What Can I Cook On A Flat Top Grill? Flat Top Grill Recipes

A flat top grill is a type of grill without any grates. Instead, it has a flat surface on the top for cooking. Currently, more and more people use flat top grills as their favorite cooker. It’s very versatile and convenient to use. Today, let’s check out what you can cook with a flat top grill (all flat top grill recipies) with Sunset Bar and Grill.

What can you cook on a flat top grill? Flat top grill recipies

What can you cook on a flat top grill?

What Can I Cook On A Flat Top Grill? 

With a flat top grill, you can cook an entire meal including meat, vegetables, side dishes, and so on. You can also prepare your breakfast or make sauces, or some kinds of cakes.

But that’s not all. Do you think that a grill is only for grilling? In fact, this versatile grill also allows you to put pots and pans on it to cook.

Now, let’s go into detail about what this amazing grill can do.

1. Meat and seafood

A flat top grill is a grill, but it won’t grill your food like charcoal or gas grills. This grill can’t create grill lines on your meat or fish. It’s more like you saute your food with some butter or cooking oil.

The most suitable meat to cook with a flat top grill are lean cuts of meat. That means it works well with pork chops, steaks, or chicken breasts. The flat top grill will create a Maillard reaction to these meat cuts. The grilled meat will be solid and have a tasty look with a brown coat.

If you grill red meat like beef or veal, the color may be darker. On chicken breasts or pork, this coating will be shiny golden brown.

Another great meat that a flat top grill can produce is the hamburger. Flat top grills are the common cooker of many burger chains and restaurants. The large cooking surface of this grill allows you to cook many hamburgers at once.

However, you need to pay attention when cooking fatty meat like bacon on a flat top grill. Greasy meat will release a large amount of fat when you grill them on flat tops.

The fat can splutter and cause grease burns to you. So, you should wear long sleeves and an apron to avoid skin burns.

Besides meat, flat top grills also work well with fish and other seafood. It’s better to grill fish at the cooler heat zone of the flat top. You can check the instructions manual to know the different heat zones of the grill.

A flat top grill works well with steaks - flat top grill recipies

A flat top grill works well with steaks

2. Breakfast, eggs, and desserts

With a flat top grill, your breakfast preparation will be a piece of cake.

You can take advantage of the flat cooking surface of this grill to make scrambled eggs or omelettes. Similarly, toasting bread has never been so easy. It may take you longer than a toaster, but the toast will have a more even brown finish.

Moreover, you can make some desserts like pancakes or crepes. The flat top grill will caramelize your pancakes and give them a perfect golden brown finish.

3. Vegetables and side dishes

The versatility of a flat top won’t stop at grilling meat and making breakfast. It can also cook vegetables. Flat tops will make fibrous vegetables like eggplants or asparagus softer with high heat. The asparagus will be less bitter when you cook it with a flat top.

Besides, you can make some delicious side dishes such as sauteed mushrooms and onions on this grill. When cooking vegetables, you need to lengthen the cooking time a bit. In this way, vegetables will get a good caramelization without burning or drying out.

You can also cook vegetables on a flat top grill - flat top grill recipies

You can also cook vegetables on a flat top grill

4. Use of pans and pots

Besides the above features, you can put pans or pots on a flat top grill to cook. In this way, this grill allows you to boil food or make sauces. However, you should only use 1-quart pots or smaller pots on flat top grills.

Besides, cooking in a pot using flat tops will be less efficient than using normal burners. So, you should consider this drawback to have a proper cooking plan.

How Does A Flat Top Grill Differ From A Griddle?

Flat top grills and griddles have quite similar appearances to the flat cooking surface. But they are still different from each other in some aspects.

1. What is a griddle?

A griddle is also a type of grill with a heat source placed below the cooking surface. The cooking surface of a griddle is also flat as that of a flat top grill.

