Lodge Cast Iron Round Griddle with Red Silicone Hot Handle Holder, 10.5-inch

I'm so happy with this griddle. It's perfect in every way.Perfectly flatPerfectly non-stickPerfect heat distributionPerfect heat retentionWill last basically foreverMade in USAFirst off ignore the pictures of sticking and rust. Those are by people that don't do their research. Unlike you. :) It's not hard and there are hundreds of reviews and youtube videos explaining how to use cast iron.All I did was cook bacon on it two times to improve the factory seasoning. Now I only use it for french toast, pancakes, and eggs. This makes it extremely easy to maintain the seasoning.Now all I do is hit it with cooking spray and cook. When finished I wash it under a stream of very hot water. If there are any debris I use one of the Lodge plastic scrappers or a medium stiff brush. Then I put it on the burner for 3 minutes to dry it out so it doesn't have a chance to rust. That's it.If you have trouble with sticking do this: First clean and re-season it (watch some youtube videos). Second make sure the griddle is not too hot using a IR heat gun. Third. Use a lot of cooking spray or better yet butter. As you get experience you'll learn exactly howNow why go to that little bit of extra effort instead of a non-stick pan? Because non-stick pans break down over time putting all that garbage into your food. Because non-stick pans eventually warp which means they won't heat right on a glass top stove. Because Cast Iron will last a lifetime and then some and I don't like buying new pans every few years.Finally and most importantly this heavy metals griddle is made in the USA. If you don't think that's a big deal google articles about dangerous goods coming out of China. Which is the last thing you want for a cast iron pan that you're going cook your food in. All the heavy metals that China lets slip into their cast iron is going to end up in your food!

Great design for those much desired pancakes in the morning, does a great job warming up flour tortillas, works great on toasting buttered/garlic sourdough toast

Why did you pick this product vs others?:Easy to use and take care of. I use this for pancakes and hamburgers. I use "Can't believe it's not butter" spray and it works great. Both my pancakes and burgers come out great and are cooked evenly on near Medium heat. Love that this is made in the United States. The rubber handle holder is made in China which is very disappointing. I want to stick with only made in USA products.

Not much to tell it is a Cast Iron Pan and makes excellent fried eggs. Upon receipt I heated up the pan and pored water in it to boil, after it boiled off I killed the heat and wiped it down with canola oil not that it needed seasoning as Lodge does that perfectly well from the factory.To make the eggs I used a tablespoon of butter after heating the pan to a high medium heat on a glass top range. I watched as the butter shimmered and began to boil uniformly across the surface then cracked a pair of eggs on the counter and released them into the pan. After this I poured some water around the eggs not much mind you and then took a glass lid from another pot and put it over it and set a timer on my phone for 2 minutes.2 Minutes later perfect sunny side up eggs that were as easy to remove from the pan as any non stick ever was and by goodness they tasted one heck of allot better also.As the pan cooled a bit I took a few paper towels and wiped it out over the sink flipped it and wiped the outside as well with the little remaining butter in the pan. Then I placed it back on the burner and allowed them both to cool down on their own. When cool I placed it in the oven for safe keeping.Cooking with cast iron is different and honestly better than stainless or non stick which chips and puts dangerously sharp hard chips into the food you are eating.After cooking these eggs and some grilled cheese sandwiches on this I took my two remaining nonstick pans and tossed them in the garbage can.This evening I ordered a Lodge cast iron double Dutch oven, can't wait to put it to use.Yes Cast Iron takes a different approach to both cooking and cleaning but there are enough great youtube videos out there to get one past the differences and maintenance. Honestly after educating myself and working with Cast Iron in the past uneducated I can see my prior mistakes and how to avoid them now. Mostly what is important is the cleaning and keeping cast iron oiled with Canola oil. Not any oil will do as I used olive oil in the past and it did go rancid and gummy on me when not using the oil for a long period of time. Canola oil will not do this and has a higher smoke point as temps go. USE CANOLA OIL.

I finally found enough courage to move from non stick to cast iron griddle, and this was my first purchase. Long story short, I am super impressed with the difference! I primarily use this griddle to make dosa (an Indian form of rice and lentil crepes), and anyone who has experience with this dish can attest to the fact they are delicate and easy to mess up. I did face hiccups initially, with food sticking on to the griddle, but as time progresses, this keeps getting better and better,as promised. I refreshed the seasoning after the first (failed) use, and since then I haven't had any problems with it. Nifty, small workhorse that's going to be a great addition to my kitchen, for years to come, by the looks of it. I don't care about the handle holder though. It keeps sliding off, which is really dangerous. You can get a lot of helpful tips online about initial seasoning and regular maintenance of cast iron cookware.