Well, he did say “Only do stuff if you think they are safe enough”. Apparenly alex’s safety standards aren’t that high seeing him wield an angle grinder like that, lmao.
Rocket stove? I’m feeling rocket stove. There’s a reason I patronize you Alex, you just told us to be safe while waving around a cleaver. Keep up the good work.
Rocket stove fo sho. For those who aren't diy handy, you can pick up a decent one like this: ecozoom.com/products/zoom-versa?variant=655376089 Got it for my dad's boat, he pulls up to beaches and cooks wherever (beaches are usually a no fire zone in my part of aus)
Rocket stove is the way, I've made a few small ones from fire extinguisher bottles. Crazy heat from little fuel. Could try a foot operated belows below the 1st try model too.
We have been using one of those starters with a wok on it when we go camping for years. Sometimes I notch the top a little sometimes not. Never bothered to add the wok ring, have a small wok for it. We just set it on the ground. In the spirit of how we have always used it, you could use a blower used to blow up air mattresses that plugs into a car power outlet . Set it on the ground , dig a small trench out from under one side and direct the blower under the charcoal starter. I can vouch that this will make one heck of a hot flame. Was great fun for the kids to watch until metal starts warping from the heat, then you have to stop because supper still has to be cooked.
I think a small bellows or one of those hand pumps for inflating an air mattress would be perfect. Ideally, you could rig it up so that you could have a hose to direct the air and be able to operate it with one foot.
If you build in a valve to control air flow into the unit, and exhaust what you don't need, you can control the temperature of the fire (coal smithies do this).
I was thinking the same. They're incredibly simple to diy as well. All you need is some concrete mix (perlite concrete would be good to cut down on weight. I've seen it used for pizza ovens, so the heat shouldn't be an issue.) and a mold made out of a five-gallon bucket and some pvc pipe (or anything really, these are just cheap and readily available materials). The whole thing could probably be done as cheap or cheaper than buying a chimney starter alone would be. There's also tons of room for customization since prototyping would be relatively cheap and easy.
The Asian markets here sell something similar to what you made, except made mostly out of concrete with a steel inner layer. I think it pretty much is the same exact principle. I'll have to buy it and test it out with my wok.
How about a foot operated chimney bellows? ("Soufflet de cheminée" in French) It would require no power to be used in the garden. It's pretty inexpensive and you could pipe the air directly inside.
Hey Alex. I think you are on the right path with this design. If you find a way to couple an air pump/fan to the chimney starter you could use the speed of the pump to regulate the heat of the wok station. I use a 12V inflatable mattress air pump to fire up my chimney starter, and it is crazy how much the extra air helps. I run it at about 14 volts with an adjustable DC motor controller for that extra power. good luck
I cannot believe Alex you don't have 50 million subscribers??!!! By far the greatest most all encompassing channel on RUclips. Well done, your hard work is so evident. Look after yourself! Xx
@@FrenchGuyCooking just the government trying to oppress you and stop your nontraditional approach to, well... Everything! Lol 😁 "Stick it to the Man", Alex!
You could plug a simple hairdryer to the chimney. It would rev up the flames, but not so much as a leaf blower. so it is more controlable. Also, you could put the legs on an wider angle, with a frame on the bottom in the shape of an Y. So the whole thing becomes portable.
@Alex All you need is one visit chez Decathlon Alex. Let me explain: -Heat wise, get the foot powered pump for air mattresses (4-5€). Then rout a bit of tubing from hardware store (preferably metal for the end or it will melt). This will work to fuel the fire in oxygen in a way that you can directly control with your foot. As you are cooking. - For the conveniency. I’m thinking camera tripod. Or even better: Decathlon “portable chair”. They have some folding chairs that are super convient which you can adapt to fit the entire thing. I’ll let you do the rest. Enjoy!
Alex, bolt three metal bars (or square tubing) on the side of the chimney, at 120 degrees apart (basically equidistant) and put a cable or a small chain at some distance towards the bottom. then you just slide the legs sideways until the chain tensions. aaaaaand you have a wok station on a tripod. hope you like it, and hope it works.
A reinforced box of sand on wheels is pretty damn sturdy and relatively mobile, if a bit bulky. Basically cross stack 2x4's (think 'jenga', but with a wide square space in the center) securing with screws until the desired height, cover with plywood and seal gaps with caulk. Attach heavy duty casters (with brakes!) on bottom, then fill with sand, tapping the side of the box to fill the gaps. Sink supports into the stand, and mount the burner. This way you can adjust the height by sinking or raising the supports then re-settling the sand to keep them sturdy. a piece of acrylic or similar heat-resistant material could be cut to be used as a lid to keep sand from billowing upwards, as well as hold a catcher for ash beneath the burner. I built an anvil stand for forging like this, just an idea.
If you need additional flame (not more heat), you should add some firewood on top of the coals. If you need more heat, look for better coals, that are denser and look more like blocks or somewhat uniform.
You need an extra airflow source. But something you can control with your food. So you can create extra heat/flame whenever you desire.. Like a bellows.
Random idea for stable legs. Three short pieces of steel pipe attached to the chimney starter, make sure some extra pipe is hanging from the bottom. Then attach three steel 45 degree elbows. Then attach whatever length of pipe you see fit to those. You can drill holes at the connection points of the legs and have it all held together with a few cotter pins (split pins, round locking pins etc). That makes it easy to disassemble and transport.
