What criteria should you consider when choosing the best plancha?
Choosing the best stainless steel plancha means opting for excellent-quality stainless steel.
The quality of the stainless steel is essential when choosing the best stainless steel plancha. Inox, or more precisely stainless steel, is an alloy of steel and minerals. These minerals, such as chromium and nickel, are added to make the alloy more resistant. When buying a stainless steel plancha, you should choose a 100% stainless steel plate and steer clear of stainless steel coatings. A plate made of pure stainless steel is highly resistant and durable. A simple stainless steel coating is more fragile: using overly abrasive sponges or kitchen utensils can leave scratches on the cooking plate. Oxidation can appear wherever the stainless steel layer has worn away.
The stainless steel plate must be thick enough — but not too thick!
To withstand the power generated by the heat source, the stainless steel plate must be sufficiently thick. A thickness of 4 mm is often recommended. A plate that is too thin (less than 4 mm) risks warping when heated. However, a plate that is too thick is not ideal for cooking either. Remember that stainless steel is above all a good insulator. Thermal inertia is not one of its intrinsic qualities. It therefore cannot be the best thermal conductor for a contact cooking method such as plancha cooking…
The stainless steel plancha must have a suitable power level.
In addition to thickness, attention must be paid to the power of the stainless steel plancha. A plancha with too little power does not heat up quickly enough. Heat recovery would be too slow for grilling and for high-temperature searing. A stainless steel plancha with a very high electric or gas power output leads to irreversible warping of the plate. Around 1,700 W per heating zone is a suitable power level — neither too low nor too high — for the stainless steel plancha.
The best stainless steel plancha is the Roller Grill professional plancha
Above all, insist on professional quality!
The stainless steel plancha is the subject of countless offers and much interest on the domestic market. Yet to choose the best stainless steel plancha, you should demand professional quality. Roller Grill, the French manufacturer of cooking equipment, equips catering professionals. This internationally renowned brand has successfully adapted professional technologies to a sleek design for its plancha range.
The plancha: decades of industrial expertise at Roller Grill.
Roller Grill has developed genuine industrial expertise in compact kitchen equipment for catering professionals. This French brand designed its first griddle plates back in the 1980s, well before the rise of the plancha in the 2000s. Today, Roller Grill is the leading manufacturer of cooking equipment in Europe for catering professionals. The Roller Grill professional plancha is recognised by the finest chefs for its performance, its durability and its easy cleaning.
The best stainless steel plancha is the PSI 600 G professional stainless steel gas plancha from Roller Grill.
The Roller Grill stainless steel plancha is a 100% stainless steel professional plancha with a 4 mm thick plate. The raised edges of this plate, pressed from a single piece, limit splashing during cooking. The PSI 600 E electric model is fitted with Incoloy heating elements. The heating zones can be adjusted independently via an adjustable thermostat. The stainless steel gas plancha features star-shaped burners for perfect heat distribution across the entire large cooking surface. This gas version is particularly responsive to temperature variations. It is also protected by a safety thermocouple in the event of a malfunction. For all these reasons, the PSI 600 G professional stainless steel gas plancha from Roller Grill is the best stainless steel plancha.
To find out more:
- Chrome plancha or teppanyaki: what’s the difference?
- Stainless steel or enamel plancha, which should you choose?