Blackstone Griddle Vs. Pit Boss Griddle
Choosing which griddle you want is a hard task since there are a lot to choose from. That is why I decided to compare Blackstone griddles and Pit Boss griddles as they are two of the best options available.
Within these two griddle brands, there are already a lot of options to choose from. So we will be looking at the main points of each griddle so you can choose better.
By the end of the review, you will get everything you need to know about these griddles to make a better judgment and see which griddle you prefer more.
If you are looking for a griddle that will be worth all your hard-earned money, then you can never go wrong with either Blackstone or Pit Boss.
After trying out different models from these brands, I can say that it all comes down to your preferences so let us break them down into different categories and details.
Before you go and buy your griddle, make sure to read on as we take a look at Blackstone and Pit Boss griddles and see which one you should buy.
Things To Consider Before Buying A Griddle
1. Space And Storage Capacity
One of the first things that you have to consider before buying griddles is the space. Are you going to put the griddle on a large permanent surface or do you plan to move around with it?
Pit Boss and Blackstone offer both portable griddles and large models that are better for staying on a platform while cooking.
If you think that you do not have enough space for a large griddle, you can go with a tabletop griddle like the 17” tabletop electric griddle from Blackstone or the Pit Boss portable griddle.
One disadvantage of tabletop griddles is that you do not have space for preparing food or storing your kitchen tools.
Larger models that have cabinets for storing gas tanks, plates, spatulas, and other tools are good but then again, you will need a larger space for setting them up.
So it is up to you whether you prefer a griddle that you can move around easily with little space needed or a larger griddle that you do not need to move around.
2. Is The Best Griddle In The Price Range?
If you are on a budget, then you will need to make sure that you get value for money when it comes to griddles.
Between the two, Pit Boss griddles have a lower price range. The largest griddle from Pit Boss can cost up to $899 and has 5 burners to work with.
Blackstone has the Patio series griddle that only has 4 burners but it includes air fryers and cabinets that are really handy for a variety of recipes and costs $1299
Some of us would not mind adding a little bit of money to get these accessories and additions to the griddles but a jump of $400 can be too much.
Of course, there are other models from Blackstone that are closer to the price of Pit Boss but if you really want to get the value for your money, I would recommend the Pit Boss griddles.
3. Electric Or Gas Griddle?
Personally, I would go with a gas griddle as it is the ultimate portable companion. You can bring with you a gas tank anywhere but electric outlets are a little more complicated.
Electric griddles are convenient at home, you can set them up indoors and cook your meal inside when the weather is not favorable outside.
They are also portable since most electric griddles are small. However, you cannot bring them to campings and tailgating trips without a power supply nearby.
Gas griddles, on the other hand, can cook your food no matter where you go. Some griddles can connect to small 1 or 20-lb gas tanks that you can bring with you in your car.
I also prefer gas as I find it easier to control. You are working with actual fire with gas so you get to control the flames and make sure that you are at the right temperature almost instantly.
Electric griddles tend to take time to heat up or cool down. You do get to input an accurate temperature with electric griddles but they take a few minutes to get to that temperature.
4. Ease Of Cleaning And Maintenance
Griddles are versatile. You can cook almost anything with them which is really great but it also means that you will need to regularly clean them if you do not want to mix flavors on your food.
For instance, I would want to cook eggs but I already used the griddle beforehand with spicy tacos and I do not want that spice to transfer to the eggs.
That is where the ease of cleaning comes in. Griddles from Blackstone and Pit Boss have grease traps so you can clean that easily just by scraping the cooking surface.
Personally, I prefer the grease trap at the back of the griddle’s cooking surface because I got used to it and you are less likely going to scrape the hot oil off and onto yourself.
Another factor is the way the grease trap is made. Some have funneling shapes where you have to push all the debris and oil onto a small hole.
I find it easier to clean the griddle if it has a canal system where the grease trap runs the entire length of the cooking surface so it catches all the oil and debris.
These canals then have a hole on one side so the food residuals and grease can flow through it and into a grease bucket.
5. Does The Griddle Have Extra Features?
Just like the cabinet or storage area, I find it great to have other extra features on my griddle such as hooks to hang my tools on, a garbage bag holder, a cutting board, and more.
Griddles are versatile when it comes to cooking so you will need as many extra features as you need in order for you to prepare, cook, and serve the food.
Blackstone is a good example of a griddle that has extra features. They offer extra features such as air fryers and gas stove burner attachments making the griddle even more versatile.
This, however, boils down to your personal preference. Personally, I already have an air fryer and a gas stove so I do not need those extra features.
However, they are convenient so you do not have to switch to different cooking appliances as you have them all in your griddle.
They usually cost more than the basic griddle so you need to make sure that you need such bundles before buying them.