Hi Alex, I am from the US and I just got back from a vacation in Dordogne where we were renting a cabin. We have a grill there, but no chimney starter. Any suggestions on where I could buy one in France (we asked at Casino and CarreFour, but they didn't have it). Also, the only fuel we could easily find was wood charcoal. Are charcoal briquettes possible to find and which stores carry them? We go to Dordogne every year, so I thought maybe I can learn for the future. Thank you :)
Mount the cheapest electrical 600 degrees celsius weed killer/barbeque lighter underneath. Basically, drill a hole in the side, just above the grate holding the charcoal, large enough for the mouthpiece to fit through. Put it through and fit on the BBQ starter nozzle to secure it in place (it should come with one). My weedkiller/bbqstarter has 2 settings: 50 degrees and 600 degrees celsius. use the latter to start the fire, the first one to supply air. We are talking ~500 liters of air per minute here, so SERIOUS BTU for around 30 €. Heck, if you aren't going to do it, I will, thanks for the great idea so far.
I made a wok station out of a burner for a propane fueled turkey deep fryer and some spare scraps of metal. I included an additional adjustment valve for fine adjustment of the flame as the one that came with it was more of like an on/off switch.
I love your videos! I like your presentation of the things you make. Though I don't speak French, I love the language. I love hearing you guys talk, especially in English with a French accent. Love it, I hope to learn the language some day. Best wishes.
A lot of people suggested a hair dryer or leaf blower. I would use a hand crank blower for coal/coke forges, you'll get more control and only ramp up heat when you want to.
Why not make the legs out of large L-brackets/bent metal? Set hinges to fold them up over the top for storage, and then fold them down when it's time to cook and lock them in place. You could bend each piece of metal 90° throughout the length and split the end so that each "leg" essentially has two different stabilized directions. 3 legs with 2 different directions each giving you 6 different angles of stabilization. You could even drill holes in the end of each leg and drive some tent spikes through them to anchor them to the ground if you really wanted to get serious about stability. That way it's portable, stable, and easy to set up all while leaving minimal impact on the area you're using it in. You could probably hook up a hair dryer or pump/bellows to the rig to fan the flames for charring the ingredients in the Wok - maybe even set up a foot pedal for it so you could manage your temperature and flame manually on-demand.
You have a good start, one simple thing you could do without adding any electronics, is narrow the top of the stove out and add a little bit of resistance to the airflow at the bottom, not a lot, maybe cover the inner most ring on the bottom grate. In other words, make your stove more cone shaped.
Alex, you should read up on rocket stoves. They make lots of heat and big flames when built right. Also, making your station's legs longer, and curved so you have room to approach, but makes the base effectively quite wide, it will be exceptionally stable without having to sink it into the ground. A little creativity, and I'm sure you could come up with a folding design that can make the setup sufficiently portable
For stability, you might consider brackets that align with the lower grate in the Weber. Three or four points around the chimney that fasten to the lower grate will probably stabilize it fairly well.
For stability you could splay the legs out and add a triangular base of flat metal bars that these splayed legs can sit on and be held in place by. As for flame as many have noted you just need some forced airflow and not very much at that. A small manual bellows or bathroom type fan will produce more than enough airflow for the flame you need considering this type of setup could get your wok red hot if left running. Best of luck with the next version.
You might find the charred aroma on the wodden posts (might want tro change that part). Maybe a 3-leg metal construction with the legs at an angle, like big stands for torches or oil-lamps. 3 metal poles at an angle holding a metal-ring that holds the whole thing (Think like a camera-tripod for stability). For the Fire-situation just make some splinters and throw them in the moment you start using the wok. It won't burn long but you don't plan on taking long anyway. Greatings from Germany
You made the joke about lighting up the forge, but like a forge if you ad more airflow (like a fan of some for on the bottom) you can drastically increase the heat output. Hope that helps
May I suggest a secondary heat shield in case of catastrophic failure. You could repurpose a used 200 litre drum for both heat shield and base structure. Cut away about 1/3 of the circumference from the top to about 1/2 way down for easy access. Attach the chimney with brackets in the middle of the remaining 2/3 of the inside of the barrel. Put some rocks in the bottom of the barrel. If the chimney fails on the bottom, the charcoal falls into the rocks in the barrel and not on your feet. If the chimney fails to the side, whatever hot air and flame that escapes is redirected upwards along the barrel and not up your shorts.
A taller burn chamber would improve air flow via the chimney effect. You could use a stove pipe attached to the chimney starter for that. Also, you could mount it in a ventilated metal drum to both catch ash and embers and make a stable, but portable platform, with some sand to weight the bottom. This would also make it safer by acting as a heat shield.
Hi Alex, for the heat the leafblower idea is definetly a good idea. I would recommend using a tripod construction directly mounted to the chimney that are connected via chains at the bottom. But you have interconnect them in the middle, it should look like a Y, so those chains don't hinder you when you cook.
In some of the DIY channels I watch, there's something called a "rocket stove." There's several videos on how to make your own. Even one made with concrete blocks (cinder blocks). Also, check out "wood gas burners." They work by recycling the smoke that comes from a normal flame back into a burnable gas. They can get insanely hot, like 1500 F if made right.
