Stainless steel griddle
A flat tri-ply plate for smash burgers and anything cooked in full contact
Stainless clad over an aluminum core, set across one or two burners or laid on an outdoor grill. Nothing slopes and nothing has a coating, so a ball of beef flattens under a press and grips hard enough to build a crust before it lets go. That grip is the point. It is why seasoned iron and nonstick are the wrong surfaces for a smash burger. Oil or butter it and the same plate handles eggs and French toast. Plug-in versions exist, and the good ones keep their heat when cold food lands.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- J. Kenji López-AltDoes it
Chef and food writer · The Food Lab
For burgers he argues against cast iron and carbon steel and in favor of bare tri-ply stainless, because the surface has to grip enough to let a patty spread to paper-thin edges. Keep it dry before the smash, he adds, and oil it when you want eggs. The Balmuda plug-in griddle is the one he says he loves.
Source: kenjilopezalt.com: 7 Gifts for Burger Lovers“For the best burgers, I strongly advise against non-stick or semi-nonstick surfaces like cast iron or carbon steel.”
kenjilopezalt.com: 7 Gifts for Burger Lovers (opens in a new tab)
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