So now that you know what to consider before buying a griddle, let us get into the review and comparison of the Blackstone griddle and Pit Boss griddle.
| Features | Blackstone Griddle | Pit Boss Griddle |
| Cooking Area | The largest Blackstone griddle has a cooking space of 768 square inches with rolled steel material for a non-stick cooking experience. | At 748 square inches, the Pit Boss standard 4-burner griddle has a better cooking surface made out of a non-stick ceramic armored surface. |
| What Can I Cook | With the large cooking space, you can cook up to 72 hot dogs, 16 steaks, or up to 28 burgers. You can cook for up to 20 people. | Up to 12 steaks, 60 hot dogs, and 20 burgers. Can feed up to 15 people. |
| Number Of Burners | 5 burners with 3 on the main cooking area and 2 on the side burner. | 5 burners on the main cooking area. |
| How Hot Can They Get | 48,000 BTUs on the 3 main burners and 20,000 BTUs on the side burner. | 50,000 BTUs. |
| Accessories | Some griddle models have paper towel holders, kitchen utensil holders, a space for the gas tank, grease buckets, wheels for transporting, and side shelves for food preparation. | Some griddle models have paper towel holders, kitchen utensil holders, a space for the gas tank, grease buckets, wheels for transporting, and side shelves for food preparation. |
| Extra Features | Blackstone has griddles with air fryers and side burners for keeping the food warm or for cooking different recipes making it more versatile. | Pit Boss griddles have side shelves for preparing food. |
| Storage Space | There are cabinets and storage spaces underneath the cooking space for storing kitchen tools and the gas tank. | There are cabinets and storage spaces underneath the cooking space for storing kitchen tools and the gas tank. |
Blackstone Griddle Vs. Pit Boss Griddle
Setting Up The Griddles
You will need a hand or two to help you when it comes to setting up standalone griddles such as the Blackstone 36” Culinary Griddle and the Pit Boss 5-burner Ultimate Griddle.
You do not have to bother setting up smaller models or the tabletop griddles as you can just simply place them on a sturdy table and get cooking.
The larger models such as the ones mentioned above take more effort from you.
They are large but they both have wheels so, at the least, you can move them around a little easier.
Pit Boss griddles have better wheels as they are larger and more durable.
Given the weight of the large griddles, heavy-duty wheels are necessary.
So all you have to do is ask for help to roll the griddles on the area where you would want to set them up.
Connect them to the gas tank and the griddles are ready to go.
The newer models from Pit Boss such as the 5-burner Ultimate Griddle do not need to be pre-seasoned as they are ready to cook right away.
Blackstone, on the other hand, needs to be pre-seasoned before using it for the first time.
I would also recommend it with the Pit Boss just to be sure to burn off any chemicals and dust.
So once you have properly seasoned the griddles, you are now ready to cook your meals.
Construction And Design Of Different Griddles
Most of the griddles from Blackstone and Pit Boss can adapt to different types of weather and can be set up outside since they are rust and corrosion-resistant.
They are both made with stainless steel so they can withstand rain and sunlight.
Most griddles from both brands also have black designs that fit with almost any other appliance.
The Blackstone griddles are designed to be used commercially or in restaurants and large kitchens aside from the 5-burner Ultimate griddle from Pit Boss.
Pit Boss griddles, however, have a more robust look with larger legs that can handle heavy weights and large wheels for moving the heavy griddles.
The Blackstone Patio Series have air fryers at the bottom of the cooking area which makes the griddle look compact despite its size.
Blackstone was able to put as many features as they can into the griddle so they win in this category as both the construction and design makes the griddles convenient and durable.
The smaller tabletop griddles from Pit Boss and Blackstone do not have that much difference in size and build as they are all portable and durable.
The Hood
Another thing that makes these griddle brands great are the hoods included on the griddles. These make them even better with outdoor cooking.
You can think of the hood as a melting dome where you can cook burgers with cheese on top and the dome will help you melt the cheese easier.
Meat also cooks evenly with the help of the hood as it captures the heat from the burners and redistributes the heat back to the food.
Blackstone has an advantage over the Pit Boss griddles when it comes to the hood because they have different heights on the hood.
Pit Boss has hoods that are relatively flat while Blackstone has dome-shaped hoods that make them better for controlling the air temperature when you close the hood.
Cooking Area
Standalone griddles have significantly larger cooking areas than tabletop griddles. Blackstone and Pit Boss have large griddles that can cook a lot of food at the same time.
The larger the cooking area, the more you can cook. This makes griddles perfect for cooking for a large group of people.
When it comes to the size of the cooking area, I would go with Blackstone with its 36” griddles that have 768 square inches of cooking space which is enough for up to 16 steaks or 72 hot dogs.
Pit Boss, with its Standard 4-burner Griddle, comes close with up to 748 square inches of cooking space.
The advantage of Pit Boss with its newer models is that they have a patented non-stick armored ceramic cooking surface that prevents scratches on the cooking surface.
