This guide follows Blackstone’s own “How do I Season my New Griddle?” help-center article and Camp Chef’s “6 Ways to Maintain Your Flat Top Grill” for the actual steps, with Made In Cookware’s carbon-steel-versus-cast-iron comparison covering why a steel griddle isn’t seasoned quite like a cast-iron pan. For the cast-iron side of that comparison in more depth, see this site’s own cast-iron seasoning and cleaning guide rather than repeating it here.
Cleaning a New Griddle Before the First Seasoning
Blackstone’s instructions start with a plain wash, not oil: “Gently clean the griddle plate with soap and water to remove dust or debris. Rinse the griddle plate and dry it fully.” Only after the plate is clean and completely dry does the actual seasoning process begin.
Blackstone’s Seasoning Steps
With the griddle clean and the propane reconnected, Blackstone’s method is to “heat your griddle on high until the griddle plate starts to discolor” before any oil goes on. Once it has discolored, the instructions call for spreading “a thin layer of oil across the griddle surface (2-3 tablespoons for a 36″ griddle)” using tongs and a paper towel or cotton cloth, covering the walls of the griddle as well as the flat cooking surface. That layer is left to heat until it smokes, which Blackstone says takes “about 15 minutes,” and the layer is done bonding once the smoking stops. Blackstone is specific about what happens if a layer is undercooked or overcooked: stopping too early can leave “rancid oil on the cooktop,” while a layer that “started to turn chalky” has gone past bonding into carbonizing, and needs another coat over it. The full process — oiling, smoking off, repeating — is meant to run three to five times for a new griddle, and Blackstone notes that the edges and corners “do not get as hot” as the middle and may need extra passes before they darken to match the rest of the surface.
Camp Chef’s Cleaning and Seasoning Routine
Camp Chef’s flat-top maintenance guide splits the job into daily cleaning and periodic reseasoning, and treats them as two different tasks rather than one combined step. For cleaning after a cook, the instructions are to scrape off food “while the griddle is still warm” using a metal spatula or chain-mail scrubber, then “wash with hot water, mild dish soap… rinse and dry thoroughly,” with an explicit warning: “Never scour or use a dishwasher, as this could chip the nice, seasoned finish you’re going for.” Seasoning, in Camp Chef’s version, is a short top-up rather than Blackstone’s multi-pass process: apply “a thin coat of Cast Iron Conditioner or cooking oil,” spread it with a paper towel, heat the griddle “until the oil starts to smoke,” then turn off the heat and wipe away anything left over.
Where the Two Manufacturers Line Up
Blackstone and Camp Chef agree on the core mechanism — a thin oil layer, heated to smoking, repeated as needed — and both warn against harsh detergent or scouring pads that can strip a built-up layer. The difference is mostly in scale: Blackstone’s guidance is written for a brand-new griddle plate that needs several full passes before it’s properly seasoned, while Camp Chef’s version reads more like routine upkeep for a griddle that’s already broken in, where one light coat after cleaning is enough to keep the surface protected.
Why a Steel Griddle Isn’t Cast Iron
Made In’s comparison explains the material difference behind these instructions. Cast iron is “made by pouring molten hot iron alloy into a mold and leaving it to cool,” which produces a thick, heavy, heat-retentive slab, while a steel griddle plate — in the same family Made In describes as carbon steel — is “made of a single sheet of metal alloy that’s annealed… to make it both stronger and easier to shape,” resulting in something “about half the weight of cast iron counterparts.” That thinner, lighter construction is also why a flat-top griddle responds to heat changes faster than a cast-iron pan or skillet: Made In notes carbon steel is “prized for its responsiveness to temperature change,” letting a cook turn the heat down the moment something is browning the way it should, where a thick cast-iron surface stays hot and keeps cooking for longer after the burner is adjusted. Made In also points out that cast iron “tends to be a bit more brittle… than carbon steel,” meaning a dropped or thermal-shocked cast-iron piece is more likely to crack.
What Stays the Same Either Way
Despite the different weight and heat behavior, Made In is clear that the seasoning logic itself doesn’t change much: “Both cast iron and carbon steel griddles need to be seasoned before use, and must be hand washed and dried thoroughly before putting away,” and neither surface should be used to cook strongly acidic ingredients, which can strip a built-up seasoning layer on either material. In other words, a flat-top griddle needs its own seasoning routine mainly because of its thinner build and faster heat response, not because the underlying idea of bonding oil to the metal is fundamentally different from cast iron.
Keep reading
- Cast Iron on the Grill: Lodge Use, Seasoning and Cleaning
- Smash Burgers on a Griddle or Cast Iron: Kenji’s Method
- Grill Baskets, Mats and Skewers: Care and Limits
- Cleaning an Offset Smoker’s Firebox