Hey Alex, Gareth's idea is all be it a little overkill is what it lacks I think. It seems that the fire is not hot enough also. If you add dynamic airflow with a leaf blower or maybe even a hear dryer, you will create a much higher heat and a more aggressive flame. This with increased temp's of the oil will allow to create the "flashover" more easyly. Good luck on the project!
Just a few armchair rocket stove scientist suggestions, you could use a fan at the bottom powered by some Seebeck generators. You would of course want a durable fan, and perhaps a wire mesh on the bottom to prevent ash flakes and such interfering with the mechanism. Ave did a video a while ago duscussing such generators as a source of power in the field. Collapsible legs might solve the convinience problem, as well as metal spikes to aid in anchoring the device. Beyond that, good luck! Ps, excellent video as always.
You are amazing I have been planning on doing the same thing and stumbled upon you doing it as well now I’m gonna make my set up the same thank you for prototyping it for me. (On a different design off the top of my head use one pole and fit it in a heavy umbrella holder like the big ones for outdoor tables))
I use a petrol stove, it’s more stable for wok use with a larger flat pack stove with two burners. Eg the Coleman one for camping. They are very hot. You could easily get a wok glowing red if you left on on at full heat.
If you need more flames you can use dried sticks instead of the lump charcoal. The charcoal had it's combustible gases cooked out of it. It's good for having a smokeless fire and a fuel that doesn't rot, but smoke from dry tinder is all un-combusted fuel vapors. Build a taller chimney starter yourself from some stove pipe, load it with vertically oriented straw or small sticks (so that air draws straight up through it) and light it from the top. I use a 55 gallon drum with the bottom cut out (so it's just a big metal tube), propped up on bricks for airflow (with a barbecue grate on top of the bricks to hold the fuel up and let the ashes drop) and a giant wok. I fuel it with dried flower stems and seed branches from my farm. The drum gets hot enough to glow if I'm not careful. I need to build one out of clay or aircrete but haven't taken the time to yet.
I recommend Hot Shot Ignition for creating a flame-on-demand system. Basically a small duct that enables you to spray a small amount of a flammable liquid (for food safety maybe alcohol) directly into the burner. So a push of a button (pedal?) could cause a short burst of fire to light up your wok. That's at least how they ignite jet aircraft afterburners.
2 wheel-legs and 1 pointy leg (making sure its level) would be stable and mobile. The wheels to make it mobile, the ponty leg to put it in the ground to stable it. Like a bbq, you will only havo to roll it around Less oxygen at the bottom (so closing it a bit up) would mean the flames go higher which is needed to start the flame inside the wok. So make a valve or another way to control airflow. If the oil wont ignite, it isnt hot enough so watch out you dont take to much air away. And keep airflow at the top. If the flames wont ignite the oil, the oil isnt hot enough. Then you should place the wok on top of the coal and put more air in.
Alex If you were to adjust the feet to a 30 degree angle that would make the base wider to a total of 60 degrees and would therefore make the system stable for the cooking. If you maintain the 3 legged design it would allow for the space to stand and cook. If you hinged these the and added chain between them it would fold up and be able to be stored out of the way when not in use.
So the chefsteps guys did a video on a quick way to light the charcoal lighter, and what they did was use a leaf blower to- oh guess I’m not the first dude to suggest it, so Alex, from me and my other leaf blower intellectuals, TRY A LEAFBLOWER!! And reference the chefsteps video because I know you are a fan of them. Thank you for the amazing videos!! 👍🏽👍🏽
@Alex To Make this design more portable maybe take a little more inspiration from camera tripods. Angle the three legs out and have some eyelets/holes for some stakes to secure it. Maybe the legs are telescoping or gold and lock. I'm not saying design and fabricate this mechanism, but maybe find a used tripod and salvage it's parts. Just a thought. I love your enthusiasm and this is a great mini series! Congrats on 1M subs btw! Salut!😁👍
The legs are good, but you could give them rubber feet and build a triangle you can bolt on to them to keep them stable. Maybe make them angle outwards too so it is more stable. For the flames, you could mount some sort of air blower onto one of the legs. Maybe a battery power tool from the hardware store. Then have a pipe leading into the can to get the air in. Instead of charcoal, mix in some wood too for the flames. If you are still worried about it tipping you could add some guide wires like they have on cellphone towers and use tent pegs to stick them into the ground
If I’ve learned anything from my knifemaking days it’s that the best way to make a hot AF fire is with more air, you can make a little forge that’s hot enough to soften steel with firebrick, a leaf blower and charcoal. Something similar would work for this application I think, the real problem is how to regulate it... I would say compressed air because you could just throw a regulator in the line before the fire, but that would be loud and inconsistent, and would be too little air volume. I think an electric leaf blower with multiple speed options plumbed into the bottom of the existing setup would work great, you would want to get something with a lot of range in power, because you don’t really want to melt your pan or blow charcoal everywhere out the top, so honestly I would start with a kinda wimpy one and see how you like the pressure and volume then just return it and get a more hardcore one if it’s not enough juice.... then once you get your blower picked out, strip everything off except the bare necessities and slap it in a box underneath for consolidation sake. Hope some of this helped !!
