Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara logo

An Electric Griddle

Please don’t blame me if you decide to buy one of these.  I’m just reporting my feelings about it.  I’m not twisting arms!  🙂

You know how I feel about my stove so I’m not going to moan and complain that I have a regular size, electric smooth top stove when what I really want is a 6 burner gas stove.  Nope, I’m not going to complain!  In the mornings, especially on weekends, when I’m making breakfast, I run out of stove space.  I do not like that smooth top stove at all but . . I’m not going to complain! 🙂

Sometimes I’m fixing pancakes and if I use a big skillet on the bigger back right burner, it means I cannot get a pot on the front right burner because the big skillet takes up too much room.  If I’m frying bacon in another big skillet on the front left big burner, it means I can’t get a pot on the back left smaller burner because the big skillet takes up too much room.  That leaves me no burner to fix Speck’s scrambled egg . .  but I’m not complaining!  🙂

The real problem happens when I’m frying bacon, making eggs, and wanting to make either hash browns or grits .. not enough stove space.  Have I said lately how much I dislike my stove?

We talked about getting an electric griddle but they’re long and they take up so much room when not in use so I never got one but before Christmas, I kept seeing the ads for the the Cuisinart 5 in 1 Griddler.  Since it folds up and doesn’t take up a lot of space when not in use, I decided to give it a try.

Before I recommended it, I wanted to use it for a couple of months.  I’m happy to report that I love this little rascal!    When opened out like this, it slants just a bit towards the middle and all the grease drains down into a little cup.  I can scramble an egg or two but have to be careful or they will drain down towards the little cup too.  I’ve mastered dumping the egg onto the griddle and using the spatula to keep it from running away but you can see they still try to slip away a bit.

Fried eggs are easy to make because I just pour them very slowly onto the hot griddle and they start cooking before they can run away.

Pancakes work perfectly on here!  The little griddle trays pop off and on the other side of both pieces are grills — perfect for making panini sandwiches or heating up leftover steak or pork chops. The best part — those trays go in the dishwasher!

And, you can order a waffle plate for it but I don’t have that.  Might have to get it though.  We love waffles.

If you find yourself running out of stove space when fixing breakfast or if you’ve been wanting a little grill/griddle, you might want to check this one out.  I’m real pleased with it.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. You are SO not helpful to my budget (but then again, neither is my DH!). I could use one of these as I two have a smooth top electric stove and juggle skillets every time I cook breakfast!

  2. My chuckle of the day is that I mis-read your title.

    I couldn’t figure out what ANYONE would want with an electric girdle. 🙂

    Happy “Monday” to you. 🙂 [I know it’s Tuesday, but since I was not at work yesterday, it’s my Monday.]

  3. I grew up with gas stoves, loved them and have cooked on them all of our 50 years of marriage. So after being in Hawaii in Dec, my DH announced we should get a glass top stove because our condo had one and he made his oatmeal on it. I said unless he was taking over the cooking, forget it. No more was said.

  4. I love my griddle….I resisted buying one for years thinking I would not use it enough……but of all the appliances I have, i use the griddle the most……my peronal favorite to make on it is garlic toast……..I used to burn it all the time when I made it under the broiler in the oven, but doing it on the griddle….perfect everytime.

  7. I have the same griddle and have thoroughly enjoyed it. We have one in the 5th wheel. It is great for cooking outside and cleanup is easy.

  8. I rarely use the griddle part, but make Rueben paninis and any other kind of panini we can think of…… even grilled cheese!!!

  10. We got a Griddler at Christmas time and like it. We’ve done steaks and they were really good. I love that the grids go in the dish washer. I could never get the George Foreman grill clean enough. I never thought of making my Reubens on it. Genius!

  13. Have an electric griddle and electric frypan that now stay inside the cupboard since the kids are no longer at home. But years ago I did find them useful. As to the eggs running down griddle maybe you could fashion a shim from a couple canning jar lids (minus the rings) just to raise up the one end.
    I absolutely love my smooth-top range. My husband always managed to boil over every cooking pot and forgetting to tell me, thus there was a burned mess on the drip pan. Love that we no longer have a drip pan to mess up. Enjoy your new toy.

  14. I cook my bacon in the oven, a lot less mess and no smoke detector screaming. I have a gas stove, but it is a regular 4 burner; I would absolutely love a 5 even a 6 burner gas stove, however no room right now.

  15. LOL! An electric GIRLDE – now, wouldn’t Gma have balked at that!
    A tip for running eggs: place two cookie cutters (preferably the kind with small wooden handles to hold without getting burned) onto the griddle, spray with cooking spray and pour your eggs into them. Can you imagine making cute heart-shaped or star-shaped eggs?

