A griddle, in the UK typically referred to simply as a frying pan or flat top, is a cooking device consisting mainly of a broad, usually flat cooking surface. Nowadays it can be either a movable metal pan- or plate-like utensil, a flat heated cooking surface built into a stove or kitchen range, or a compact cooking machine with its own heating system attached to an integrated griddle acting as a cooktop.
Griddles can be made of cast iron, but there are also non-stick varieties. A residential griddle may be made of cast iron, aluminium, chrome steel, or carbon steel.
Word origins
The word griddle is attested in 13th-century English and probably comes from Anglo-French gridil, which had developed over time from the Latin word craticula, "small griddle" (craticula – graille – gredil – gridil), possibly via the Latin craticulum, "fine wickerwork."