My suggestion would be find a old Weber/kettle style grill with a good base. The tripod base with ash catch pan and wheels would be perfect and then mount the charcoal starter to that. I would find/make a metal ring that is just big enough for the starter to slide in to then use L brackets as stops. To transport it just pull off starter and lay on the rack below if it has one. Could also get a new one and do this but add twist brackets to the bottom of the kettle so the just slide in to the ring and then twist them to lock in place. You get 2 for one that way.
haha, this reminded me of south texas tripas en disco.... have found memories seeing my dad and uncles get their morning drink on while working with an open fire and fry oil and magically never get burned
Good idea! For flames you need soft woods, the charcoal helps to keep it on but the wood will give you the flames that you are expecting... trust in an argentinian!! Sorry for my bad english
For the sake of economy your best bet would be to use a large dog bowl or a steel deep dish pie pan with a lot of small holes drilled in for ash to fall through and air flow. Added bonus if you use the cap of a bar shaker, or some other faced-down conical shape to place in the center to allow the coals to make a crater shape, which would allow for more even heating around the wok, as long as you make sure to stack the coals very well. Smaller pan so less coal to use. Lower pan, so it's closer the the heat. A rocket stove is essentially what you're using now, so that wouldn't really work. Also, just cut the tops of the wooden stakes, so they don't catch fire in the future.
I would suggest to use a camping table, cut out a section big enough it does not get burnt from the heat and bolt down the wok ring - chimney combination as it is now, so just the tip of the wok ring is coming out of the table on the upper side. its super convenient to store, to set up, its cheap and you have extra space for a cooking spoon or other tools, ingredients and plates for an easy serve.
You need a blower to increase the flame/heat . Just like people who are forging metal, look them to get inspired on how to increase heat in a controlled way If you build a station on wheels you could move it Just get wheels that can lock
to mantain the portability, to fix it to the ground maybe you can use a screw type of drill bit, the one used to dig holes but this time you attach them to a shaft that goes from the bottom to the top of the legs and then with a cranck of with a drill you spin the shafts and secure them to the ground, now to give it power you can adapt one of those battery operated cheap leaf blowers to blow from the bottom of the coal
Alex talking about personal safety while waving a gigantic cleaver in one hand and holding his food with his other soot-covered hand is so on brand...
Well, he did say “Only do stuff if you think they are safe enough”. Apparenly alex’s safety standards aren’t that high seeing him wield an angle grinder like that, lmao.
Safety third!
and he wasn't even wearing a safety tie...
Worst was when he was driving and making a video at the same time.
Exactly... For my burgers, i always ask for "as rare as your kitchen feels is safe"
3:00
Alex: I’m thinking about mounting it upside-down instead of downside-up.
But Alex, you just said the same thing in two different ways 😂😂
Let's flip a coin - heads I win, tails you lose ;)
Rocket stove? I’m feeling rocket stove. There’s a reason I patronize you Alex, you just told us to be safe while waving around a cleaver. Keep up the good work.
He’s safe lol just not boring. He’s a professional lol
Rocket stove fo sho. For those who aren't diy handy, you can pick up a decent one like this: ecozoom.com/products/zoom-versa?variant=655376089 Got it for my dad's boat, he pulls up to beaches and cooks wherever (beaches are usually a no fire zone in my part of aus)
He said to only do what you feel is safe. For some that is juggling chainsaws for others it is talking with your knife hands.
B G lol
Rocket stove is the way, I've made a few small ones from fire extinguisher bottles. Crazy heat from little fuel.
Could try a foot operated belows below the 1st try model too.
We have been using one of those starters with a wok on it when we go camping for years. Sometimes I notch the top a little sometimes not. Never bothered to add the wok ring, have a small wok for it. We just set it on the ground. In the spirit of how we have always used it, you could use a blower used to blow up air mattresses that plugs into a car power outlet . Set it on the ground , dig a small trench out from under one side and direct the blower under the charcoal starter. I can vouch that this will make one heck of a hot flame. Was great fun for the kids to watch until metal starts warping from the heat, then you have to stop because supper still has to be cooked.
A leaf blower would be way too much air. I would recommend a hair dryer for just the small amount of air flow you need in this setup.
I used a hair dryer once in something similar to this. It became well over 1000°C so would not recommend for cooking lol
I think a small bellows or one of those hand pumps for inflating an air mattress would be perfect. Ideally, you could rig it up so that you could have a hose to direct the air and be able to operate it with one foot.
If you build in a valve to control air flow into the unit, and exhaust what you don't need, you can control the temperature of the fire (coal smithies do this).
did you have a ticket in your windshield wiper when you were driving? :D
Look into rocket stoves. They're wood burning, high heat, and relatively efficient.
Great stuff as always!
I was thinking the same. They're incredibly simple to diy as well. All you need is some concrete mix (perlite concrete would be good to cut down on weight. I've seen it used for pizza ovens, so the heat shouldn't be an issue.) and a mold made out of a five-gallon bucket and some pvc pipe (or anything really, these are just cheap and readily available materials). The whole thing could probably be done as cheap or cheaper than buying a chimney starter alone would be. There's also tons of room for customization since prototyping would be relatively cheap and easy.
Self feeding rocket stoves are pretty awesome! High heat, long lasting flame!
Curtis Bowman could also be made of clay or welding steel
Yup, tons of options to make them.
The Asian markets here sell something similar to what you made, except made mostly out of concrete with a steel inner layer. I think it pretty much is the same exact principle. I'll have to buy it and test it out with my wok.
How about a foot operated chimney bellows? ("Soufflet de cheminée" in French)
It would require no power to be used in the garden. It's pretty inexpensive and you could pipe the air directly inside.
