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Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar
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Credit:
Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar
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Meeting (and in some cases exceeding) our basic expectations for an electric griddle, it has a series of notable special features. Read More
If you’re really not interested in bells and whistles, this Black & Decker scored top marks for a standard flat top griddle. Read More
The griddle actually has raised edges and it’s the only model we tested that comes with a lid—meaning you can steam things too. Read More
This thing is a beast to clean and store, and takes up lots of countertop space. It’s difficult to fit in your sink and maneuver. Read More
What drove it down in the rankings is that consistency proved an issue — and when it comes to griddles, there’s little more important than that. Read More
Have you ever tried preparing pancakes for your family and serving everyone at once without half the stack getting cold?
Or attempted to flip a fried egg, only to struggle to fit the spatula around the curved dome of a pan? Or create crispy sizzling bacon without grease puddling at the bottom, bathing your food in fat? Then chances are you haven’t tried making breakfast using an electric griddle.
These flat appliances free up your stovetop and can be plugged into any wall socket in your kitchen. More importantly, they can quickly and evenly cook up lots of food all at once.
And while they come in a range of prices, most are a great value, like our top picks, the Hamilton Beach 3-in-1 Electric Smokeless Indoor Grill and Griddle (available at Amazon for $69.99) and the Black and Decker Family-Sized Electric Griddle.
The Zojirushi Gourmet Sizzler comes with a lid to extend its versatility.
Removable plates
Folding lid
Easy to clean
Doesn't lie flat
Inconsistent heating
My name is Sarah Zorn, and I’ve been a professional food writer and recipe tester for more than 10 years. As much as I love dining out, I especially enjoy recreating restaurant experiences at home. Electric griddles are perfect for that. They allow me to turn my kitchen into a short-order diner, 7 days a week and 24 hours a day.
To find the best electric griddle, we loaded each device with three strips of bacon, four average-sized pancakes, and two eggs. This allows us to see all this food would fit without Tetris-style maneuvering or crowding. We also measure how long it takes the bacon to get crispy, the pancakes to brown evenly, and the eggs to cook over medium heat.
We analyzed the performance of the units by measuring heating consistency. Controls should be easy and straightforward. Food should release from surfaces easily, and they should be easy to clean.
We also assess how much counter space they take up and how easy they are to store. If it comes with accessories, they should be equally intuitive.
After tabulating our first round of scores, we made grilled cheese sandwiches. We score griddles on how well, quickly, and evenly they melted and browned these sandwiches.
What exactly is an electric griddle anyway? And why should you consider spending money on and devoting kitchen space to one? Electric griddles offer freedom.
You can hook up a griddle wherever you have an electrical outlet. This means you don’t need a stove to cook up a tasty meal.
Their flat surfaces warm from below by a built-in heating element that’s powered and regulated by temperature controls. This is opposed to significantly smaller pans, which inevitably have heat less efficiently on a stove.
Electric griddles are great for making your favorite breakfast foods at once. They provide even heating, so no matter where you place your food on it, the food can all cook at optimum temperatures.
Griddles offer significantly more cooking area than your average pan, so you won’t need to cook in batches. You never again have to make friends and family wait for pancakes! Helping you feed a crowd without any of the meal’s elements sitting around and getting cold.
The surfaces are nonstick so you can cook with less grease. Many models have features that allow fat to actually drip away from your food. It also makes them easy to clean, especially if the griddle comes with removable cooking plates.
The sky is the limit when it comes to cooking on an electric griddle. However, when cooking slippery items like hot dogs or sausages, make sure you place them on the pan long ways so they don't slide off the griddle. Many of the best electric griddles operate on a slant, which will make your doggies roll away if you're not careful!
On average, large electric griddles use anywhere from 3 to 25 kW of power. You can expect a small countertop griddle to use far less electricity than that.
Many electric griddles sport a non-stick surface, so they require little to no added fat such as oil or butter to properly cook food. We recommend applying a teaspoon or two of oil and spreading it into every inch of the surface of the griddle using a paper towel as it heats up. This will help season the surface over time, improving its non-stick qualities.
When it comes to buying an electric griddle, size matters. There are smaller, collapsible models, which are easier to store in tiny kitchen. These are adequate if you don’t often invite lots of people over for brunch.
But you’ll probably want to go with a large griddle for families since they make it easier to cook on. Making entire meals at once allows everyone to eat at the same time.
Either way, make sure you have the storage space to accommodate one. Griddles tend to be the size of large cutting boards but are much bulkier and heavier. Also, look for units that include heating controls with an extensive temperature range.
Some griddles even come with dual thermostats, so you can select different heats on each side. Fry bacon on one side and flip pancakes on the other. Other electric griddles offer detachable plates, so you can mix up your cooking methods by making steak or pancakes.
Cleaning electric griddles are relatively easy. This is especially true of models that include drip trays to catch all the grease and extra batter.
All you need to do is take a damp piece of paper towel or a kitchen sponge and wipe off bits of food and grease. Wiping the surface while it's still a little warm will make it easier—just be extra careful it's not too hot to touch.
Sarah Zorn
Contributor
Sarah Zorn is a food writer, cookbook author, and product tester for Reviewed, Wirecutter and the Food Network. She regularly contributes to outlets such as Saveur, Esquire, and Civil Eats, and has very much passed her food obsessions down, as her beloved rescue hound, Rowdy, regularly deglazes his kibble bowl.
Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.
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