Cuisinart6.5" Cast Iron Smashed Burger Press, Juicy and Crispy Burgers for BBQs, Cookouts

I know it’s supposed to be used to smash the burgers, but I’ve mostly used it to flatten our bacon and it works great. My husband has used it on burgers and it works great as well. The handle (plastic center piece) does get not hot but if you touch the sides you can get burnt because it can get quite hot so be careful.

I use this to mash hamburger for grilling hamburgers on my new grill/griddle. Easy to use, although it is also easy to end up with patties that are not uniform in thickness. Takes a little practice get them “even”.

This thing is solid and great for cooking in general, not just burgers. Like pressing down on a piece of chicken for even cooking. Also has a good look.

Pros:- Food contact surface is seasoned cast iron.- Does not stick. Instead of lifting straight up which may bring meat up with it, rotate it off the meat and it will stay on the griddle every time.- Large enough to smash 1/3 lb/150g balls into patties without overflow (75g balls work better for faster searing/cooking. Just double stack your burger)Cons:- No reseasoning instructions, handle material is unknownCast iron is a durable material that can outlast many of us if it can be properly kept seasoned and reseasoned as needed. As a procedure nor the handle material is specified, it means the default procedure which is to oil it and bake it near the smoke point of the oil for an hour probably won't work because the handle would melt/burn. The handle is screwed in with philips screws, but depending on the actual material, removal/reinstallation will loosen the threads making the handle spin. I will update if/when reseasoning is needed, and whether the handle has inserts (which would allow it to be assembled/dissembled dozens of times before failure). So far 10 washes with water hot enough to self-dry afterwards has not affected the finish or release/sticking.When used to make smashburgers on the griddle, or (cold) press patties for a regular grill on a plate, it will not get hot enough to affect your hand regardless of handle material. Thus a 100% cast iron build including the handle could be better. As the handle material is unknown I would not recommend using as a bacon press as that would leave it continuously exposed to high heat.

I bought this for my husband for Christmas because he loves to grill and he loves burgers. This is perfect for burgers and so much more. This press gives a great crust on meat and helps with the burger when it shrinks up. This has worked great on all the meat I have used. The quality is what you would expect and well worth it. We have only used this inside so far but I can't wait to use it on the grill when it's warm enough.

Great for burgers works good

Perfect weight to use on my Blackstone griddle for smash burgers. Cast iron.

I bought mine in January 2021. Mine is supposed to be the CISB-111. It is made to have a reservoir on the bottom to allow room for up to eight ounces of ground beef. The top is smooth at the edge as shown in the fourth photo and sixth photo., but different than the first, second, and third photo. The one that arrived is shaped so that a volume of ground beef will fit inside it and can be smashed to the exact specs of the press even if smashed flat to the griddle. In other words, there is a sort of cup shape inside the bottom of the press. It would press exactly 8 ounces of beef perfectly round. If one tries to press more than that flat to the griddle, some would squirt out the sides. So 8 ounces of ground beef is perfect, although less than that would work okay too. It was designed similar to the one used and promoted by Tom Ryan who is credited with inventing the smash burger. The idea is the press into the griddle but at the same time not allow juice or rendered fat to escape the perimeter of the press, thereby keeping the juices within the patty. However, that particular version may not be available anymore in this listing. It's hard to tell because the listing with the photos shows both versions of the press.However, the perfectly flat press is good too - it just requires a slightly different cooking strategy and technique in that it allows one to feather the edges as you smash the beef - which a number of chefs recommend to promote crispy edges.So it appears at least one of these versions has the wrong model number.Regarding rust, there is no rust on mine because I seasoned it with oil when I acquired it. After I cook with it, I wipe it clean and apply oil again. No rust.Regarding the handle, the inside distance between the two handle supports becomes smaller as one moves down the supports. So the wood handle would benefit by being cut at a slight angle to match the cast iron handle supports angle. Instead, the wood handles is cut perfectly perpendicular. It is wedged into the supports and held by wood screws. When held up to the light, I don't see any light peeking through below the screws, although I do see light above the screws as one would expect with the wood handle cut perfectly perpendicular and jammed into angled supports. So in theory, the wood handle could eventually break at the screws, especially if the wood of the handle was not seasoned and shrinks with time. But mine is fine so far after three years of light use. By comparison, my bacon press manufactured by a different company is also made of cast iron and also has a wood handle, but the wood handle is designed to be secured on TOP of the cast iron supports and so is a much stronger design and much less likely to break.