Smashburger cast iron too hot?

New2Q

I've seen a number of people say you can't get your griddle too hot when making smash burgers.  While that might be true I'm wondering what else could explain my results from the last time I made them.

I have a LBGE and a Lodge 14" cast iron pizza pan.  I had started the Egg and left the vents pretty open to heat up.  After a few minutes I threw the cast iron onto the grill to let it heat up and then I got distracted.  By the time I came back the Egg was at 750+ but I figured it wouldn't hurt anything since I had seen so many people claim you couldn't get the griddle too hot for smash burgers.  So I put a ball down, smashed it, and proceeded to the same to 2 more balls of 80/20.  As soon as the juices started coming to the top I flipped the burgers and, lo and behold, the beautiful crust I had experienced on previous smash burger cooks was replaced with about 75% black as coal char.  And yeah, these were very thin burgers - around 1/4" to 3/8" so it's not like it took all that long for the juices to flow up through the burgers.

Has anyone else experienced too hot a griddle while making smash burgers?  I wish I would have used my IR thermometer to get the temp of the cast iron before I put the balls down, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was over 700 degrees considering how long I had it in the Egg.

OhioEgger

I've never done that much over 500°F but it sounds like you've found the limit!

One small thing: I like to put a pat of butter down before putting the meat on the griddle. That might make a difference.

rcone

After 500ish, the seasoning on your cast iron burns off. Keep it 450-500, room temp meat, and a bit of fat in the pan helps a great deal. 

SonVolt

Do you remember the fat content of your ground beef?  Lean beef has a tendency to scorch, unlike say ground chuck. 

buzd504

OhioEgger said:

I've never done that much over 500°F but it sounds like you've found the limit!

One small thing: I like to put a pat of butter down before putting the meat on the griddle. That might make a difference.

I use ghee, but I agree.

New2Q

SonVolt said:

Do you remember the fat content of your ground beef?  Lean beef has a tendency to scorch, unlike say ground chuck. 

Yeah, it was 80/20 ground chuck.

And thanks all.  I made smash burgers again last night and kept the Egg at 500 and it was a perfect crust on the burgers.  I'll try adding a little extra fat to begin with next time.

bge_massachusetts

Another tip I have found helpful:

Place the balls of meat on the cast iron and don't do anything, give it 15-20 seconds, then flip over with a pair of tongs.  This gives the meat just enough time for a quick crust to begin to form, when you smash the burger there is way less sticking on the press.  I started doing this about a month ago after seeing it on Food Network, it is so much easier 

Anyway you do it Smashburgers are great!

SonVolt

bge_massachusetts said:

Another tip I have found helpful:

Place the balls of meat on the cast iron and don't do anything, give it 15-20 seconds, then flip over with a pair of tongs.  This gives the meat just enough time for a quick crust to begin to form, when you smash the burger there is way less sticking on the press.  I started doing this about a month ago after seeing it on Food Network, it is so much easier 

Anyway you do it Smashburgers are great!

This is really interesting. The patty sticking to the spatula has always been a minor annoyance for me. 

dmourati

Little bit of canola oil on bottom of a good unslotted spatula works for me. No sticking. 

I put the 2oz ball of beef down, smash, season, flip, cheese, stack, pull, all in about 2 mins.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078WKC8B4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

In my experience, 450-500F dome is the sweet spot.