YOU, inspire me to cook! I don't enjoy cooking as much as I used to before I got sick. So, I watch you when I'm hungry. 😄
I suggest reaching out to Colin Furze. You guys would make an epic team.
If we thought the ThisOldTony and Alec Steele vids were epic, that collab could possibly stop the internet. Possibly. For a nano-second.
this
Oh god. An Englishman and a Frenchman working together with fire... I'd watch it.
Yes!! So much this!
And thus, the jet powered wok station was born.
Hey Alex. I think you are on the right path with this design. If you find a way to couple an air pump/fan to the chimney starter you could use the speed of the pump to regulate the heat of the wok station. I use a 12V inflatable mattress air pump to fire up my chimney starter, and it is crazy how much the extra air helps. I run it at about 14 volts with an adjustable DC motor controller for that extra power. good luck
Pull the legs outwards to form a tripod, stops you from needing the hammer. Also i recommend adding a cheap fan or blower to start your fire faster.
What about his parents? Were they not concerned with someone building a fire in the back-yard? After all, they know how Alex can be! LOL - loved it.
Upside down = Downside up hahaha. Great to finally watch one of your videos first (or almost) :D
Nicolas Hermosilla Polanco thought the same thing, it should have been upside up
That is outside in, instead of inside out.
I cannot believe Alex you don't have 50 million subscribers??!!! By far the greatest most all encompassing channel on RUclips. Well done, your hard work is so evident. Look after yourself! Xx
What's the piece of paper flapping on your windshield? I was captivated every time you were driving...
looks like a parking ticket xD
Don't worry, it's (a) fine.
Lol oh Alex.
Alex nice to see even in France 🇫🇷 the tickets flow freely, Lol
@@FrenchGuyCooking just the government trying to oppress you and stop your nontraditional approach to, well... Everything! Lol 😁 "Stick it to the Man", Alex!
You could plug a simple hairdryer to the chimney. It would rev up the flames, but not so much as a leaf blower. so it is more controlable.
Also, you could put the legs on an wider angle, with a frame on the bottom in the shape of an Y. So the whole thing becomes portable.
This Video is so Worth Watching..
I relate to your methods . My thoughts are all over , too ! Better , IS BETTER ! I am new to your channel . SO .... Let's do this .
A rocket stove with a tripod base system will work perfectly.
Derp, i should have red comments before posting mine.. We got the same idea, thumbs up for you x)
Yes, this.
Could make it from fireproof bricks. Add some insulation and it should get plenty hot and would have a flame as well
Splendid Idea!
Fully agree
Exactly what I was thinking as soon as he started looking at chimney starters.
man seeing all your video chasing wok hei is a great journey
Bonjour Alex. Have a look at "rocket stove" concept. Pretty well known in the BBQ circuit.
@Alex
All you need is one visit chez Decathlon Alex. Let me explain:
-Heat wise, get the foot powered pump for air mattresses (4-5€). Then rout a bit of tubing from hardware store (preferably metal for the end or it will melt). This will work to fuel the fire in oxygen in a way that you can directly control with your foot. As you are cooking.
- For the conveniency. I’m thinking camera tripod. Or even better: Decathlon “portable chair”. They have some folding chairs that are super convient which you can adapt to fit the entire thing.
I’ll let you do the rest. Enjoy!
"I want it to be practical"
"I'll build it in my parent's garden, a few kilometers away"
Yeah, sure
@dylan foley ... Have you never heard of satire or sarcasm? The joke is about taking the video literally.
@@SimonWoodburyForget and that's fair.
Me, I could run it on my apartment balcony
I've done this on a fireplace made from a washingmachine drum. It fits the Wok perfectly!
"I think of maybe mounting it upside down instead of downside up." - Alex
.
.
.
Same thing though 😂
Alex, bolt three metal bars (or square tubing) on the side of the chimney, at 120 degrees apart (basically equidistant) and put a cable or a small chain at some distance towards the bottom. then you just slide the legs sideways until the chain tensions. aaaaaand you have a wok station on a tripod. hope you like it, and hope it works.
“upside down instead of down side up” lmao
i still love u alex hahahah
Alex, just FYI: in the duration of this video having just been watched at 5:15pm HST, you gained 7 new subscribers. Very good, very good.
7:07 *Alex while waving a cleaver knife* : "Just do things if you think it's safe enough"
on his lap too
@@Sarah-l7f6o No kidding
This guy is pure class and talent
some forced airflow would raise the temperature maybe a small forge blower
totally agree with some form of forced air, also if you want more of a flame, maybe try mixing in some wood with the charcoal?
A reinforced box of sand on wheels is pretty damn sturdy and relatively mobile, if a bit bulky. Basically cross stack 2x4's (think 'jenga', but with a wide square space in the center) securing with screws until the desired height, cover with plywood and seal gaps with caulk. Attach heavy duty casters (with brakes!) on bottom, then fill with sand, tapping the side of the box to fill the gaps. Sink supports into the stand, and mount the burner. This way you can adjust the height by sinking or raising the supports then re-settling the sand to keep them sturdy. a piece of acrylic or similar heat-resistant material could be cut to be used as a lid to keep sand from billowing upwards, as well as hold a catcher for ash beneath the burner.
I built an anvil stand for forging like this, just an idea.
If you need additional flame (not more heat), you should add some firewood on top of the coals. If you need more heat, look for better coals, that are denser and look more like blocks or somewhat uniform.
