Grease Management with Plancha?

[jfmorris]

I couldn't find anything in a search of the pit, so thought I would just ask.

My son has a Weber Spirit 3 burner, and a Weber Premium 22" Kettle. He recently picked up a Blackstone 36" on the side of the road, which just needs rust cleaned off, and re-seasoning, and a coat of high temp paint on the hinged lid. HOWEVER, his bride is giving him grief about putting a 3rd cooker on their patio. So he is thinking of fixing up this Blackstone and selling it for $200 or so on FB Marketplace - should be an easy sell - and then using the proceeds to get some accessories for his kettle. For starters, a SNS and a good leave-in 2 or 4 channel thermometer with an app connection. He was also thinking of a griddle insert for his Spirit, bigger than the Lodge CI griddle he currently uses on it.

So, enter me thinking today that I should recommend a plancha to him. Which leads to my question... finally!

How do you handle grease when using a plancha on a kettle? Do you just push it into the two holes in the plancha, and let it flow down to the ash collection cup under the kettle? I know if I cook something greasy like a bunch of chicken leg quarters or burgers, the grease is just dripping onto the coals and I presume either burning up or running to the ash collection bucket. But that is different than say throwing down a couple pounds of bacon on a plancha, and just letting all that grease run down there. Most of my griddle experience is upside down grill grates on a Weber Genesis, and I've had that cause grease fires below the grate before, or on my Camp Chef, where I have a grease trough and it all funnels into a cup in the front.

Anyway, that's it. Just wondering about grease management using a plancha on a kettle....

[Panhead John]

My plan would be to first try and convince his wife how much better a stand alone griddle is over….trying manage the grease on a kettle, messing with coals every time you want to use it..in addition to how much more space that would give them to cook on. Then after cleaning it up, have him make her a delicious meal on the Blackstone. She might change her mind after getting to experience the advantages first hand. Before I got my Pit Boss, I bought an SNS Drip N Griddle. Used it twice, the whole experience was just a big hassle.

[jfmorris]

I have two of the stainless steel Drip 'N Griddles. Used the first one a couple times as a griddle, but found that #1 it warped with heat and #2 stainless is a horrible griddle surface - everything sticks! Now they are just drip pans, or serving and prep pans, for my kettle and SNS kamado.

My son's patio is pretty crowded with a big table and offset umbrella and a fire pit and 2 grills. I may recommend a griddle for his gasser over a plancha...

[Panhead John]

I bought the SS also, found the same issues you did. That’s all I use mine for too, catching grease. I’d much prefer using a griddle over the gasser than a kettle! And yeah, grease management will be the biggest issue, but with your experience I have no doubt you’ll come up with a good plan.

[Purc]

I have wondered the same thing. I think I want either a flat top or griddle/plancha for my kettle but I have space issues at my new home and so I haven't done anything yet. I keep some of kettle accessories in the almost full garage. And now that is just me, I'm not sure how much use either would get.

[jfmorris]

Well, one nice thing is that those holes in the plancha make it easy to hang it on a nail or hook on a garage wall, when not in use... I have my kettle rotisserie ring dangling from a hook so high I can JUST reach it without getting a step ladder...

A standalone propane griddle has a lot of advantages, but the plancha makes sense if you just can't find space for another cooker on the patio or out in the yard somewhere.

[JLR]

Kudos to your son for salvaging the Blackstone. Very cool.

[jfmorris]

Yeah - other than some surface rust on the griddle and on the hinged lid, it was pretty pristine. On the same street where he lives is where he also picked up the Weber kettle sitting on the curb, which looked to have been only a couple of times, and was $239 new at Home Depot. I figure both were 2020 "Covid" grill purchases by people on his street that didn't figure out how to use them or maintain them properly. It's crazy what people throw out!