KITCHENALIA: The Griddle

Cooking over an open fire was customary in old Devon farmhouses as recently as a decade or so ago. When my neighbour married in 1946, she was given a brandreth. This kind of trivet for supporting a cooking pan has been in use in Britain for 1,000 years. Recovering her wedding-present from the corner of a bar, my neighbour explained how it worked: "Every morning I used to rekindle the fire and place the brandreth over it. Then I put the frying pan on top and when it was hot I cooked the breakfast eggs and bacon. I gave up using it when we got electricity 30 years ago."

In some parts of Britain, a brandreth is known as a baking iron because it was used more often with a griddle, or in Scotland, a girdle. Usually made from a flat circle of heavy cast iron, a baking griddle either has a straight handle on one side, or a half-hoop handle over the top.

For centuries, the griddle was the traditional utensil on which flat breads, scones and pancakes were baked; a large loaf needing longer cooking could be baked on a griddle provided it was covered with an upturned pan to contain the heat. In houses with no bread oven, a griddle was the only way to bake. It's worth remembering that much of the renown- ed baking of the British Isles has always been done this way - though the griddle now is more likely to be heated on a hob than over an open fire.

Our growing interest in the simple, unpretentious cooking of our grandmothers has brought the griddle back into favour. New griddles are once again stocked by hardware and cooking equipment shops, and perfectly sound, old, blackened griddles can be found among kitchen antiques.

Cast iron remains the best material since it does not buckle, and behaves like a hotplate, absorbing and retaining heat. Heavy-gauge anodised- aluminium griddles are also produced, some with a low rim - though in my experience cast iron is preferable.

Unless coated with a non-stick surface, a new griddle needs to be washed and proved before use. Scour the cooking surface with fine wire wool and detergent, then rinse in cold water and dry well. Place over a medium heat and after two to three minutes pour a little vegetable oil - not olive oil - over its surface. Spread with a piece of cloth tied to the end of a wooden spoon, and heat until smoking hot. Remove from the heat, cool slightly and check that a trickle of water forms into droplets and runs off the griddle easily, indicating that the surface has been sealed. If necessary, reheat the griddle and apply another coat of oil.

A proved griddle should not need to be washed again, but straight after use wipe it clean with kitchen paper and a sprinkling of salt. A baking griddle needs to be moderately, but not searingly, hot before you use it - whether you grease it just before use each time is a matter of preference - but remember that you are baking food, not frying it. Think of a Breton crepe-maker pouring thin batter on to a hot cast-iron griddle, spreading it with a slim wooden paddle, and in no time producing a paper-thin pancake.

Meat and vegetables can also be cooked on a flat griddle. Better though, for cooking savoury food, is a ridged griddle. Widely used in France for generations, a ridged griddle has become modish here. Cast-iron ridged griddles - circular, square and oblong - are available from good kitchenware shops. I like those with a removable metal handle because the griddle itself can also be used in the oven. The great attraction of griddled meat and vegetables is the appetising roasted flavour that's obtained easily on a hob without the expense of heating an oven. It's as if we have a natural palate for roasted food; almost everyone relishes its flavour. Where they touch the ridges of a blisteringly hot griddle, vegetables, meat, and fish caramelise and their flavours intensify.

Cooking on a ridged griddle is simplicity itself provided you take note of three golden rules:

1. Brush food with plenty of oil before cooking, or marinate it for one to three hours in a mixture of oil and herbs or spices, to add flavour and moisture.

2. Do not grease the griddle but have it searingly hot before you start.

3. Turn the food once only. In the case of meat, you will see it shrink as it cooks, only then turn it over and cook the other side. This way, you'll produce simple, delicious food branded with those deep brown stripes.

GRIDDLED MARINATED VEGETABLES

These flavourful Mediterranean vegetables make a tasty first course.

Serves 4-6

2 cloves of garlic, peeled

salt

100-150ml/312-5fl oz olive oil

1 each of: aubergine, head of Florentine fennel, red onion, large sweet red pepper, large sweet yellow pepper

2-3 courgettes

1 tablespoon each of oregano leaves and young rosemary spikes

1 teaspoon thyme leaves

2-3 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley

sea salt flakes and freshly milled black pepper

Crush the garlic with a little salt and mix with the olive oil. Wash the vegetables, trim and deseed the peppers.

Cut the aubergine, fennel and courgettes into 0.5cm/14in slices. Cut the onion into slightly thinner slices and separate into rings. Cut the peppers into 1cm/12in strips. Chop the oregano and rosemary finely and mix with the thyme leaves. Pour half of the oil mixture into a large roasting pan or shallow bowl. Spread the vegetables on top and sprinkle over the chopped herbs. Pour over half of the rest of the oil and turn over the vegetables until they are all coated. Set aside for at least two hours. Roughly chop the parsley and mix into the remaining oil.

Heat a ridged griddle over medium heat for three to five minutes until really hot. Use tongs to place slices of each vegetable on the griddle. Cook, undisturbed, for four to five minutes then turn over the vegetables and cook for four to five minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a hot serving plate and cook another batch of vegetables on the griddle. Spoon some of the parsley mixture beside the griddled vegetables, season, and serve with fresh crusty bread.