Had to jump in and offer some suggestions to those who say it looks dark and old after use. Just ordered and received my second griddle, as our needs to cook Teppanyaki for friends now requires two grills going full. This product, while not NSF rated, is stainless steel, and of a gauge to be restaurant quality. As a person that is familiar with restaurant operation shall we say, this lives up to even the best commercial standards. It is designed to use on a gas grill, not a cook stove. Firstly...*It's not coated with Teflon*. That is absolutely fantastic, as with the correct heat and oil, nothing sticks and it actually can be cleaned. Too high of temps are really not possible from a typical gas grill to cause any issue with cooking on this. If you experience this, use a higher quality oil with a higher smoke point (ghee-clarified butter if butter is needed) or sesame, grape seed, olive, or a quality canola. If things stick, allow the grill to come to temperature (200 deg. +)...use an infrared thermometer (something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Thermometer-Temperature-Adjustable-Emissivity-Calibration/dp/B08QGRCLST/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=benetech+digital+infrared&qid=1629157346&s=industrial&sr=1-3) to track temps on the surface and wait to add oil. As stainless steel, it does not need to be seasoned. You don't season forks, knives, spatulas or other stainless steel products, this doesn't need that either. It's not cast iron, and as it is steel, the process to make the steel, it's already been through more heat than you can throw at it. Good utensils are a must...flat non-heavy non-beveled edge spatulas are best for teppanyaki ("cooking on metal plate"). The best inexpensive spatulas I've found are at *mart, under the name Grill Expert and run about $4.97. You can use a good BBQ Fork, as well as a sharp knife to cut, dice, (not chop) and prep food for serving as it cooks. Cutting shrimp, chicken, beef as it cooks is a great way to allow juices to aid in flavor. Best practice for Use (this has served me well for 2+ years, and it still looks and works as new): 1-Turn on your Grill, and as it comes up to temp, use a spray bottle of water and a clean dark small towel dedicated to grill use (you'll see why) to wipe the surface down. 2-Once the grill is 200-250, drop a bit of water on it...if it beads and rolls, you're ready. Add oil to the *entire* surface, starting with a circle and a line across. Use your spatula to flat spread, scrape or roll the oil to fully coat the surface. 3-Depend on your grill, you can adjust the burners to achieve the desired heat on different areas of the grill, allowing for flash super hot cooking and searing, to cool down ready to serve. 4-Once you have finished cooking, shut off the gas. While the grill is still hot, Using about 1 quart of water, cover the surface a little at a time, allowing the water to coat the grill completely. Using your spatula, scrape off any sludge, buildup or tailings from cooking into the trough. 5-Allow the grill to cool. Go eat. 6-Using a grill scraper or spatula, clean up any more residue that may clog a green pad. 7-These are the same methods used to clean grills at restaurants, from burger joints to Steakhouses using teppanyaki or plancha style grills: -Using a grease cutting liquid soap like the one named for when the sun comes up, add a generous line across the grill. -Add about 1/2 qt. of water to the surface. -Using a grill scrubber (like the *mart .97 ones, (or https://www.amazon.com/Scotch-Brite-Heavy-Duty-Grill-Scrubber/dp/B0000AY64D/ref=sr_1_9?crid=2WVEE3ACKWAKN&dchild=1&keywords=grill+scrubber&qid=1629157245&sprefix=grill+scare%2Cindustrial%2C172&sr=8-9), spread the soap around and then begin to add some pressure *in lines* from front to back. At the front and back, you can scrub from left to right in one “lane” to clean the back guard, and the front of the trough edge. When you have a really good suds (1/2” + like whipped egg whites), flood the grill with a little water to rinse it. If needed, elevate the rear of the grill a bit with something stable to help the water flow into the trough. -Here’s what’s missing from those with “dirty grills”. Purchase from a home lumber store some #220 drywall sanding screens (I use: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PFT6X9L?psc=1&smid=A1E9WAJ0W6DAFO&ref_=chk_typ_imgToDp). The commercially available “grill screens” used in restaurants are fine, but expensive. They are just smaller versions of this and you can cut your own. Cut them in half, or from the roll, long enough to be the same size as your grill scrubber. -With a somewhat clean grill, with carbonization spots from cooking still showing, wipe off the grill if it’s still too soapy that you can’t see the steel. Proceed, with pressure, in the same pattern as the scrubbing, from front to back and forth, and then in the back “lane”, from left to right and forth, with the same in the front near the trough. If you have never cleaned your griddle in this way, it may take a bit of “polish” to get it back to a shiny surface. -The key is to leave a nice polished finish, and staying in “lanes”, you leave straight polish marks that make the griddle easier to clean with time. This is how the professionals do it. -Rinse the griddle down again, lift it out and dump the trough. Clean the trough if you care to with the screen, but as long as it’s not caked up, the carbon will burn out eventually. If it smokes, add a small amount of water during cooking and clean it with a paper towel (careful if it’s hot!). If your grill is also a stainless steel model on which you use this griddle, guess what also works for that…all of it (except decals and labels of course). I’ve had a blast cooking for the last 2+ years on this thing. Our favorites are Shrimp, Steak, Lobster, Chicken, Pork for mains, and sliced sides such as Purple onion, Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Carrots, Cabbage, Egg Plant, string beans…Fried Rice is exceptionally easy (rice, egg, carrots, water chestnuts, edamame, add soy sauce). We also cook breakfast with pancakes, Burgers and Hot Dogs. If you want some recipes, just search the web for what Teppanyaki steak houses cook. Try: BBQ Pork Roll- A Pork Loin, with Sesame oil on griddle. Roll the pork loin back and forth from front to back, until the outside is browned and almost blackened. Cut up some Cabbage (2 cups) into 2” triangles, and toss onto the griddle with some oil. Keep it separate from the pork, and let it get some blackened edges…move it to a cooler spot. Once the loin is almost crispy on the outside, with a sharp knife, cut the loin on the griddle into 1/2” slices, flattening them out on the griddle (the insides will probably be pink still). Move them around to let the pinker ones cook on the hotter section, and move the cooked ones to a cooler spot. When it’s almost ready, place your cabbage on a serving dish. Add some Korean BB! Sauce (about 1 cup) to the pork, and mix on the grill. When it’s bubbling and ready, remove it to the cabbage bed on the serving dish…Mmmmmm. This griddle has replaced our 5-burner stove as our daily cooking appliance, and the methods above I’ve used for more than 700 days of use. Good luck, happy griddling, and enjoy!
