Griddles are often used to prepare breakfast items such as pancakes, French toast, eggs and bacon, as well as stir-fries and meat dishes like hamburgers, steak and chicken breasts.

But griddles can do more than just all-in-one breakfast cooking. Smash burgers, grilled cheese sandwiches, quesadillas, hash browns, meat and veggies for fajitas - if it's best made on a hot, flat surface, it's griddle material.

Cooking Surface Material Griddles are most commonly made out of carbon steel, cast iron, and non stick-coated aluminum.

Griddle surfaces are usually smooth and flat. However, some types of griddles have ribbed or grooved surfaces. Grooved surfaces are designed to emboss food with charred grid marks, characteristic of broiled and grilled foods.

The spacious flat surface allows you to prepare more dishes than a traditional grill. Talk of pancakes, eggs, grilling chicken, sausages, juicy steak, and more. Not only will you be able to cook more types of foods, but you can cook them all at the same time if desired thanks to the large cooking area on offer.

The ability to cook various items on the same surface is a tremendous efficiency boost for commercial kitchens. Griddles can cook food items faster than other traditional cooking methods. One of the main reasons for this is that the large surface area of the griddle allows for the cooking of multiple items at once.

Aluminum The griddle is made of Aluminum. The surface is coated with a water-based non-stick coating which can prevent rust and food from sticking.

Aluminum The griddle is made of Aluminum. The surface is coated with a water-based non-stick coating which can prevent rust and food from sticking.

Versatility is the leading reason you should buy a flat top for cooking. The spacious flat surface allows you to prepare more dishes than a traditional grill. Talk of pancakes, eggs, grilling chicken, sausages, juicy steak, and more.

From a health standpoint, Bonci says when it comes to meats the grill is healthier than the griddle. "It's a flat surface, nothing can drip through so if you are, are doing a fatty meat, where's the fat going to go, it's going to stay right there," Bonci says.

These can be some simple tools like a good spatula, a set of griddle tongs, and some heat-resistant gloves. You'll need a few items for cleaning and seasoning, too. These things get you started making most of the best meals you'll want to make, but a handful of trick accessories can let you explore culinary wizardry.

Because there's more surface area on a griddle, it allows for more contact between the cooking surface and your food. This makes a griddle ideal for foods like steaks or smash burgers, as it produces better Maillard browning and a crispier crust than you would get from a grill.

Both carbon steel and cast iron griddles offer excellent heat retention, meaning that your food will cook evenly without your having to constantly adjust the temperature. However, cast iron has comparatively poor heat responsiveness and tends to heat less evenly than carbon steel.

Unlike a regular frying pan, a griddle pan, where the pan's base has raised ridges, will provide beautiful char marks; unlike the oven, it'll flash-fry steaks and veg in no time.

While both cast iron and carbon steel griddles can make a great addition to your arsenal, carbon steel makes for better control over temperature and the ability to create dual cooking zones for searing and finishing. For us, that makes carbon steel the clear winner.

Cook fast, cook better Thanks to its cast iron body, a griddle pan heats up evenly at high temperatures, without spitting or smoking (or the handle melting!). That means your food is cooked evenly – and quickly. It's on your plate before you can say "amazing!".