This is my favorite food-related channel on RUclips. Thanks for being adorkable.
You need an extra airflow source. But something you can control with your food. So you can create extra heat/flame whenever you desire.. Like a bellows.
Was about to comment this but I always search first. Imagine a bellows he can step on while cooking, like bass pedals on drums.
Random idea for stable legs. Three short pieces of steel pipe attached to the chimney starter, make sure some extra pipe is hanging from the bottom. Then attach three steel 45 degree elbows. Then attach whatever length of pipe you see fit to those. You can drill holes at the connection points of the legs and have it all held together with a few cotter pins (split pins, round locking pins etc). That makes it easy to disassemble and transport.
Hi Alex, I am from the US and I just got back from a vacation in Dordogne where we were renting a cabin. We have a grill there, but no chimney starter. Any suggestions on where I could buy one in France (we asked at Casino and CarreFour, but they didn't have it). Also, the only fuel we could easily find was wood charcoal. Are charcoal briquettes possible to find and which stores carry them? We go to Dordogne every year, so I thought maybe I can learn for the future. Thank you :)
Chunk charcoal is far better than the briquettes, as they have no binder sticking the particles together.
Do it the french way: Use spiritus....
Weber makes the best and only chimney starter worth having. They must be available online.
If you can't find one, use an old metal coffee can lunch holes in it cut bother ends out and sit it on the charcoal grate.
Mount the cheapest electrical 600 degrees celsius weed killer/barbeque lighter underneath.
Basically, drill a hole in the side, just above the grate holding the charcoal, large enough for the mouthpiece to fit through.
Put it through and fit on the BBQ starter nozzle to secure it in place (it should come with one).
My weedkiller/bbqstarter has 2 settings: 50 degrees and 600 degrees celsius. use the latter to start the fire, the first one to supply air.
We are talking ~500 liters of air per minute here, so SERIOUS BTU for around 30 €.
Heck, if you aren't going to do it, I will, thanks for the great idea so far.
"I don't care about safety i just want it to work so I look good."
Yep definitely an engineer
I made a wok station out of a burner for a propane fueled turkey deep fryer and some spare scraps of metal. I included an additional adjustment valve for fine adjustment of the flame as the one that came with it was more of like an on/off switch.
Wrap some heat wrap for exhausts around those wooden posts unless you want an unexpected fire!
I love your videos! I like your presentation of the things you make. Though I don't speak French, I love the language. I love hearing you guys talk, especially in English with a French accent. Love it, I hope to learn the language some day. Best wishes.
“I’m taking care of my own person”
*waves giant knife extremely close to face*
A lot of people suggested a hair dryer or leaf blower. I would use a hand crank blower for coal/coke forges, you'll get more control and only ramp up heat when you want to.
Why not make the legs out of large L-brackets/bent metal? Set hinges to fold them up over the top for storage, and then fold them down when it's time to cook and lock them in place. You could bend each piece of metal 90° throughout the length and split the end so that each "leg" essentially has two different stabilized directions. 3 legs with 2 different directions each giving you 6 different angles of stabilization. You could even drill holes in the end of each leg and drive some tent spikes through them to anchor them to the ground if you really wanted to get serious about stability. That way it's portable, stable, and easy to set up all while leaving minimal impact on the area you're using it in.
You could probably hook up a hair dryer or pump/bellows to the rig to fan the flames for charring the ingredients in the Wok - maybe even set up a foot pedal for it so you could manage your temperature and flame manually on-demand.
You have a good start, one simple thing you could do without adding any electronics, is narrow the top of the stove out and add a little bit of resistance to the airflow at the bottom, not a lot, maybe cover the inner most ring on the bottom grate. In other words, make your stove more cone shaped.
should the cone be pointing towards the wok or away from it?
7:20 LOL when you enjoy everything about cooking besides... cooking 🤣
Alex, you should read up on rocket stoves. They make lots of heat and big flames when built right. Also, making your station's legs longer, and curved so you have room to approach, but makes the base effectively quite wide, it will be exceptionally stable without having to sink it into the ground. A little creativity, and I'm sure you could come up with a folding design that can make the setup sufficiently portable
So early! I love your projects on the wok burners and stir fry method! Loving your videos, from Canada
For stability, you might consider brackets that align with the lower grate in the Weber. Three or four points around the chimney that fasten to the lower grate will probably stabilize it fairly well.
6:34 humm you didn't wash your hand
je plaisante avec toi ...
For stability you could splay the legs out and add a triangular base of flat metal bars that these splayed legs can sit on and be held in place by. As for flame as many have noted you just need some forced airflow and not very much at that. A small manual bellows or bathroom type fan will produce more than enough airflow for the flame you need considering this type of setup could get your wok red hot if left running. Best of luck with the next version.
"I'm thinking of mounting it upside down instead of downside up" *Weird flex but ok*
It literally means the same thing lmao
You might find the charred aroma on the wodden posts (might want tro change that part). Maybe a 3-leg metal construction with the legs at an angle, like big stands for torches or oil-lamps. 3 metal poles at an angle holding a metal-ring that holds the whole thing (Think like a camera-tripod for stability). For the Fire-situation just make some splinters and throw them in the moment you start using the wok. It won't burn long but you don't plan on taking long anyway. Greatings from Germany
"I'm not worried about safety too much" - Alex recording a RUclips video while driving.