That means that even when you scrape off food residuals and grease from the cooking surface, you will not leave dents and scratches that will remove its non-stick coating.
Blackstone backs their large cooking surface with a rolled steel cooking top. This resembles a heavy-duty cast-iron cooking surface which also develops a non-stick coating when cooking.
Heat Control
When cooking different types of recipes that require different cooking temperatures, you need the perfect heat control to make sure that you do not undercook or overcook your food.
One thing that made me stick with Blackstone and Pit Boss and not go with other brands is they have griddles with multiple burners that you can control independently.
So for instance you are searing steaks and you still have some gravy or sauce to heat up. You can set one side of the griddle to a higher searing temperature while leaving the other side with a lower temperature.
You can do that with the independent dials that control each burner on the Blackstone and Pit Boss griddles.
Blackstone only has 4 burners on the main cooking space while Pit Boss boasts a 5-burner griddle. This gives you more control over the single cooking space that you have.
Now, you might get confused as Blackstone does have a 5-burner griddle right? Well, yes, the Blackstone 28” griddle with range top does have 5 burners.
The difference is that there are only three burners on the main cooking surface while the other two are for the stainless steel side burner.
When it comes to power, the 5 burners in the cooking area of the Pit Boss 5-burner Ultimate griddle are better at 50,000 BTUs but Blackstone wins when it comes to versatility.
The main cooking area of the 28” Blackstone griddle can produce up to 48,000 BTUs with the side burners producing up to 20,000 BTUs for more recipes to cook.
Ease Of Use And Portability
Blackstone and Pit Boss griddles are really easy to use, especially the updated exclusive Walmart Knobs on the Blackstone griddles.
With a push of a button, you can easily start the griddles and then control the temperatures on the griddle with the knobs provided on the burners.
Even the smaller tabletop griddles from Blackstone and Pit Boss have individual dials on the burners so you can also cook different recipes on the tabletop griddles.
Perhaps the most convenient griddle when it comes to ease of use and portability is the Blackstone 17” Griddle/Air Fryer which can be used with electric and gas fuel.
Note: The Blackstone 17” Griddle can only work with gas fuel while the accompanying air fryer works on electricity only.
There is no doubt that the Blackstone and Pit Boss tabletop griddles are the winners when it comes to portability as they are lightweight and takes up less space.
However, you can also use the larger standalone griddles on the go. There are models such as the Blackstone Tailgater that are perfect for cooking on trips.
Smaller standalone models from Pit Boss such as the Sportsman Portable are available with legs and wheels that you can use to move the griddle around easily.
Cleaning And Maintenance
Blackstone has a patented rear grease management system for easy cleaning. Pit Boss also has its own cleaning management system that can also be found at the back or on the side.
When it comes to preference, I prefer the rear grease management system as I am more used to pushing the grease and food residues from the front towards the back of the griddle.
It is easier for me to push the debris than to go sideways on the side grease management system of the Pit Boss griddles.
The pro of the side grease management system of the Pit Boss is that it has a handle that allows for easy access to the grease bucket when it is time to throw it away.
The more you cook with the griddles, the better the non-stick coating will be as the grease or oil coats your cooking surface.
The outer parts of the griddles can be easily cleaned by wiping off any grease or food residuals with paper towels.
I do, however, recommend that you buy a cover for the griddle – Blackstone and Pit Boss have available covers for the griddle models.
The griddle cover protects the griddles from too much heat or moisture so they do not rust easily.
Price And Warranty
Blackstone are more on the expensive side than the Pit Boss griddles. The large griddles from Blackstone can cost anywhere from $900 to $1300.
Pit Boss has the same amazing griddles that are just under $900 so if you do not need the extra features such as the double air fryer on the Patio series of Blackstone, you have a budget-friendly option with Pit Boss.
==> Check out the Pit boss Griddle
When it comes to warranty, there is no doubt that Pit Boss is the better brand. They offer a generous 5-year warranty as opposed to the Blackstone warranty of only one year.
It is really important to look into the price and warranty together when buying griddles. So overall, Pit Boss wins this category.
Conclusion
It is a little hard to compare these two by looking at the general models but overall, both brands are great when it comes to the griddles that they have.
Power and control of heat go to Pit Boss which is a great plus. Blackstone griddles are great for large groups of people and commercial use.
==> Check out the Blackstone Griddle
So depending on your preference, you can choose whichever griddle fits your needs. From small tabletop griddles, standalone, to commercial-grade griddles, Blackstone and Pit Boss has options for you.
Personally, I would go with Pit Boss since I already have accessories and extra features/appliances such as air fryers and stovetops.
If I would need a griddle only, then Pit Boss has you covered with their more budget-friendly prices.
However, when it comes to innovation and compacting extra features into a griddle, Blackstone gets the win.
So make sure to look at the factors you need to consider before buying and see which griddle fits you best!
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