I couldn’t be happier with my STOK drum grill. I mean, I’d love some “swag”/goods from STOK, the company itself, from all the free endorsement I’ve been giving them on here and on Instagram (@smutravageur is my handle), but who wouldn’t?

I grilled these burgers last Sunday (6/4). They came out pretty damn good; no complaints from anyone, at least. I posted that to Reddit, and I made a mistake by mentioning STOK’s name, and a few idiots considered it a “hail corporate!” kind of thing. I wish! Once again, I’d love to be endorsed by STOK. I give them plenty of free advertising both on here and on Instagram. The internet is cynical as hell; Reddit can be a bottom-dweller’s haven at times, with a lot of morons showing their asses through anonymity.

It’s 73/27 ground beef. A 5+ lb. batch goes for about $10 at the grocery store. Whenever I grill them, I like to form the patties and put them in the freezer for a while to let them solidify, as it makes them much easier to cook. However, my family was so damn hungry I had to be a little quick. The problem with not doing the freezer method with these is that they fall apart. It’s difficult to sear them, because they are so fatty the fat drips onto the coals and induces plenty of flare ups. It wasn’t a huge problem last night. It at least made for some nice pictures. The burgers came out delicious and juicy, with a nice crust.

I give credit to this STOK grill because I love the cast iron grates. As I’ve said before, I’m a cast iron freak. Nothing holds heat better. I also love this grill, because with the basket you can use it as a direct/indirect grill, and what I plan on using with a “vortex” method pretty soon. I’m going to get some wings and start them off on indirect heat on the grill for 7-10 minutes per side with the lid closed before crisping them up, very carefully, on direct heat. Should be some damn good eatin’! The little lady loves crispy wings (hell… so do I), so this should be worth a shot on the ol’ STOK!

Unrelated, but I graduated from high school on this day eight years ago. June 12, 2009. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long. That summer was arguably the best summer of my life so far. I miss that time period so badly.