The Thermador wok burner is the high-output center burner on the SGSX365CS, rated at 22,000 BTU, and the way to use it well is to preheat a dry wok, cook small batches at high heat, keep the hood on its highest speed and never leave it unattended. It is built for stir-frying, searing and charring, not for simmering, so use the other four Star Burners and their ExtraLow setting for gentle work.
How do you stir-fry on the Thermador center wok burner?
Start with a dry wok on the wok burner and let it heat until a drop of water skitters and evaporates at once. Add a thin film of oil with a high smoke point such as peanut, canola or refined avocado oil, swirl it around, and add the food in small batches so the wok stays hot. Keep the food moving, and finish in a minute or two. The point of 22,000 BTU is recovery: when cold food hits the metal, a strong burner brings it back to heat fast, which is why a good stir-fry browns instead of steaming.
Prepare everything before you light the burner. Slice the ingredients, mix the sauce and have the serving plate nearby, because the cooking is over in minutes. If you stand there chopping a vegetable while the wok smokes, you will burn the oil and your dinner.
Season a new carbon steel wok before its first stir-fry: scrub off the factory coating, heat the wok until it turns blue-gray, wipe a thin coat of oil over it and heat it again until the oil smokes lightly. After each use, rinse with hot water, scrub with a soft brush and no soap if you can, dry on the burner and rub in a few drops of oil. A seasoned wok releases food cleanly and gets better each time, while a wok that is left wet will rust within a day.
Which wok and which wok ring should you use?
A carbon steel wok with a flat or slightly flattened base gives the best contact and the quickest heat. A traditional round-bottomed wok can rock on a cooktop grate, so use a stable support only if the manual for your cooktop explicitly allows it. Do not improvise a ring from other cookware; a loose ring can tip a hot pan. Enameled cast iron and heavy stainless pans also work on the wok burner for searing, but avoid thin aluminum pans, which warp at that heat, and any nonstick pan that is not rated for high heat, because the coating degrades and gives off fumes.
Match the pan to the flame. The flames should stay under the pan and not lick up the sides, because flame that wraps up the side overheats the handle and wastes gas. If the flame is bigger than the pan, use the other burners instead.
How do you ventilate a high-output wok burner?
A 22,000 BTU burner produces smoke, grease and heat quickly, so turn the hood on before you light the burner and run it at a high speed while you cook. Leave it running a few minutes after you finish so the air clears. If your kitchen smells of smoke every time you wok-fry, the hood is probably undersized or its filters are clogged; see our guide to Thermador vent hood efficiency tips and our vent hood CFM guide. A smoke alarm that goes off is a signal to improve ventilation, not a nuisance to disconnect.
What should you cook on the other Star Burners?
Save the wok burner for the loudest part of the meal and use the other four Star Burners for everything else. Our explainer on how the Thermador Star Burner works shows how its flame spreads heat across the pan, and the ExtraLow setting lets you hold sauces, melt chocolate and keep a pan of rice just below a simmer. A common workflow is to sear on the wok burner, then move the pan to a Star Burner on low to finish. For more cooking ideas, see our Thermador Star Burner cooking tips.
How do you stay safe with a high-heat burner?
- Never leave it unattended. Oil can go from shimmering to smoking to burning in a minute at this output.
- If oil catches fire, cover it with a lid and turn the burner off. Never throw water on a grease fire.
- Keep towels, sleeves and paper away from the flame, and turn handles inward.
- If you smell gas, turn the burner off, do not use any switch, open a window and call your gas utility.
- Let the grates and caps cool before cleaning them, since the center burner area stays hot for a long time.
How do you keep the wok burner clean and lighting well?
High heat bakes splatter onto the cap and the grate, and a burner port clogged with grease lights unevenly or with a yellow flame. After the cooktop cools, lift the cap and wash it with warm soapy water and a soft brush, rinse and dry fully, then seat it correctly so the flame is even. Clear a blocked port with a small stiff brush, not a toothpick or a needle that can break off. If a burner clicks without lighting or burns unevenly, our guide to Thermador burner problems and our cooktop cleaning tips cover the checks.
