Direct Burgers on WSK


 
R

Ross W

TVWBB Fan
So I've cooked burgers on my WSK by putting both charcoal baskets in the center, searing and moving to the outside and they turned out great. But this weekend I'm having a big party and will be throwing about 20, 1/2 lb burgers and some hotdogs on. So I don't think I'll have the space to do any indirect. I haven't done much direct grilling on my WSK as I've only had it a month so was looking for tips. I could cook them perfectly on my gasser but with the amount of greese these are gonna produce I'd rather not. Was thinking maybe a chimney and a half of charcoal with the grate in the top position, then choke down the coals a bit before throwing them on then open everything up at the end for a sear.
 
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I‘ve made large groups of burgers by 1) moving the fire to the lower position (no diffuser) And 2) I make a single layer of charcoal with charcoal grate in top position. I use a full chimney of JD and spread It as thin as I can. Burgers will get grill marks and not get incinerated.
 
Mark Foreman said:
I‘ve made large groups of burgers by 1) moving the fire to the lower position (no diffuser) And 2) I make a single layer of charcoal with charcoal grate in top position. I use a full chimney of JD and spread It as thin as I can. Burgers will get grill marks and not get incinerated.
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So your saying both methods worked good?
 
Hey Ross, Hope your party is fun. I'll toss in a couple of suggestions to use or not use as you see.

Not knowing the venue, but I would leverage your gasser for the cooked burgers. Preheat it to about 350 before you start cooking, then just shut it off. You can pull the burgers off the grill onto a sheet pan or two in the warm, but turned off gasser.

I like Mark's idea for a single layer of coals and it would be more like cooking direct on a kettle.

For the hot dogs: when I cook a bunch I heat them in a pan with half water and apple juice and then sear them at the end. You can start this way early and add a little more water if you need to hold them. If you used your gasser for the dogs, and start them when you are getting the coals ready on the WSK they'll be ready or almost ready and you'll have one less thing to keep track of. If you want to finish them over coal for some char they'll only take a minute or so as they are already hot.

My only other thought is if everyone will really be eating at the same time or if it will be spread out a few mins while folks wash their hands, grab another drink, go to the bathroom. If half the burgers were ready and guests start to serve, you probably have time to cook the other half before the first half are done. Just a thought. Cooking 10 in two batches seems less stressful than landing 20 at the same time.

Good luck, make sure to line up someone to take pics as you'll be busy enjoying the aroma of beef fat sizzling over coal !
 
Might help

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Smash Burgers on the WSK

Decided to try some smash burgers today for the first time. The Lodge 12" cast-iron pan fits perfectly into the center insert of the WSK and I used the charcoal basket from my Akorn Jr. on the bottom grate. They turned out pretty good, although my wife says she prefers my low n slow burgers...
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DanHoo said:
Hey Ross, Hope your party is fun. I'll toss in a couple of suggestions to use or not use as you see.

Not knowing the venue, but I would leverage your gasser for the cooked burgers. Preheat it to about 350 before you start cooking, then just shut it off. You can pull the burgers off the grill onto a sheet pan or two in the warm, but turned off gasser.

I like Mark's idea for a single layer of coals and it would be more like cooking direct on a kettle.

For the hot dogs: when I cook a bunch I heat them in a pan with half water and apple juice and then sear them at the end. You can start this way early and add a little more water if you need to hold them. If you used your gasser for the dogs, and start them when you are getting the coals ready on the WSK they'll be ready or almost ready and you'll have one less thing to keep track of. If you want to finish them over coal for some char they'll only take a minute or so as they are already hot.

My only other thought is if everyone will really be eating at the same time or if it will be spread out a few mins while folks wash their hands, grab another drink, go to the bathroom. If half the burgers were ready and guests start to serve, you probably have time to cook the other half before the first half are done. Just a thought. Cooking 10 in two batches seems less stressful than landing 20 at the same time.

Good luck, make sure to line up someone to take pics as you'll be busy enjoying the aroma of beef fat sizzling over coal !
Click to expand...
As to the hot dogs… they are cooked when you buy them so they only need to be heated. I will cook the burgers them as soon as I take them off, I put the hotdogs on. Only takes a few minutes to cook.
 
Thanks guys! I did a single layer of coal, had the WSK completely covered in burgers and they turned out good. I did leverage the gasser as Dan suggested, except I has a couple of the burners on for the hotdogs. I wish I had a pic as a I was caught up in the moment and every time I opened it I was blinded by smoke/steam. Great fun. Having room Indirect is definitely more relaxing and allows you to get them all close to exactly the same but I won't be afraid to do that again for another party. I can't wait to do Arracherra on this thing, I'll probably use double the coal that I did for the burgers, and not even close the lid!
 
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