Nice profile pic
These montages are some of the best things on RUclips.
Try a propane burner, they get way hotter than a stove top or charcoal
and you get a good flame 🔥👍
that is 100% correct and yet totally missing the whole point^^
Sir, do you sell propane and propane accessories?
You made the joke about lighting up the forge, but like a forge if you ad more airflow (like a fan of some for on the bottom) you can drastically increase the heat output. Hope that helps
Alex, you need gas! Phone Colin Furze, he knows gas 🤣... Collab time!
I was JUST staring at my chimney starter yesterday and making inquisitive "hmmmm" noises with this very idea in my head.
My Asian supermarket has a 100,000 BTU wok burner for like $60
May I suggest a secondary heat shield in case of catastrophic failure. You could repurpose a used 200 litre drum for both heat shield and base structure. Cut away about 1/3 of the circumference from the top to about 1/2 way down for easy access. Attach the chimney with brackets in the middle of the remaining 2/3 of the inside of the barrel. Put some rocks in the bottom of the barrel. If the chimney fails on the bottom, the charcoal falls into the rocks in the barrel and not on your feet. If the chimney fails to the side, whatever hot air and flame that escapes is redirected upwards along the barrel and not up your shorts.
Maybe you shouldn't use wood for the legs. I noticed that they're already turning black from the heat.
A taller burn chamber would improve air flow via the chimney effect. You could use a stove pipe attached to the chimney starter for that. Also, you could mount it in a ventilated metal drum to both catch ash and embers and make a stable, but portable platform, with some sand to weight the bottom. This would also make it safer by acting as a heat shield.
Hi Alex, for the heat the leafblower idea is definetly a good idea. I would recommend using a tripod construction directly mounted to the chimney that are connected via chains at the bottom. But you have interconnect them in the middle, it should look like a Y, so those chains don't hinder you when you cook.
he was so exited he forget to clean his hands. Been there.
I think you should wash your hands every time you go to the bathroom.
In some of the DIY channels I watch, there's something called a "rocket stove." There's several videos on how to make your own. Even one made with concrete blocks (cinder blocks). Also, check out "wood gas burners." They work by recycling the smoke that comes from a normal flame back into a burnable gas. They can get insanely hot, like 1500 F if made right.
You always remind me of the professor from money heist ( la casa de papel )
Hey Alex, Gareth's idea is all be it a little overkill is what it lacks I think. It seems that the fire is not hot enough also. If you add dynamic airflow with a leaf blower or maybe even a hear dryer, you will create a much higher heat and a more aggressive flame. This with increased temp's of the oil will allow to create the "flashover" more easyly. Good luck on the project!
You need more oxygen. I use an old hair dryer to light my chimney starter. You'll get flames 2ft above the starter with mesquite.
Just a few armchair rocket stove scientist suggestions, you could use a fan at the bottom powered by some Seebeck generators. You would of course want a durable fan, and perhaps a wire mesh on the bottom to prevent ash flakes and such interfering with the mechanism. Ave did a video a while ago duscussing such generators as a source of power in the field. Collapsible legs might solve the convinience problem, as well as metal spikes to aid in anchoring the device. Beyond that, good luck! Ps, excellent video as always.
@6:40 Your second pronunciation is the closest to the Cantonese “鑊氣” “Wok Hei”
You are amazing I have been planning on doing the same thing and stumbled upon you doing it as well now I’m gonna make my set up the same thank you for prototyping it for me. (On a different design off the top of my head use one pole and fit it in a heavy umbrella holder like the big ones for outdoor tables))
*Next Episode*
'Allo everyone, I'm here with Elon Musk and we're going to build a rocket wok..."
Salut*
I use a petrol stove, it’s more stable for wok use with a larger flat pack stove with two burners. Eg the Coleman one for camping. They are very hot. You could easily get a wok glowing red if you left on on at full heat.
@9:50 "These mistakes could have been avoided if I did more research" should be the new name for your Channel.
If you need more flames you can use dried sticks instead of the lump charcoal. The charcoal had it's combustible gases cooked out of it. It's good for having a smokeless fire and a fuel that doesn't rot, but smoke from dry tinder is all un-combusted fuel vapors. Build a taller chimney starter yourself from some stove pipe, load it with vertically oriented straw or small sticks (so that air draws straight up through it) and light it from the top.
I use a 55 gallon drum with the bottom cut out (so it's just a big metal tube), propped up on bricks for airflow (with a barbecue grate on top of the bricks to hold the fuel up and let the ashes drop) and a giant wok. I fuel it with dried flower stems and seed branches from my farm. The drum gets hot enough to glow if I'm not careful. I need to build one out of clay or aircrete but haven't taken the time to yet.
Upsidedown is the same as Downsideup. Technically. NOT COMPLAINING!
I think about Japanese charcoal a lot and I wish I could make it. I think this is a perfect challenge for you.
ouldnt you just plug a leaf blower on the bottom and it would litterally ramp up the temp 5 times
Cooked carrots are a deal breaker! You are so awesome!!
I've been watching a few of his older videos and it is the strangest things: His accent got more french as time went on.
I recommend Hot Shot Ignition for creating a flame-on-demand system. Basically a small duct that enables you to spray a small amount of a flammable liquid (for food safety maybe alcohol) directly into the burner. So a push of a button (pedal?) could cause a short burst of fire to light up your wok. That's at least how they ignite jet aircraft afterburners.
