.
Another thing to keep in mind is the cambered grill surface, which means that if you take both grills, you’ll need to flip one over before closing. Nomad also points out that you can cook with the grill surface turned upside down, making it look like a vegetable basket.
