What You Need to Know About How To Cook On A Blackstone Griddle

Have you been wondering how to cook on a Blackstone Griddle? If so, this post has got you covered.  Adding a griddle to your backyard will revolutionize your barbeque experiences. Getting your first griddle is much like your first smoker. You will find yourself daydreaming about all the deliciousness you will be able to whip up, and refusing to use your regular stove.

The Blackstone griddle is by far the most popular griddle currently on the market. It is the highest regarded and for good reason, as it is the brand used by many professional chefs and home cooks alike. The quality of the product is like no other and is exactly why it is the focus of our post today.

Before we dive into some actual recipes, we need to walk through a checklist of the top mistakes new griddle users make to ensure you don’t fall into the same trap with your Blackstone.

Top 4 Mistakes to Avoid

Forgetting to read the manual:

Different types of griddles are available and each of these has a different set of directions for operating them. While you are making use of a griddle, you should understand the instructions that are specific to the model.

Not seasoning your flat top:

Most of the electric flat top need to be seasoned every now and then for it to operate smoothly. The instructions regarding seasoning the griddle are generally mentioned in the instructions manual. So, make sure that you read it carefully. Have you ever seasoned an iron pan? Well, seasoning a griddle is quite similar too. You will simply need to coat the inside with some oil. You don’t have to splurge on any expensive oil. If you have bacon grease, even that will do the trick.

Once you have coated the entire surface of the griddle with oil, heat it. This will make sure that oil has spread into all the nooks and crannies. Coating the griddle with oil will act as a protective barrier against the natural elements. Make sure that the heat is set at between a low of 250 degrees F, and a high of 275 degrees F. Anything more than this, and the paint on the griddle will come off. The oil will prevent the griddle from rusting. There needs to be sufficient ventilation so that the fire keeps burning and look out for any creosote formations.

Not cleaning the grates:

The grates can be easily cleaned by placing them in the kitchen oven and set them on a self-cleaning cycle. This will help in burning off any soot and grease. It takes a few hours. At the end of this process, the grates will look new and shiny. Spraying the grates with a little bit of cooking spray will help in making the cleaning up process much simpler. It will also prevent any meat from sticking to it. You should treat your griddle like an investment and take good care of it. You will need to keep cleaning it occasionally and use it how it is supposed to be used.

Not studying proper temperatures:

Whenever you are making use of a griddle, you should always make sure that you are cooking at an ideal temperature. You will need to monitor the internal temperature of the griddle. However, most of the griddles available these days come with a temperature gauge. This simplifies your work. Some griddles also have a dial for adjusting the griddles. So, make sure that you have adjusted the temperature depending on the recipe.

Now that we have gotten the vital bits out of the way it’s time to fire up your griddle. Let’s take a look at a few popular recipes often featured on the Blackstone Griddle.

How To Cook On A Blackstone Griddle

Baby Back Ribs with Espresso BBQ Sauce

Ingredients:

• 3 racks (6 lbs.) pork baby back ribs
• 2 tbsp. of each
• Minced garlic
• EVOO
• 1 c. of each:
• Honey
• Ketchup
• ½ c. balsamic vinegar
• ¼ c Strong home-brewed coffee/Starbucks double shot espresso
• ¼ c Soy sauce
• Freshly ground pepper & Sea salt to taste

Directions:

1. Set your griddle to preheat on medium-low.
2. Add your garlic and extra-virgin olive oil to the griddle and cook until browned slightly (just about a minute). Be careful not to burn the garlic. Transfer roasted garlic to a bowl.
3. Blend in your espresso, soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, and honey.
4. Coat the ribs to your liking with pepper and salt or your preferred spice rub.
5. Lightly grease your griddle (or Blackstone Rib Rack if you have one) with oil and set your ribs on to cook until the internal thermometer reaches 160ºF (1-1 ½ hours).

Note: For the last ten minutes, take the ribs off the griddle and baste with the sauce you created earlier.

6. When the rack of ribs is fully cooked, place on a cutting board, slice, and serve to pipe hot.

Pineapple Pulled Pork Sandwich

Ingredients:

For pork:

• Pork shoulder- 7 lb., bone removed
• Guajillo chilies- 6, seeds and stem removed
• Mexican oregano- 2 teaspoons
• Pineapple juice- 6 cups

For sandwich:

• Diced pineapple- 4 cups
• Cilantro- 1 ½ cups, stems removed
• Bread rolls- 10
• Red onion- 1, pickled
• Mexican crema- 8 Oz

For seasoning:

• Garlic powder- 3 tablespoons
• Ground black pepper- 2 teaspoons
• Salt- 2 ½ teaspoons
• Ground turmeric- ½ teaspoon
• Dried oregano- 1 teaspoon

Directions:

1. Cover the pork and allow it to settle at room temperature while you prepare the all-purpose seasoning. Take a small bowl and mix garlic powder, salt, black pepper, oregano, and turmeric in it. Use a spice grinder to grind it.
2. Store it in an airtight container. Rub this freshly prepared spice mix all over the pork shoulder. Preheat the griddle to low and set your pork to cook ‘low and slow’ for 5 hours.
3. Take a bowl and add 2 cups of pineapple juice to it. Soak the Guajillo chilies (dried) in the juice. Heat this mixture for 1-2 minutes at high heat and cover.
4. Use a blender to make a puree and then add Mexican oregano. Stir everything to smoothen and mix well. Set this aside.
5. Wrap the pork in aluminum foil after 5 hours. Continue to cook like this for another 2 hours until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 185 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Remove the pork from the griddle and set it aside to cool.
7. Shred the pork in a baking dish then add pineapple and chili mixture to it.
8. Serve the delicious pulled pork with pickled red onion, toasted rolls, Mexican crema, diced pineapple, and cilantro in sandwich form.

Final Thoughts

There are tons of amazing Blackstone Griddle recipes swimming around. So, be sure to give them all a go. Cooking on a griddle can be loads of fun, and it’s always a blast trying to come up with new and delicious recipes for the Blackstone griddle.

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