I have not fired up my gas grill since I got my griddle. Smoker, ceramic and griddle is how I roll now.

I firmly second the breakfast comments. I rarely cook breakfast inaide any more. Don't have to clean up bacon grease spatter on the stove. Just use the griddle. Bacon, eggs, pancakes, hash browns, you name it.

I also make a pretty good hibachi. Fried rice, stir fried veggies, thin steak, chicken, fish, shrimp.

For fajitas, I cook the meat on the BGE, while im cooki g veggies on the griddle. Then I get out to raw flour tortillas from HEB and cook them on the griddle.

You can cook anything and everything on a griddle, egg, and powerburner. You're on the right track. Let us know if we can help or provide a quote for equipment. Free assembly and delivery in Houston area! We carry all the top brands including Blaze and Kamado joe.

www.creekstoneoutdoors.com
713-389-5936

While I don't have a griddle in my outdoor kitchen, I think they are great from the ones I've seen. However, I wouldn't discount the value of having a gas grill to go with your griddle and ceramic cooker. They are great for quick meals and can help when doing a lot of cooking in the BGE to keep things warm while other items are finishing. Even though The griddles I've seen all have metal covers, however they are still going to get dirt, bugs, etc on the cooking surface and any grease left is going to attract dirt/fuzz and require a lot more cleaning before cooking than a grill. Side burners and grills have the same issues but can be cleaned quickly. Building an outdoor kitchen is a lifetime investment. Adding a grill that costs $3-5k seems like a huge deal but over 20 years or so it's negligible and worth having IMO.

Firemagic makes a goodsize griddle that inserts in their grills. They also make one that sits on their power burner. Available with a smoker/charcoal tray if you want ease of gas but flavor of charcoal.

You can put a griddle on the grate of a gas grill.

I've had a large Blaze gas grill for a few years now and I wouldn't buy it again. Nothing specific but it isn't as good as large Webers I've had before and it cost a lot more.

I tried the griddle on the grill insert and it was a fail. Griddle wasn't the right height from the flame and the grease trap would constantly fill and you had to remove the whole thing just to empty it.

You don't get the grill taste on a griddle. That's the ONLY reason I use a ceramic for burgers. Everything else I can literally cook in the kitchen. I see the efficiency side of it, but otherwise, I dont think I could justify eating up space with a griddle. I do like cooking outside, so perhaps I could work with that. Burgers are my big ticket item, and they have to have the flavor to them. I just figured restaurants used them because of the real estate and ease of cleaning.

The best reason to use a griddle for burgers is that you get mailiard reactions on the entire face of the patty and they tend to not dry out as much combined with a lack of flare ups. Its also why the best seared steaks are done in a skillet instead of a grill. The only place I can think of that flame grills burgers on a commercial basis is Burger King.

You're correct. The griddle needs to be made for the grill so it fits and operates correctly.

Bayside Tiger Ag said:

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The best reason to use a griddle for burgers is that you get mailiard reactions on the entire face of the patty and they tend to not dry out as much combined with a lack of flare ups. Its also why the best seared steaks are done in a skillet instead of a grill. The only place I can think of that flame grills burgers on a commercial basis is Burger King.

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Yeah...I guess...the burger being a case for a griddle isn't going to sell me. I don't believe I've had a better burger on a griddle than a charcoal grill.

What WILL sell me on it is the space and the ability to cook a lot of breakfast all at once. That is a legitimate benefit and another reason for me to be outside cooking.

Those of you with the griddle in your outdoor kitchen, do have a grill as well? Or just the griddle? Starting the house building process now.

I'm going with a griddle plus kamado for the grilling. I don't think you could get by with just a griddle.

I hate this place so much. Sigh.

Alright ... is Blackstone the griddle to go with for outdoors ?

That's what I have had for two years. Good build quality. Comes in 28" and 36". I got the 36" but I think the 28" would have been just fine.

I am in the middle of this decision right now. We are doing a complete remodel of a home we recently bought including a new outdoor kitchen. My default has been to go with a 36" gas grill and I will definitely have a power burner. I have a BGE already so it is available to me.

I will have a griddle in my kitchen. I only need to decide is whether to go with a 12" or 24" in the kitchen. I think I'll always prefer to cook breakfast inside anyway.

For outside though, I think I have narrowed my selection to either a built-in 36" gas grill or a pellet grill that I can also use for smoking meats. The Memphis pellet grills/smokers appear to me to be the best of both worlds because they get hot but also can smoke slow and low.

Any and all input welcome!

Get the 24" griddle. You will never need 6 burners at a time and even if you did you couldn't fit 6 pots & pans. I absolutely regret not ordering my stove with the big griddle. Ended up buying a Blackstone for outside.

One thing I did do right was getting a top of the line Vent-a-hood and a Blue Star Stove with a 22,000 BTU UltraNova burner.

FIDO*98* said:

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One thing I did do right was getting a top of the line Vent-a-hood and a Blue Star Stove with a 22,000 BTU UltraNova burner.

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This is what we'll be getting when we build/remodel.