The plancha is a metal plate (cast iron, aluminum, steel, etc.) which heats up to high temperatures and which therefore allows food to be seized. It is an ideal outdoor cooking method, to replace the barbecue for example. But there are also more and more models of indoor planchas, to enjoy the benefits of this cooking method all year round. To use it properly, you must first heat it to the right temperature:it will be higher for meat and lower for fish, for example.
Plancha cooking is done without fat. But nothing prevents you from lightly greasing the plancha with a brush and a little oil so that the food does not stick. The extra trick:to cook slightly fragile foods, such as white fish fillets for example, you can place a sheet of baking paper between the fish and the griddle. The cooking time depends on the type of food and its thickness. For a slightly thick meat, count about 3 to 4 minutes on each side to obtain rare meat. For fish fillets (sardines for example), allow 2 to 3 minutes per side. Do you want to cook a salmon steak unilaterally (that is to say on one side only, namely the skin side)? In this case, allow about 15 minutes of cooking time.
The surface of the plancha is quite fragile, so it must be handled with care. First pass an absorbent paper over the griddle (still hot) to remove the residue. Then pour water with white vinegar added to remove cooking juices and fat. You will then only have to pass an absorbent paper again to finalize the cleaning.
