Blackstone Griddle Air Fryer Combo Review: Silly, but Nice

Look, I’m no fool. I unrecorded successful America. I cognize it’s only a matter of clip until virtually each instrumentality gets either an aerial fryer aliases a pizza oven. The world now admits to air fryer toasters, air fryer ranges, air fryer combi ovens, and air fryer microwaves. In nan past fewer months, I've tested some a pizza grill and a pizza aerial fryer.

But I still didn’t expect this caller contraption from Blackstone. The company’s newest four-burner Iron Forged griddle has a 5th propane burner, which heats up a brace of aerial fryer baskets mounted underneath nan 36-inch flattop. The airflow comes from a loud-ish 75-watt instrumentality you’ve sewage to plug in. The baskets are perforated stainless steel, burly, and rugged. This is an aerial fryer built for lovers of large trucks and large dogs and lite beer.

“Why would I ever request a propane aerial fryer?” I asked my editor. My editor had nary answer.

After a fewer weeks of smashburgers and fries and tacos, I still don’t cognize why I’d request a propane-heated aerial fryer mounted to my griddle. But then, astir dudes who thrust a Hemi don’t request that, either. What I do cognize is that I for illustration it.

I person made low-oil meal potatoes successful nan drawer while pancakes and bacon navigator above. I’ve air-fried a maize cob to spell pinch my steak, and gallic fries for my burger. It is possibly a silly indulgence astatine $400 much than the bare-bones Iron Forged model without nan fryer drawers and furniture doors. But for illustration a batch of silly indulgences, it’s a batch of fun.

Sturdy Griddle, With Some Hot Spots

First things first: Blackstone Products is nan griddle institution much responsible than anybody for nan abrupt surge of backyard fajitas and smashburgers successful America. The institution is unrelated to nan private equity institution of nan aforesaid sanction that precocious bought a mostly liking successful Jersey Mike’s—but it’s now very related to Weber grill company: The 2 backyard behemoths merged this spring successful a matrimony of griddles and grills whose style is still unclear.

Both Weber and Blackstone make backyard stand-up griddles (see our reappraisal of a Weber from 2023). But only Blackstone, to my knowledge, makes a rolled-steel griddle pinch a dual-basket aerial fryer underneath it.

Assembly is some easy and hard. It depends connected whether location are 2 of you. Nearly each stand-up griddle shaper recommends you combine pinch a helper: At 1 constituent aliases another, you’ll person to move nan point complete aliases statement up a dense griddle plate. But this Blackstone particularly has a mates of steps that really require a spotter aliases holder, lest you cuss and sweat and wonderment astir nan decisions that led you here. Buy nan beer. Call nan friend.

The result, aft tightening an ungodly number of screws, is that building is reassuringly sturdy, connected a powder-coated black-steel frame. The dual prep trays fold down, which is simply a invited touch erstwhile rolling it into aliases retired of a shed. But dissimilar a Traeger aliases Weber, there’s nary strategy for gauging nan fullness of your propane vessel isolated from kinda … hefting nan tank.