Grill pan with glass lid, 28 cm

Grill marks in January too

The grilling season lasts four months; the appetite for steak lasts twelve. The ridged surface exists so the meat does not cook in its own juices: it touches metal along the ridges while the fat runs off into the grooves between them. That is where the pattern and the crust at the edge come from.

A square footprint with rounded corners

The footprint is square with heavily rounded corners, not a circle. The ridges run in parallel across the middle of the cooking surface, a smooth margin stays all round it, and the lid seats on that margin. The shape stands out on the hob as well: the edge of the pan closes the cooking surface in a straight line rather than a curve.

The 28 cm size and the 4.1 cm rim add up to 2.1 litres. On a grill pan that number is not about room but about keeping the juices that run off from reaching the hob.

The lid gives the recipe a second stage

On most grill pans the cooking ends where the inside of the meat is still raw. This one comes with a tempered glass lid, so once the outside is sealed you can cover it and let the heat finish the job without scorching the surface further.

Around the rim of the lid runs a soft close heat resistant silicone system, with a steam hole in the middle. Through the glass you can see what is happening without lifting it to reassure yourself.

Forged aluminium, matt finish

The pan is made from forged aluminium and the ridged surface is protected by the brand's hard-wearing non-stick titanPro coating. The outside is matt, the lines are minimalist, and the handle is made of the same soft touch material as the lid knob.

On a grill pan the matt finish earns its place twice over. The surface does not throw back the lamp above the hob, and it need not be rubbed to a shine to look right.

Ridged cooking surface

The parallel raised lines across the bottom of the pan. The meat rests on them, the fat drains into the grooves between them, and the lines of contact are what leave the characteristic grill marks.

Non-stick on the ridges too

On a ridged surface most pans fail where the meat clings to the raised lines: you turn it, the good crust stays on the ridge and the cut falls apart. The hard-wearing titanPro coating sits not only in the bottom of the grooves but on the tops of the ridges as well. That is why the meat turns in one movement, and why the pattern stays on the steak instead of in the pan.

From induction to gas

The base is a turbo induction build and it works on every hob type. On a grill pan that carries weight, because the ridges only draw when the pan is hot right out to its edge; on a base that heats slowly the meat stays half done towards the rim. Move house or change cooker and the pan comes with you, instead of being the piece that ends up at the back of the cupboard.

Cleaning between the grooves

It is easy to clean, and on a grooved surface that matters most of all. Let the pan cool, run lukewarm water over it and draw the soft sponge along the line of the ridges rather than across them: the fat left in the grooves then comes out in one direction. The smooth margin all round wipes over in a single pass, and the tempered glass lid you wash separately.

Materials and safety

The lid is tempered glass. The handle and lid knob stay cool and are ergonomic and soft to the touch.

Friday evening, two cuts of meat

You heat it up, lay the meat on and do not touch it for two minutes. Turn it, give it two more, then the lid goes on and it rests in its own warmth. The fat runs down into the grooves between the ridges as it goes.

The same pan carries grilled vegetables: courgette, aubergine and pepper in a single layer with a little oil. They cook uncovered, and the pattern of the ridges shows on them too.

In the morning the same pan carries the bacon and the sausage, with a slice of tomato at the edge of the ridges, and the fat does not gather under the meat. Nothing has to be poured off at the end, only the grooves washed through.

Care

• Turn the meat with wooden or silicone tongs; metal tongs scratch the tops of the ridges.
• Do not put the hot lid straight into cold water.
• A little above medium is enough for grilling; a continuous maximum wears the coating.
• Let it cool, then wash it in lukewarm water, drawing the sponge along the ridges.
• Wipe the silicone rim dry after washing.
• Keep wire wool and scouring powder away from it.
• If you stack your pans, lay a tea towel over the ridges first.

If you would grill all year round

Frequently asked questions

Technical data