2 wheel-legs and 1 pointy leg (making sure its level) would be stable and mobile. The wheels to make it mobile, the ponty leg to put it in the ground to stable it. Like a bbq, you will only havo to roll it around
Less oxygen at the bottom (so closing it a bit up) would mean the flames go higher which is needed to start the flame inside the wok. So make a valve or another way to control airflow.
If the oil wont ignite, it isnt hot enough so watch out you dont take to much air away. And keep airflow at the top.
If the flames wont ignite the oil, the oil isnt hot enough. Then you should place the wok on top of the coal and put more air in.
Alex hit a million subs 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
“I’m not worried about safety”
Lmao!! That made my shit day at work so much better. Thx for sharing✌🏼👽
Alex If you were to adjust the feet to a 30 degree angle that would make the base wider to a total of 60 degrees and would therefore make the system stable for the cooking. If you maintain the 3 legged design it would allow for the space to stand and cook. If you hinged these the and added chain between them it would fold up and be able to be stored out of the way when not in use.
So the chefsteps guys did a video on a quick way to light the charcoal lighter, and what they did was use a leaf blower to- oh guess I’m not the first dude to suggest it, so Alex, from me and my other leaf blower intellectuals, TRY A LEAFBLOWER!! And reference the chefsteps video because I know you are a fan of them. Thank you for the amazing videos!! 👍🏽👍🏽
@Alex To Make this design more portable maybe take a little more inspiration from camera tripods. Angle the three legs out and have some eyelets/holes for some stakes to secure it. Maybe the legs are telescoping or gold and lock. I'm not saying design and fabricate this mechanism, but maybe find a used tripod and salvage it's parts. Just a thought. I love your enthusiasm and this is a great mini series! Congrats on 1M subs btw! Salut!😁👍
The legs are good, but you could give them rubber feet and build a triangle you can bolt on to them to keep them stable. Maybe make them angle outwards too so it is more stable. For the flames, you could mount some sort of air blower onto one of the legs. Maybe a battery power tool from the hardware store. Then have a pipe leading into the can to get the air in. Instead of charcoal, mix in some wood too for the flames.
If you are still worried about it tipping you could add some guide wires like they have on cellphone towers and use tent pegs to stick them into the ground
Talking about safety when jugling that big knife/axe around, love it! "Flying Carrots" should be the name of that dish Alex.
If I’ve learned anything from my knifemaking days it’s that the best way to make a hot AF fire is with more air, you can make a little forge that’s hot enough to soften steel with firebrick, a leaf blower and charcoal. Something similar would work for this application I think, the real problem is how to regulate it... I would say compressed air because you could just throw a regulator in the line before the fire, but that would be loud and inconsistent, and would be too little air volume. I think an electric leaf blower with multiple speed options plumbed into the bottom of the existing setup would work great, you would want to get something with a lot of range in power, because you don’t really want to melt your pan or blow charcoal everywhere out the top, so honestly I would start with a kinda wimpy one and see how you like the pressure and volume then just return it and get a more hardcore one if it’s not enough juice.... then once you get your blower picked out, strip everything off except the bare necessities and slap it in a box underneath for consolidation sake. Hope some of this helped !!
My suggestion would be find a old Weber/kettle style grill with a good base. The tripod base with ash catch pan and wheels would be perfect and then mount the charcoal starter to that. I would find/make a metal ring that is just big enough for the starter to slide in to then use L brackets as stops. To transport it just pull off starter and lay on the rack below if it has one. Could also get a new one and do this but add twist brackets to the bottom of the kettle so the just slide in to the ring and then twist them to lock in place. You get 2 for one that way.
haha, this reminded me of south texas tripas en disco.... have found memories seeing my dad and uncles get their morning drink on while working with an open fire and fry oil and magically never get burned
Good idea!
For flames you need soft woods, the charcoal helps to keep it on but the wood will give you the flames that you are expecting... trust in an argentinian!!
Sorry for my bad english
For the sake of economy your best bet would be to use a large dog bowl or a steel deep dish pie pan with a lot of small holes drilled in for ash to fall through and air flow. Added bonus if you use the cap of a bar shaker, or some other faced-down conical shape to place in the center to allow the coals to make a crater shape, which would allow for more even heating around the wok, as long as you make sure to stack the coals very well.
Smaller pan so less coal to use. Lower pan, so it's closer the the heat.
A rocket stove is essentially what you're using now, so that wouldn't really work. Also, just cut the tops of the wooden stakes, so they don't catch fire in the future.
I would suggest to use a camping table, cut out a section big enough it does not get burnt from the heat and bolt down the wok ring - chimney combination as it is now, so just the tip of the wok ring is coming out of the table on the upper side. its super convenient to store, to set up, its cheap and you have extra space for a cooking spoon or other tools, ingredients and plates for an easy serve.
You need a blower to increase the flame/heat . Just like people who are forging metal, look them to get inspired on how to increase heat in a controlled way
If you build a station on wheels you could move it
Just get wheels that can lock
to mantain the portability, to fix it to the ground maybe you can use a screw type of drill bit, the one used to dig holes but this time you attach them to a shaft that goes from the bottom to the top of the legs and then with a cranck of with a drill you spin the shafts and secure them to the ground, now to give it power you can adapt one of those battery operated cheap leaf blowers to blow from the bottom of the coal