Griddle me this!

I have entered the world of propane, flattop griddle cooking; and life is good.

Recently I purchased a Blackstone 28" flattop griddle from Walmart (units also sold else where). I had to buy the propane tank separately, which I got from Lowe's hardware. The tank is approximately 3 gallons and is exchangeable in-store for another pre-filled one for a lower cost, as long as I surrender this one.

I have always been a charcoal grill guy. Never against propane, but growing up we had the large Weber charcoal grill and that was it. My folks did have a propane grill for a short amount of time but I was always second fiddle to the charcoal. My parents preferred the charcoal flavor that got cooked into the food and they said the propane just didn't taste the same.

I've heard this over and over from many people, and it seems to be the only real sticking point for some folks not to switch to propane. I understand that this is an important factor, after all, what's the point if the food does not taste good to you?

For starters, with the flattop griddle, you do not taste the propane because the flames are not touching your food. The flames underneath heat up the griddle and the food is being cooked on top of that, so there is not direct contact. Problem solved.....sort of. It still won't give you the charcoal taste, but it also won't give you the propane taste; so perhaps this will be a good compromise for some who have been hesitant to make the switch from charcoal to propane outdoor cooking?

I for one am convinced and I do not miss the charcoal grill whatsoever. This new Blackstone griddle has been amazing thus far and I can only see positive potential and possibilities.

The unit was shipped directly to my door, it all came in one box and the instructions were simple and easy to follow. I had the entire unit setup in under 20 minutes and it only required a standard size Phillips screwdriver and a small wrench.

I was a little hesitant about attaching and using the propane tank. Thoughts of blowing myself up or my apartment came to mind as I screwed in the connector hose from the griddle to the tank for the first time. But thanks to many YouTube videos, some articles online and my friend guiding me, that definitely helped curb my reservations about it and when the time finally came for me to physically do it. It was the most mundane thing and totally not worth stressing about. The hose attaches as easy as a garden hose and you open up the knob on the top of the tank, as easy as unscrewing a bottle cap and then you're ready to go. The burners operate with knobs just like your oven or stove may use and then you're ready to cook.

So how is the cooking?

Well, if you have used a pan or stove top griddle, then you are already accustomed to it and you may not even realize it.

For me, the best thing about this is that the griddle is just one giant surface. You may heat it up to different temperatures in various areas across the griddle, which allows you to cook many different foods at the same time but without the hassle of using several different pans; it's all in one place!

You use oil of your choice (vegetable, olive, canola etc.) and everything else is additional based on your cooking preference. I have two squeeze bottles, one filled with extra virgin olive oil and another with water to help create steam.

As far as utensils go, I have two long spatulas, the two affore mentioned squeeze bottles, a scapper, and a butter wheel for melting butter and easily spreading it onto bread. I would say out of all of these, the must-haves are the squeeze bottles and long spatulas. Everything is nice to have but not essential.

I received it this past Fri and I used it that evening to cook some carne asada tacos. I cooked the meat and warmed up the tortillas on the griddle. Then on Saturday, I used it to warm up the leftover carne asada and more tortillas for our lunch. Dinner that night I cooked up some amazing cheeseburgers! I used the griddle to cook up some bacon, then I used the bacon grease to cook the hamburger patties in. On the right side of the griddle I had it on low heat and used that to grill up some onions and melt the butter in my butter wheel. I then used the butter wheel to coat the buns and get a nice toast on them, also using the low heat side of the griddle while the burgers finished up on the left side of the griddle on a medium heat. This was the first time I really got to experience the versatility of the griddle and it was everything I hoped it would be.

This morning, Monday, I used it to cook a full breakfast. I cooked bacon, sunny-side up eggs, and pancakes and it worked out pretty well. I got the timing wrong a bit on the pancakes but that will be a work in progress for a while like any new cooking utensil.

Now what about the cleanup?

Probably just as important as the cooking, is how much time is going to be required for the cleanup and to properly maintain this griddle?

Luckily the answer is that it's low maintenance and low cost. Always good answers, especially when you're purchasing something new. The cleanup really consists of heating up the griddle after you've finished using it, taking some water and applying it to the surface, heating up any burned on debris and then taking your scrapper, or long spatulas and scrapping the debris into the attached grease trap located either in the front or the rear of the griddle; depending on your model.

There is a seasoning process, which is required to break in your griddle before you ever cook on it and you will continue to season it naturally as you cook thereafter. And that is about it! Yes, it's that easy.

As you can probably tell, I love my new griddle and highly recommend it to others.

I will be posting some YouTube videos myself and I highly recommend watching some others videos if you're thinking about investing in one of these. Despite this quarantine, the summer weather is approaching and that should mean outdoor cooking is around the corner. Heck, I expect to use this thing year round!

All in, with all of the utensils and the griddle etc that I purchased, it was in the ballpark of $250.00 which isn't that bad. I had looked into getting another large charcoal grill from Weber and those were running about $180.00 on their own, so I see this as comparable in price but far easier to use and more versatile.

Thanks for checking in and be sure to check out our YouTube page by clicking the link below and subscribe if you haven't already. Be safe and 'til next time, happy griddling!