The Pan That Finally Gave Me the Sear I'd Been Chasing for Years

June 13, 2026

Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – 31cm x 16cm pre-seasoned cast iron griddle plate with removable handle and stainless steel trivet, designed for use in Ooni pizza ovens, over open flame and on domestic stovetops

I have been chasing the perfect sear for the better part of a decade. Not obsessively — I have a life, a job, two teenagers who require feeding — but with a persistent, low-level dissatisfaction that surfaces every time I cook a steak and it comes out good but not quite right. Cooked through, flavourful, perfectly seasoned. But without that crust. That deep, dark, crackling, restaurant-quality crust that you get when someone who knows what they're doing puts a piece of meat on a properly hot surface.

I'd tried everything. Non-stick pans — useless for searing, they can't get hot enough. Stainless steel — better, but inconsistent. A cast iron skillet I bought years ago that was too small and too light to hold heat properly. A griddle pan that left marks but not crust. Nothing quite got me there.

Then I got an Ooni pizza oven, and everything changed.

The Ooni Changed What I Thought Was Possible

I bought an Ooni Karu last summer, primarily for pizza. Within a month I was using it for everything — flatbreads, vegetables, fish. The temperatures it reaches — up to 500°C — are simply not achievable on a domestic hob, and the results reflect it. Food cooked at those temperatures develops a char and a crust that is categorically different from anything a standard kitchen can produce.

But I needed the right pan to use inside it. The Ooni's cooking surface is designed for pizza stones, not standard cookware. I needed something that could handle extreme heat, fit the oven's dimensions, and deliver the searing performance I'd been looking for. I started researching Ooni-compatible cookware and found the Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan on ALTOE.

Why I Chose the Ooni Grizzler Pan

The specifications aligned perfectly with what I needed. The 31cm x 16cm dimensions fit the Ooni cooking chamber properly — large enough to sear two steaks simultaneously, compact enough to manoeuvre in and out of the oven safely.

The 100% premium cast iron construction was non-negotiable. Cast iron is the only material that genuinely holds and distributes heat at the temperatures an Ooni reaches. It absorbs heat slowly and releases it evenly and consistently — which is exactly what you need for a proper sear. Lighter materials heat unevenly and cool too quickly when cold meat hits the surface. Cast iron doesn't.

The pre-seasoned surface meant I could use it immediately without the lengthy seasoning process that raw cast iron requires. Pre-seasoned by the manufacturer means the non-stick layer is already established and ready to perform from the first cook.

The removable handle was a detail I hadn't anticipated needing but immediately understood the value of. Inside an Ooni oven, space is limited and a fixed handle would be both impractical and a burn risk. The removable design means the pan sits flat in the oven, and the handle attaches when you need to move it. Elegant and practical.

The stainless steel trivet completed the picture — a protective surface to rest the pan on when it comes out of the oven at several hundred degrees. The kind of detail that tells you the product has been designed by people who actually cook with it.

Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – 31cm x 16cm pre-seasoned cast iron griddle shown from above with removable handle attached and stainless steel trivet alongside, designed for Ooni pizza ovens and open flame cooking — *The Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – 31cm of premium pre-seasoned cast iron with removable handle and stainless steel trivet. Built for the serious outdoor cook.*

The First Cook

I fired up the Ooni, let it reach temperature, and placed the Grizzler Pan inside to preheat for five minutes. Then I added two ribeye steaks — dry-brined overnight, room temperature, patted completely dry — and closed the oven door.

Ninety seconds later I opened the door to flip them. The sear on the underside was extraordinary. Dark, even, deeply caramelised — the Maillard reaction happening at a speed and intensity that a domestic hob simply cannot replicate. I flipped, closed the door, waited another sixty seconds, and pulled the pan out using the removable handle.

I rested the steaks on the trivet, let them sit for five minutes, and cut into one.

The crust was everything I'd been trying to achieve for ten years. Crackling, dark, deeply flavoured, with a perfectly pink interior that the brief, intense heat had cooked without drying. My wife, who is not easily impressed by cooking equipment purchases, took one bite and said: "That's the best steak you've ever made."

I agreed. It wasn't close.

Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – close-up of the pre-seasoned cast iron griddle surface showing the raised ridges and seasoned cooking surface that delivers restaurant-quality sear marks and char on meat and vegetables — *The pre-seasoned griddle surface – raised ridges and seasoned cast iron that delivers the char and crust that only high-quality cast iron at extreme heat can produce.*

Beyond the Ooni: Camping and Open Flame

What I hadn't fully anticipated was how versatile the Grizzler Pan would be beyond the Ooni. We took it on a camping trip to the Lake District in September — it went straight onto the campfire grate, preheated for a few minutes, and produced the same quality of sear over open flame that I'd been getting in the oven.

Seared lamb chops at a campsite in the Langdale valley, with the fells in the background and the fire crackling underneath. That is, without question, one of the best meals I have ever eaten. The pan made it possible.

I've also used it on the domestic hob for weeknight cooking when I want a proper sear without firing up the Ooni. Cast iron on a high gas flame gets hot enough to produce genuinely good results — not Ooni-level, but significantly better than anything I was achieving before.

Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – shown in use over open flame outdoor cooking, demonstrating the pan's versatility for campfire cooking, Ooni pizza oven use and domestic stovetop grilling — *Over open flame – the Grizzler Pan performs equally at the campfire, in the Ooni, and on the domestic hob. True versatility for the serious outdoor cook.*

What I Love Most About It

The sear: The thing I'd been chasing for ten years, finally delivered. The combination of premium cast iron and extreme heat produces a crust that is simply not achievable any other way.
The heat retention: Cast iron holds heat consistently even when cold meat hits the surface. No temperature drop, no steaming instead of searing. Just the crust.
The removable handle: Genuinely clever design. Essential for Ooni use, practical everywhere else. The kind of detail that makes a product feel properly thought through.
The stainless steel trivet: A small thing that matters enormously when you're handling a pan at several hundred degrees. Always included, always appreciated.
The versatility: Ooni oven, open campfire, domestic hob. One pan, every cooking environment. That range of use makes it exceptional value.
The pre-seasoning: Ready to cook from day one. No waiting, no preparation. Just heat and cook.

The removable handle detached – the flat profile sits perfectly inside the Ooni cooking chamber, with the handle reattaching when you need to move the pan.

Who Is This For?

Anyone with an Ooni pizza oven who wants to use it for more than pizza — which, once you own one, is everyone. Anyone who cooks over open flame and wants professional results at the campfire. Anyone who has been trying to achieve a proper restaurant-quality sear at home and hasn't found the right tool yet. And anyone who takes cooking seriously enough to invest in equipment that genuinely makes a difference to the result.

Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan – shown with stainless steel trivet in use as a resting surface, demonstrating the complete kit including pan, removable handle and protective trivet for safe transition from extreme heat to table — *The complete kit – pan, removable handle, and stainless steel trivet for safe transition from extreme heat to table. Everything you need, nothing you don't.*

Get Yours

If you've been chasing the perfect sear — or if you have an Ooni and haven't yet discovered what it can do with the right cookware — the Ooni Cast Iron Grizzler Pan is available now at ALTOE. Stop settling for good. Get the crust.

Explore more in these collections:

Home & Garden – the full ALTOE home and garden range, including premium cookware and outdoor living.
Latest Products – see what's just arrived at ALTOE.

— Alistair Drummond-Firth, outdoor cook, Ooni convert, and person who has finally — finally — achieved the sear. Based in Edinburgh.