2. What is the difference between griddles and flat top grills?

The main difference between these two cooking appliances is the heat source. A griddle has straight heating elements located along its length. Meanwhile, the heat source of a flat top grill consists of multiple round heating coils.

The difference in their heat source leads to the difference in their features. You can cook with pots and pans on a flat top grill. But a griddle doesn’t have this feature.

3. Can you cook a steak on a griddle?

Yes, you can cook steaks, chicken, or any other meat on a griddle. Like a flat top grill, the flat cooking surface of a griddle is also very versatile. It works well with most things you can cook on a flat top grill.

Some Must-Try Flat Top Grill Recipes 

1. American Smash Burger

American Smash Burger - flat top grill restaurant recipes

American Smash Burger

Ingredients 

  • Ground beef: 200g
  • American cheese: 100g
  • Hamburger buns: 2
  • Onion: 1
  • Pickles: 2
  • Butter: 20g
  • Mayonnaise: 20g
  • Ketchup: 10g
  • Mustard: 5g
  • Garlic powder: 3g
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Directions

  • Step 1: Preheat the flat top grill on medium heat. Slice the onion into rings. Divide the ground beef into 2 parts and form each part into a ball.
  • Step 2: Melt 10g of butter on the flat top. Add onion slices and cook until they are tender and turn golden brown. Season the onions with a little salt. Toast both sides of the buns.
  • Step 3: Melt the remaining butter and place two meatballs on the flat top. Press the patties with a spatula. Grill both sides of the meat until they turn brown. Add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and top with American cheese.
  • Step 4: Make the burger sauce by mixing mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard. Apply a layer of burger sauce on the bottom bun. Then, place the cooked beef on the bun. Top with sauteed onion and sliced pickle. Add another layer of burger sauce and put the top bun on.

2. Sauteed Tuna with Pineapple Salsa

Sauteed Tuna with Pineapple Salsa - flat top grill cooking ideas

Sauteed Tuna with Pineapple Salsa

Ingredients 

  • Tuna steak: 2
  • Pineapple: 250g, diced
  • Red bell pepper: 100g, diced
  • Red onion: 50g, diced
  • Jalapeños: 2, deseeded and diced
  • Cilantro: 45g, chopped
  • Lime juice of 2 limes
  • Peanut oil: 60ml

Directions

  • Step 1: Make the Pineapple Salsa by mixing pineapple, onion, jalapeños, cilantro, and lime juice in a bowl.
  • Step 2: Heat the flat top grill with peanut oil at medium-high temperature.  Then, put the tuna steaks into the grill and cook for 5 minutes. Flip the steaks and cook for another 5 minutes.
  • Step 3: Take the tuna steaks out and let them cool down a bit. Then cut them into slices in ¼ inch thickness. Place on a plate, add the Pineapple Salsa, season to taste, and enjoy.

3. Flat top grill pancakes

Flat top grill pancakes - camp chef griddle recipes

Flat top grill pancakes

Ingredients

  • All-purpose flour: 350g
  • Baking powder: 10g
  • Baking soda: 5g
  • Sugar: 45g
  • Eggs: 2
  • Milk: 280ml
  • Melted butter: 60g

Directions

  • Step 1: Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar in a bowl. Whip eggs and mix with milk and butter in another bowl. Pour the wet mixture into the bowl of the dry mixture and stir well.
  • Step 2: Heat the flat top grill on high heat. Add 15-20g butter or oil into the grill. Pour the pancake batter into the grill with 60g of batter for 1 pancake.
  • Step 3: When there are bubbles on top of the pancakes, flip them and cook until the other side turns golden brown. You can serve these pancakes with fruits, syrup, or honey.

Conclusion

Through this article, you have known what you can cook with a flat top grill and must-try flat top grill recipies. This grill is very versatile and useful for your cooking. So, if you haven’t got a flat top grill, go for one. Don’t forget to try the great recipes above. We hope that you will have happy meals with your grill.

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