WSK + Vortex: Upper or lower grate?


 
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NickMV

TVWBB Fan
I got a Vortex back around Thanksgiving and have been really enjoying it, but I've been using it on the lower grate setting on my WSK-E6.

Today I decided to cook some march madness wings and lo and behold I found myself very disappointed in cooking on the upper grate setting with the vortex. The wings took a solid 15m longer, the temp never got anywhere near what I expected (600) and the wings arent as dark, signaling to me that they did not receive as much heat as they did when it was on the lower level.

Anybody else finding the same experience? It's no biggie, but I expected cooking up top would've been way hotter and quicker. Instead I got the opposite.
 
i do chicken and wings with the vortex on the WSK on the upper coal grate. vortex is small opening upwards and no center Weber GBS grate in its position. i leave the bottom vent fully open and the top vent fully open, not in rapid heat mode but the dial is fully open. i've had excellent results using this setup. my goto coal is JD lump and i light the coals for the bottom most layer of the vortex first and once they're lit, i then put fresh JD lump atop those lit coals and let the grill go another 10 minutes in preheat mode so the unlit coals catch and become lit.

i've never used my vortex on the lower coal grate position so i have not data to feedback or share on that.
 
I've used vortex on the lower grate and have had flames licking out the top vent.

I wonder if the centered vent defeats some of the vortex benefit which might be a convection swirl
 
DanHoo said:
I've used vortex on the lower grate and have had flames licking out the top vent.

I wonder if the centered vent defeats some of the vortex benefit which might be a convection swirl
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This is exactly the theory I have -- it's allowing too much heat to escape too fast and you don't get nearly the heat affect that you get when it's at a lower level. That being said, this was far from scientific and I swapped from B&B lump to my last bag of Kingsford Pro so I could finish out my 2023 supply. After it got lit, it prob couldve used another 10-12 coals.

I had the exhaust open just before start, at 600F, then tossed wings on the ring and dropped a block of apple in the middle, and closed the top down to just be 100% open instead of "rapid flame mode". It quickly dropped back down to 500, then crept down to about 440. Do you guys actually do your cooking with the vent flipped up aka beast mode?
 
NickMV said:
Do you guys actually do your cooking with the vent flipped up aka beast mode?
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Negative. Just too much heat IMO. I've found chicken cooks best with no higher than 425°F for any length of time. 400°F for wings, around 40-45 minutes delivers a juicy wing with crispy skin.

If you want a little extra crunch, I’ve seasoned my wings, added some cornstarch to the wings and then a small amount of neutral oil.

This makes “fried” chicken with incredible crunch and very juicy meat. I’ll see if I have a pic of this to share.
 
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Oh ok that's not bad, that's about the color I got. But I usually get a decent bit darker (mind you, on completely unseasoned wings) when I use the same process but with the lower grate.
 
Brett-EDH said:
Negative. Just too much heat IMO. I e found chicken cooks best with no higher than 425°F for any length of time. 400°F for wings, around 40-45 minutes deliver a juicy wing with crispy skin.

If you want a little extra crunch, I’ve seasoned my wings, added some cornstarch to the wings and then a small amount of neutral oil.

This makes “fried” chicken with incredible crunch and very juicy meat. I’ll see if I have a pic of this to share.
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Gotcha, thanks for feedback!
 
NickMV said:
Oh ok that's not bad, that's about the color I got. But I usually get a decent bit darker (mind you, on completely unseasoned wings) when I use the same process but with the lower grate.
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Adding wood chunks will aid in coloring the skin. The smoke will get you more mahogany tones and added flavor. And adding some oil or avocado spray oil to the wings will promote more and deeper browning and crisping. Cooking chicken skin without oil, to me, leaves the skin less crunchy/crispy.
 
I cook with it on the top charcoal grate for chicken and steak. the vortex it a bit to tall for the middle grate, but I just rest the cast iron or SS on there and it works fine.
 
I use the vortex in the upper charcoal grate position. I have had the vent flipped up and flames shooting out the top. However, I do think that loses too much heat. As Nick mentioned it's best to flip the vent back down with holes fully open.
I also foil all the grate around the vortex, partly to catch drips but mostly to maximise the venturi effect of the vortex. I think it does work.

The whole point of the vortex is to crank up the heat to get the skin crispy like it has been fried.

One difference between the WSK and a Mastertouch kettle is the position of the vent. WSK the vent is in the middle. MT it's offset. The MT is better at distributing the heat inside the lid. The technique is to turn the lid every 10 minutes. With the WSK I think less heat is reflected inside the lid because there is nothing between the vortex and the vent. Maybe close the vent to 50% ?
 
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