Baking Steel Griddle, 14 " x 18 " x .38 "

There's this myth going around that cast iron pans heat evenly and don't have hotspots like regular pans do. This, unfortunately isn't true and can be easily verified by using a contact thermometer, an IR thermometer or an IR camera. My main interest in getting the griddle version of Baking Steel, instead of just the regular baking steel (for pizza only), at $120 less, was to see if I it would perform better than my current cast iron griddle in terms of reducing hotspots in the cooking area. What follows are my notes and conclusion.Baking steel griddle vs. regular baking steel (for pizza): Both are from the same steel and both are made in the USA; 3/8 inch thick vs. 1/4 inch thick; lip on one side to catch grease vs. flat on both sides; 25 lbs. vs 15 lbs; griddle version slightly larger to accommodate the lip.Baking steel griddle vs. cast iron griddle (for searing and sauteing): approximate times to 350F, 7 minutes vs 3 minutes; approximate times to 525F, 21 minutes vs 6 minutes (measured with a contact thermometer at the hottest spot); hottest spot to coldest spot difference in F, 155F vs. 214F; temperature gradient top to bottom burners, even (14F difference) vs. less even (120F difference); temperature gradient, side to side, both exhibit observable temperature gradient.Narrative. From my observations, the baking steel maintains a more even temperature across its surface once it is up to temperature. This is especially true going from top to bottom burner where the temperature difference varies very little. On my cast iron griddle, the temperature difference is noticeable and very much measurable. With the cast iron, I often resort to heating one side up to the desired temperature then flipping it 180 degrees to catch up the temperature on the other side. The heat capacity of A36 steel vs cast iron are pretty close together, 52 vs 49 W/m-K so it should be obvious just from the increased heating time that the baking steel griddle will have higher heat capacity (the ability to stay at temperature when a piece of meat is plopped onto its surface), just eyeballing from the heat up times, approximately 3x that of my cast iron griddle. This capability however, doesn’t come for free, the cost of entry is the longer time it takes to heat the cooking surface to 525F (or higher). At 30 minutes to reach consistent searing temperatures on both burner sides, it’s not one to use for spur of the moment searing (charcoal isn’t either at 45-60 minutes to setup). Patience required, grasshopper.Results. Steaks seared on both are equally decent but the steak seared on the baking steel griddle has noticeably better crust. With the cast iron, I’d usually need to move the steak to the other side halfway through each side to keep it on the hot side. As for pizza, there’s plenty of reviews for the non-griddle version of the baking steel that would give it better justice than I could.Verdict. For me, the main reasons to get the griddle version of the baking steel, instead of the oven only version, is as an upgrade to my current cast-iron griddle. As for cons: there’s the weight, the longer heating to temperature time and as you’ll no doubt notice with the listing, the "high" price for "just a piece of steel." I understand that the company had to purchase new equipment to properly surface the griddle side of this contraption, and like any business they’re entitled to make money by pricing their product at a cost the market will bear. No doubt, some will find the price too high and move on. Is it worth it for me for me--yes. As for the weight and long heating times it's physics and there’s really no way around it.Photos. (1) Thermal IR image of baking steel griddle (left) and cast iron griddle (right); (2) The heart attack special cooked sous-vide at 135 then seared to a perfect crust, two minutes each side; (3) Seared scallops.---Update, 4/16: It's been close to four months now since I purchased the baking steel griddle and the griddle side is now well seasoned. I've mostly used the griddle for searing and high heat cooking, I thought I'd give it a try for some foods that require lower temperatures than the 500+F I've been using it for. There was another review posted having problems with pancakes so I decided to give it a try. I'm happy to report that I did not have any issues with either the temperature or food sticking on the surface (with a quick spray of oil). The key to using the griddle at lower temperatures is to set the burners lower and start cooking as the surface comes up to temperature. For my gas stovetop, it was burners on med-low, 10-12 minutes warm-up time, cooking surface temperature between 325-350F. I use either an IR thermometer or my surface Thermapen to check the temperature. I've also purchased a stainless steel turkey baster to suck up the oil from the sides of the griddle, paper towels just take too long and could catch fire. I do wish the gutters that hold the oil was either deeper or larger.Added two new photos: 4) pancakes and eggs; 5) then I crank up the heat and cook sausages.

As with any tool, you likely have a specific problem to address with this 11.5" x 11.5" slab of steel. I was on the search for a two-burner griddle so I could make burgers, bacon etc. My initial choices circled around Lodge and Le Creuset. Like many others here, I eventually came across Kenji Lopez's video and decided to give Baking Steel a shot.Let's get the price tag out of the way - yes it seems a bit high. No you will not find a comparable item for cheaper. Yes you will find a couple of other less expensive, "indestructible" carbon steel griddles on Amazon. No they were not indestructible since many of those warped under heat. Yes you will know someone who claim they can get a local metal shop to cut, machine, and finish this for $50. No it will not actually happen when you press said person for the metal shop hookup. Anyway, I think the price is fair for the product.So what can / should you use this for? High heat plus heat retention, and high(er) food volume applications. I can heat the griddle on direct flame to +400F, get that quick sear for smash burgers, and repeat with multiple patties without temperature drops. This can sear through three to four pounds of meat fairly quickly compared to my 11" stainless sauté pan. Anything a short order cook can handle is where this griddle shines. And pizza apparently but I have yet to use it for that application.What this is not. This is not meant to replace a carbon / cast iron / stainless steel pan. This is not well suited to cook everything and definitely take the "oh I use this for everything" reviews with a grain of salt. For instance, I will make eggs and bacon on here for breakfast sandwiches but this would be a hassle just to scramble eggs. For steaks where I want to make a pan sauce I will still need to use a pan.Cleaning and maintenance. This is not a time friendly process. Dish soap, water, and copper wool takes care everything. I make sure to dry the griddle on low heat for about 10 min to evaporate all the moisture. I season with whatever oil I have on hand - avocado, grape seed, walnut, etc. over my gas range at ~325F. I have only seasoned the griddle side and have never touched the baking side. Since the product came pre-seasoned, it seems to suffice through multiple uses. After it cools down I move it on top of the corner where it hangs out until needed.Why did I not get the two-burner skinny version? The weight. The Mini comes in at 15 lbs, the Skinny at 23 lbs. The size while great for large(er) batches of food is not so great for storage in my kitchen.

Just got my Baking Steel & made smash burgers for Mothers Day. They turned out AMAZING ! The Steel was VERY slow to heat, even on my DCS commercial grade gas stove top. It was heating so slowly I went to high on both burners for a bit. BE CAREFUL...it is very easy to over shoot your target temp. It retains heat so well if you do overshoot it will take a while to get back down to where you want it. My target was 400-425F, it quickly overshot to about 580F.Next time I will heat on high till about 50 degrees short of where I want it & then turn the burners to the normal range that would heat my regular pans to the desired temp.Clean up was easy & I look forward to making breakfast, pizzas, english muffins, & much more.Heavy at 25 lbs.,but I am storing mine on the main oven bottom rack which we rarely use.I am going to enjoy this forever.

Can make decent pizza in a crappy countertop toaster oven, pizza cooking time went from 25 to 10 mins. Definitely worth the money!