If you’re looking for a way to enjoy cooking in your garden then a Plancha grill also known as flat top grills could be the way to go. A plancha grill is not only an attractive and practical outdoor grill but it doubles up as a fire pit too so will keep you warm late into summer evenings.
Planchas offer an incredible cooking experience, used in Spanish cooking: the flat top griddle combines high-temperature searing with only a small amount of smoking. Keep reading our article to find out everything you need to know about plancha grills and which are the best ones to buy!
- What is a Plancha Grill?
- Best Planchas for UK Gardens
- Is Cooking Food on a Plancha Healthy?
- Where in the Garden Should a Plancha Grill Live?
- Which Fuels are Best for a Plancha Grill?
- Can a Plancha be used as a Fire Pit?
- How Long Before a Plancha is Ready to Cook?
- What Accessories are Best for a Plancha?
- How to Maintain a Plancha BBQ?
- What are Alternatives to Plancha Grills?
What is a Plancha Grill?
A plancha or flat top grill is quite simply a large flat-top griddle that reaches very high temperatures to sear food like fish, meat and vegetables. A plancha will produce only a very small amount of smoke and is inspired by Spanish cooking, the heating surface is generally circular, with a hole in the middle to allow flames to exit the grill.
Unlike other types of barbecue and grills the surface of the plancha allows heat to dissipate towards the outer edge allowing for different foods to be moved around easily without adjusting the intensity of the heat source. Most planchas are coated with a layer of non-reactive chrome to minimise flavour changes and make cleanup easier (we would still recommend you clean a plancha immediately after cooking).
Best Planchas for UK Gardens
Here we’ve selected our top-rated plancha grills that our customers love. You’ll find some of the most high-quality outdoor cooking planchas that produce some amazing results and are built to last! When it comes to choosing your grill we have gas-fired and solid fuel fuel options with circular or rectangular styles available.
If you're interested in purchasing a plancha grill you should consider industry leading brands like Dragonfly, Quan Garden Art & Pitboss Grills.
Is Cooking Food on a Plancha Healthy?
Yes, a plancha is an extremely healthy way of cooking your food. The extremely high temperature of the cooking plate will cook or bake your food in no time which means it will retain lots of the nutrients in your dish. Another benefit is that your food doesn’t come into direct contact with the flames of the fire, so unlike some BBQs, your food is not exposed to flames.
Where in the Garden Should a Plancha Grill Live?
If you’re considering buying a beautiful plancha then considering where it will live in your garden will take time and thought. Planchas are often large, bulky and heavy items that can weigh in excess of 200Kg so once in place ideally you won’t want to reposition it again!
You should look to place the grill on a flat and clean surface that is well-ventilated away from any potentially flammable objects such as garden furniture. You’ll want to ensure low-lying trees and hedges are not in the vicinity of your BBQ plancha too.
If you have your heart set on buying a lighter and/or smaller stainless steel plancha you could look to invest in a plancha trolley or outdoor prep kitchen.
Which Fuels Are Best for a Plancha Grill?
If you are considering buying a plancha grill then it is important to use the right type of fuel. Traditionally, plancha grills use seasoned wood or charcoal to get the flat plate up to temperature but we also have a range of gas-powered plancha grills which are easy to light and maintain a consistent temperature.
You can use a variety of wood types in your plancha, but well-seasoned firewood or kiln-dried hardwoods like beech and ash produce the best results. We recommend that you use a mix of different woods. Once the fire burns down to a mass of embers you can spread them around and they will provide you with some heat for an extended period.
If you’re wanting to create food with some amazing flavour you could experiment with either beech or walnut which produces different smoky flavours to food. Woods like almond, apple or cherry will pass fruity aromas to meats and fish alike.
Can a Plancha be used as a Fire Pit?
Yes, it can! One of the main selling points of a wood or charcoal-fired plancha is that it can double up as an outdoor fire pit heater.
Your plancha could become a very versatile piece of cooking equipment in your garden. You may wish to consider removing the grill ring if you’re going to use the item as a fire pit but this is very easy to do on most models.
How Long Before a Plancha is Ready to Cook?
Once a Plancha BBQ Grill has been lit, it will usually take between 25 to 45 minutes, depending on the weather conditions and the temperature outside. The cooking plate will reach around 300˚C on the inner edge and around 200˚C on the outer edge, this is when you’re ready to start adding food.
For the first few times you light your plancha, we recommend using olive oil which will help the cooking plate get a nice brown-black hue. After the first few uses, you can start using natural oil types like sunflower oil and groundnut oil, which have higher combustion points.
What Accessories are Best for a Plancha?
You’ll struggle to cook on a plancha grill unless you’re equipped with a number of cooking accessories. Our accessories will help you produce better food results and ensure your experience of cooking on a plancha grill is much more enjoyable.
You can find some of the most popular accessories that our customers often purchase alongside a plancha grill here.
To name a few our accessory collection includes protective covers, outdoor prep tables, gloves and a variety of cooking utensils.
How to Maintain a Plancha BBQ?
Before investing to buy a plancha a big question to consider is how much maintenance it will require and is this going to eat into your already busy lifestyle. The amount of time you’ll need to spend maintaining your plancha will mostly depend on the material it is constructed from but expect to clean your plancha grill after each use as a minimum. Simply allowing it to cool, removing the ashes and cleaning the grill ring with hot soapy water should be enough to clean your plancha after most cooks.
If you have invested in a cast iron plancha or one with an enamelled top, then be very careful when cleaning not to scratch the grill ring; using a spatula made from wood or silicone is best. To finish the cleaning process you should dip a cloth in olive oil and spread this around the grill ring.
A plancha grill that is made from stainless steel rather than a case may require periodic deep cleaning to slow down wear and tear. The same process we’ve described above will need to take place after each cook also.
What are Alternatives to Plancha Grills?
We realise that a plancha grill might not be for everyone, but if you’ve visited our website before you’ll know that there are plenty of other outdoor cooking appliances available.
Our outdoor living department caters for lots of different types of cooks, we have outdoor stoves, gas grills, charcoal barbecues and Kamados too!
Below we’ve listed a selection of our most popular products that you may be interested in.
