REVIEW – If you cook on a griddle, then you know that there is nothing better than cast iron for high-temperature cooking. Grilled sandwiches, smash burgers, eggs, and more all call out for cast iron for balanced temperature cooking and simple cleanup. Some cast iron pans are a bit unwieldy to handle as cast iron tends to be extremely heavy. The trick is to find the balance between being too light but heavy enough so you get good durability and even heating without making it so heavy that it is hard to handle. Cooklife thinks it has struck that balance with the Cooklife 12-inch Cast Iron Double-Handled Griddle. Will it find that sweet spot and be a good solution for griddling? Let’s get cooking!
What is it?
This is a smooth-surface 12″ 100% cast iron griddle. It is just over 1″ tall and designed for flat cooking items like pancakes, sandwiches, burgers, steaks, and such. It comes pre-seasoned and ready to cook.
What’s included?
- Griddle
- Cast iron care kit – pan scraper and mesh scrubbing cloth
- Recipe booklet
Tech specs
Click to expand
Dimensions: 12″ inside diameter; 14.8″ handle-to-handle; 1.1″ tall
Weight: 6.2 lbs (approximate)
Construction: smooth finish, double-handle, 100% cast iron
Design and features
The griddle has a smooth finish that is pre-seasoned and naturally non-stick. The top open handles extend a short distance off each side, making it easy to grab while not sticking out and easily bumped. The short lip is just about an inch high so this is not designed for cooking stew, chili, or other runny food.
The bottom is also smooth and includes the Cooklife logo, “CAST IRON GRIDDLE”, and “12” embossed into the cast iron.
With its smooth bottom and 100% cast iron construction, this griddle is designed to be used on a traditional burner stove, flat-glass cooktops, gas cooktops, and induction cooktops as well as outdoor grills.
Assembly, Installation, Setup
Since the griddle comes pre-seasoned, the only setup is to give the griddle a quick wash and then put it on the cooktop,
Performance
For my first test, I decided to fry up a shredded pork and cheese sandwich. I decided to use the AMZCHEF Double Induction Cooktop that I recently reviewed. I placed the pan on the right burner and turned it up to level 5. I could feel the pan heating immediately. I buttered the bread, placed a slice in the pan, topped it with shredded pork and cheese and another buttered slice of bread, and waited.
After a few minutes, I gave it a flip and let the other side brown. Then, I cut it in half and plated my meal.
The results were perfect, and might I also add, quite tasty.
After letting everything cool down, a little warm water, and a quick wipe-down made the griddle look like I just took it out of the box. Nice.
The next day, I made smash burgers. For the uninitiated, smash burgers are just that – burgers that are smashed down while cooking. You start with a hot griddle and place two 2 to 2.5-ounce balls of burger on the griddle. Then, you take a spatula or other flat tool and smash the burgers flat, into bun-sized pancakes. It cooks fast and caramelizes the burger into a crispy, crunchy, tasty crust. After the top stops being pink – about a minute or two, you scrape the patties from the griddle – the crust sticks if you do it right – and flip them. Then, you immediately cover one patty with your choice of cheese and then place the other patty on top so the cheese melts between. Plate on a toasted bun and serve.
Unfortunately, the process all happens so fast that I couldn’t capture all of it in photos, but here is the last burger, ready to come off the griddle.
And here is the burned-on, crusty mess that it left behind.
The results – perfection! For what it’s worth, I buttered the buns and toasted them on the griddle before I started the burgers.
We sure ate well that evening. But what about that gross griddle? A little hot water, a little pan scraper time, and a quick once-over with the scrubbing cloth followed by a wipe down with a little vegetable oil again, it looks like new!
The next morning, I used the griddle to reheat a pancake from a previous morning with excellent results. It heats evenly, cleans up easily, and simply performs well.
My lovely wife, and arguably the real cook in our relationship, decided to get into the act. She thought that the griddle with its 1.1-inch height was perfect for a pizza. She whipped up some pizza dough, rolled it out, plopped it into the griddle, and dressed it.
She was hoping to cook it at 500°F, but that’s when we learned that our oven only heats to 480°F. Unfortunately, the handles on the Cooklife griddle make it a fraction of an inch too wide to use in the Revolve Pizza Oven that I reviewed recently since that had no problem heating to 500°F. No matter. A 20°F deficit wasn’t enough to materially affect the outcome.
Once again, the Cooklife griddle performed flawlessly. The pie was perfectly cooked.
The crust was nicely cooked all the way through.
The bottom was nicely browned as well. This demonstrated how well the pan disbursed heat across the surface. The bottom of the pie was uniformly cooked.
While I mentioned that the handles made the griddle a shade too wide for the Revolve Pizza Oven, it did fit front-to-back as long as I didn’t use the revolving function. Looks like it is time for another test!
We picked up a couple of prime filets at our local Sam’s Club. I let them warm to room temperature and covered them with kosher salt and let them sit. Then, I put the Cooklife griddle in the oven and cranked it up.
After about 16 minutes, I turned the oven down so it would maintain roughly 650°F. I pulled the griddle out and placed the steaks on. They immediately started sizzling and smoking. In fact, I was a little worried at first.
But I followed the instructions I found for high-temp steak cooking and let them sit in there for three minutes. Then, I pulled the pan out, flipped the steaks, and rotated them 180° since the back of the oven is hotter than the front, and put the pan back in for another three minutes.
When the timer expired, I checked the internal temperature and it was between 115°F and 120°F – perfect! I pulled the steaks off and wrapped them in foil to rest.
The griddle was a smokey, baked-on mess.
I left the pan to cook and after the steaks rested for several minutes, I topped them with a pat of butter and waited a couple additional minutes. Check out the seared crust on the steak!
The steak was very nicely cooked. When I do this again, I will likely change from three minutes on a side to perhaps two-and-a-half. Still, there was pink in the middle and a beautiful seared crust on the outside.
My wife had whipped up sauteed onions and fried potatoes and that wrapped up the perfect plate.
We ate a meal that rivaled any I have ever had at any steakhouse. Cooking the steaks on a 650°F griddle produced outstanding results.
Once again, even though the griddle was a mess, it cleaned up easily with hot water, the scraper, and the scrubber. I ran a light coating of oil over it since super-high temperatures can burn off the seasoning. You can see some slight discoloration, but that is to be expected the more I use the griddle, especially at high temperatures.
The griddle has handled everything we have thrown at it and it has come out looking great every time. The only drawback I can find is its $129 price tag. Other cast iron griddles are available for much less, but I can’t speak to their quality like I can for the Cooklife griddle. This is a top-notch cooking tool.
What I like about the Cooklife 12-inch Cast Iron Double-Handled Griddle
- Nicely sized for both use and storage
- Heavy enough but not too heavy
- Nicely finished and well-seasoned right out of the box
- Heats evenly
What needs to be improved?
- It is pricey
Final thoughts
I am pretty impressed with the Cooklife 12-inch Cast Iron Double-Handled Griddle. It performs well, heats evenly, and cleans up like a dream. The stubby handles are just big enough to easily pick up the griddle while being small enough that storing it isn’t a headache. The finish is excellent and I expect to be using it for years to come. It is a versatile tool that is equally good at griddling, baking, and searing. If you can get past the relatively high price tag, this is a terrific cast iron griddle.
Price: $129
Where to buy: Cooklife and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Cooklife. Cooklife did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
