CGS Round Stainless Drip Pans

Be Smart, Protect Your Ceramics

Our round stainless drip pans are available in 10", 12", 14", 16", and 18" sizes, giving you the right-size drip coverage to collect drippings in most kamado grill setups.

For more detailed fitment help, several of our rack system pages include drip pan recommendations. We also have specific drip pan pages for the more popular grills.

Why Use CGS Stainless Drip Pans?

• Protects Ceramic Deflectors — helps keep grease and drippings off porous ceramic surfaces.
• Cleaner Kamado Cooks — helps reduce burnt grease, off-odors, and stubborn buildup.
• Reusable Design — line with foil for easy cleanup and continued use.
• Multiple Size Options — choose the pan that best matches your deflector size.

How to Use the Pan

For best results, place the drip pan above your heat deflector and leave open space around the edges so heat and airflow can continue moving through the grill.

General Rule of Thumb: If you are uncertain on size, it is best to match the drip pan diameter to your heat deflector diameter. If a direct match is not available, it is usually better to go slightly smaller and use foil to extend the catch area.

Elevate When Clearance Allows

For cleaner drippings and better performance, allow as much vertical space as possible between the heat deflector and drip pan. CGS Ceramic Spacers can help raise the pan and reduce the radiant heat coming off the deflector.

We prefer to stage the drip pan as high as practical, directly under the cooking grid.

Keep in mind, heat deflectors get much hotter than your low-and-slow cooking temperature, so more space is better than less space when clearance allows.

Why the Tapered Side Matters

The tapered sidewall helps balance drip-catching coverage with airflow. The angled side helps to gently push heat outward, while the wider upper rim provide more collection area.

Adding Liquid to the Pan

Unlike metal grills, ceramic kamado grills retain heat and moisture extremely well. We generally do not recommend adding liquid to the drip pan during most BBQ cooks. Too much humidity can inhibit bark development on your meat, and we all love the bark.

The shallow tapered side gives you practical drip-catching capacity without creating unnecessary clearance or airflow issues.

How to Clean the Pan

We recommend double-lining the pan with heavy-duty foil before each cook. Overlap two sheets in a “+” pattern.

After the cook, ball up the foil and toss it. The pan can be hand washed or placed in the dishwasher.

Don’t skip the foil. Baked-on grease is much harder to remove once it cooks onto the pan.

Half-Moon Pans

Our preference is one full round drip pan because it better matches the deflector coverage used for longer, messier BBQ cooks like pork butt, brisket, and ribs.

With most grilling cooks, the meat will not drip as much fluid. For these shorter, cleaner cooks, skip the pan and just foil the topside of the deflector.

One thing to watch with half-moon pans is twisting or warping. When an irregular-shaped pan is heated or cooled rapidly, especially after adding liquid, the wide rim and tighter corners can expand unevenly and force the pan to buckle or twist. Once it happens, there is a good chance it will continue to do it when used.

Built-In Feet

Built-in feet may sound convenient, but they usually create very little air gap between the very hot deflector and pan. A larger, adjustable air gap gives drippings a better chance to stay cleaner during the cook.

Do You Need 304 Stainless?

This is one application where 304 stainless does little to improve performance. All stainless drip pans will tarnish and discolor from normal BBQ use, but that does not affect performance. 304 stainless will not automatically prevent twisting or warping.

Save some cash and pass on expensive 304 pans. CGS drip pans are made from 201 stainless steel.