  16. I too have the same issue when cooking breakfast. Have you tried bacon in the oven? Use a 1/2 sheet pan with a metal rack that fits inside. Line the sheet pan with foil (easy to clean up) then bake 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. Watch after about 8 minutes, sometimes mine takes longer if bacon is a little thicker. No grease splatters anywhere, easy cleanup and you have all that stovetop space left over. (Convection oven? Even better)

  17. Judy,

    I have a five in one Foreman griddle. To cook things that you don’t need to have on a slant to get rid of the grease there is a way to adjust the griddle so it lays flat for cooking pancakes , eggs, etc.

  18. I live in a tiny matchbox home. Not complaining either it is ours and paid for.
    Our kitchen is tiny too.

    I have the old fashion Griswold round griddle I do my pancakes, cheese sandwhiches and etc. on it. I have the frying pans too. Dutchoven is nice for chili and stews.

    I just don’t have the room for all these nice items you have.

  19. i’m in year #6 of having to deal with an electric stove and burn (or scorch) things alot. i used gas for the 50ish years before that and HATE electric stoves… but i digress.

    just wanted to say that my daughter received one of these as a gift and had it stored away for quite some time before using it for the first time. after that she absolutely loves it and pulls it out at the drop of a hat! she uses it mainly for panninis or cooking meat when she can’t barbque, but does on occasion open it as an electric griddle, especially when she either needs it for extra space or sometimes for making lunch for the kids. since hers are still little, it works just great size-wise. and she says it cleans up so nice and easy.

    and while i’m here… can i (we) get an update on if you are still in love with your iron? i sent your post to a friend who needed a new one and was considering it, but i don’t think she’s made the plunge yet.

  20. You keep showing me things I didn’t realize I needed! But I totally agree on the stovetop issue. Mine is gas, but I’ve still only got four burners and can’t fit the two big frying pans side by side.

    How many pancakes will that thing hold?

  21. Funny!!! I was just lamenting the stove I have here in South Africa! Take the worst part of the coil burner electric stove and marry it to the worst parts of the glass/flat top electric stove, and there you have my stove. It has 2 settings -too cool to cook and too hot to cook… and it’s never the same 2 days in a row. The only good thing is the convection oven below the cooktop. It’s not one unit… but 2. Oh, and the oven door swings open, not down… like most.

    PS… I hate electric stoves too…

  22. I have the George Foreman Next Grilleration Electric Nonstick Grill with 5 Removable Plates, and it has a leveling feature, and also has a waffle plate.
    However, we seldom use the extra plates feature as for the two of us the range works fine. If we have company for breakfast and do bacon, the over works great. We seldom eat bacon or eggs. For us it’s a special treat.
    We are cereal and fruit breakfast eaters. Or Smoothies in the warmer weather. Or a piece of toast and fruit. I guess we eat a lot of fruit! :o) come to think of it.
    I love my now ancient gas range. It’s a four burner GE from the 80’s. I periodically think of replacing it for something more modern looking with more BTU’s but, it still looks better than most of the newer models. Lots of neat chrome touches, and it’s –well, a “pretty gas range” compared to the modern stainless curved models. Although I did like that range you found Judy, was it an LG? with the bright blue porcelain oven! I thought that one was neat looking! I hope you get that gas range someday—soon! Instead of another weed eater!

  24. Judy, My dad bought the same one of these for his vacation cottage (5th Wheel), liked it so much he bought another one for home. He can cook breakfast outside when they are at the beach and he loves the waffle plates.

  25. I notice someone else asked about the iron. I think the last one I got on your recommendation is nearing the end of its useful life. It’s been great, though. What is the name of the one you most recently blogged about?

    PS, I take it you don’t like microwaved bacon. I love it because the clean up is easy. (I do it on a paper plate.) And the drippings are absorbed by paper towels.

  26. I use an electric skillet for many of the things you mentioned. I just bought a new one at Kohls and I love it. It is a Food Network Brand.

  27. That looks like a terrific griddle! I wonder if I could find room for it here? (I guess it’s not too huge when it’s closed?)

  28. I prefer to bake my bacon. Spread it out on a cookie sheet, stick the pan in preheated oven at 400*F for 15-18 mins depending on how crisp you want it.
    No unsightly curling up and no fatty parts.

    I’d love a griddle for other things tho. I’ll have to think about it. Mmmm good.

  29. Pamela and I got those exact same griddles for Christmas too! We love ’em! I especially like how the griddle/grill parts pop right out and go in the dishwasher. It makes great paninis!

  30. I love this griddle! I have the same one and my family uses it all the time. I have 4 teenage boys and let me tell you what! They use it too!

  31. I love the electric griddle you blogged about! It is my birthday this month so I quickly went to Amazon and added the whole thing with the waffle irons to my wish list. I hope I get it! Love your eclectic blogging style!

  33. Your bacon looks just like ours from our homegrown hogs. The taste is incredible. I have a griddle–not your brand and mine doesn’t go in the dishwasher : ( –and like to make bacon or sausage and pancakes. Gets it all done in a hurry. Have you ever tried the Buttermilk Syrup recipe from Best Bites? It looks so rich.

Discover more from Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading