What is a wok burner?
A Wok Burner is a high pressure cooking tool mainly designed for woks but can be used with many different methods of cooking as they produce an output upwards of 65 MJ/hr (61,000 BTU). They run off LPG gas bottles so can be moved around and taken on camping trips, and can sometimes even be used as a substitute for a BBQ.
A Wok Burner is designed to produce a massive amount of heat in a short period so that the wok or cookware can be heated up really quickly allowing the cook to use methods which they normally wouldn’t be able to on an indoor stove – for example searing steak, stir frying, deep frying, steaming and smoking.
There are different types of Wok Burners so you need to be sure you get one that’s suitable for your purposes. For example, if you needed to cook for a large amount of people, then a bigger one that can hold a larger wok or pot may be ideal (maybe something like the size of our WN8A3). Usually cooking with a Wok Burner may take some time to get used to but once you’ve gotten used to it, you may never be able to go back to a slower stove.
What is a portable gas stove?
Our Portable Gas Stoves are light stoves, usually made from stainless steel and designed to hold smaller woks and standard sized cookware.
It has a milder flame that can cater for more conventional cooking. The flame isn’t as powerful as a high pressure Wok Burner so it is ideal for slower cooking methods such as stewing or brewing soups and curries. One of the more popular types of stoves in this category are double burners like our GO220 Double Burner – which are mainly used by families for outdoor kitchens or by stallholders at food markets.
A lot of people compare these types of stoves to ceramic hotplates or induction cooktops. One of the main advantages of using a Portable Gas Stove as opposed to ceramic or induction is that you can use both burners at maximum capacity simultaneously, so that means you can have both burning at max heat at the same time.
There are different models of these Portable Gas Stoves which range from 18MJ (like our GO210) to 32MJ (like our GO220) (17,000 to 30,000 BTU) so it really depends on what you are wanting to do.
What is a megajoule or BTU?
Wok Burners and Gas Stoves are measured universally in either Megajoules (MJ) or British Thermal Units (BTU). These measurements give an indication of how much gas is consumed by the burner and therefore, how much power it produces.
1 Megajoule (MJ) = 947.82 BTU
A standard indoor gas stove has an average of about 7000 BTU, which is only about 7.5MJ so, if you’re frustrated with always stewing food instead of searing, boiling or frying then it may be time to consider a more powerful Portable Gas Stove.
As for a Wok Burner, the idea is to have the temperature hot enough so that your food will heat up as soon as it hits the pan – that means for steaks, it will sear the outside so that it is nice and crispy while leaving the inside tender and juicy.
To achieve this effect, restaurants have Burners which range from 21MJ (20,000 BTU) to about 63MJ (60,000 BTU) and even higher for restaurants which serve specialty cuisines such as Asian food including Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese.
How many BTUs are in a home gas stove? A home stove has, on average, about 7000 BTUs per burner. Some burners are lower, designed for simmering and low-heat cooking and only put out 3000 to 5000 BTUs. There may be one very large burner on a range that goes up to 12,000 BTUs.
Are wok burners or portable gas stoves safe?
Wok Burners and Portable Gas Stoves are safe when they have been properly approved and tested under the relevant certifications. These Wok Burners have been through strict testing programs, stress tests and annual audits to make sure that they are very safe if used in accordance with the instructions.
There are other models out there that are selling at very cheap prices but do be wary that these come with unseen risks which may be fatal.
Most of our Wok Burners and Portable Gas Stoves run off LPG gas bottles via a hose and regulator connection which we supply so, as long as the connections are air tight and no gas is leaking on either ends, it is perfectly safe to use.
You can test for gas leakages by spraying soapy water onto the fittings. If there is a leakage, the soapy water will start bubbling otherwise you’re good to go!
How do I start a wok burner or portable gas stove?
All our Wok Burners and Portable Gas Stoves have automatic ignition – this means you don’t need an external lighter or igniter to start. You can simply push the knob in and turn it until you hear a “click” to start the burner.
What sort of wok should I use?
There are many different types of woks out there – ranging from carbon steel to very high end stainless and metal alloys. There are also the different handles – short ear handles on both sides, a short handle or a long handle.
Choosing a wok is like picking your favourite dish when you eat out – it depends on personal preference. The most common types of woks which people have difficulty picking between is flat-bottomed vs round-bottomed.
The more popular type is the round-bottomed wok, which has several advantages including:
More even heat distribution
No specific “hot spots” on the wok so there’s no warping
Ability to use a variety of different cooking techniques
It is a lot easier to toss the wok and stir-fry as a lot of utensils, like the wok spatula, were made specifically for round-bottomed woks
What is the difference between the turbo, 5-jet and 8-jet burner?
The Turbo Burner has a more dispersed flame whereas the flame on the 5-Jet Burner is a bit more concentrated. For general stir fry and most Asian recipes, the Turbo Burner is the most suitable as the flame tends to wrap the wok a bit better. It is also by far the more popular of the two burners, being the preferred choice by a lot of Chinatown food vendors and market stallholders.
The 5-Jet Burner is more suited for boiling large pots of stock, soup or curries, for example if you were to boil and sell crayfish. This is largely due to the concentrated flame that it produces creating a marginally faster boiling time.
The video below show the difference in burner flames:
* A2SP Turbo Wok Burner – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1H2bsae_BxR4F_gtaScIJLn7iETT5mTi8/view
* WN5A3 5-Jet Burner – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ckTf3MOjJ6EARaqd5XRrONOl-xqTzKvo/view
In terms of the heat generated, both are exactly the same.
The 8-Jet Burner is a bigger burner entirely at 37cm in diameter.
Most customers that get the 8 Jet Burner enjoy catering or hosting larger parties. This would include church or temple events. We also have experienced chefs and cooks preferring the 8 Jet Burner over the other two because of the extra output.
Here’s an example of the 8 Jet Burner – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhH0XcRz_tQ&ab_channel=dimsimlim