It’s fair to say that burgers are one of the world’s most loved foods. Nothing much can match the delicious taste of a burger patty that’s fresh off the grill, topped off with some lettuce and tomatoes, American cheddar, relish, and a piece of bacon or two between two soft buttered burger buns.
And while it is true that there are several ways you can prepare your burgers, grilling is undoubtedly one of the best ways you can use bring out the full flavor and texture of your burger patties.
But what if you don’t have a griller? Or if you’re craving a burger, but it’s a rain, snow, or sleet storm outside, and you can’t use the griller? Not to worry! There are plenty of ways to hack whatever you’ve got in a basic kitchen to prepare a classic grilled burger full of juicy, smoky flavor and the coveted flame-grilled texture we all love.
Here’s how I make burgers taste grilled without a grill:
My preferred way to give a fair equivalent flame-grilled taste to burgers is by using a Smokeless electric indoor grill. Although you won’t get 100% flame-grilled taste, this tool comes pretty close and is able extracts smoke indoors.
We’re filled with many tips and tricks at Simple Lifesaver so keep reading for other methods to give your burger a grilled taste.
How to make burgers taste flame-grilled without grille
1. Use Power XL Smokeless Electric Indoor Removable Grill
For a smokeless grilling solution, the Power XL Smokeless Electric Indoor Removable Grill is a perfect way to make some delicious grilled burgers, sausages, or any other grilled item you fancy.
With a usable cooking space of 8 by 14 inches, there’s plenty of room to cook at least 4 average-sized burger patties at once. The way it operates without smoke is thanks to its patented smoke extractor technology, which sucks up the smoke like a vacuum so that you don’t set your smoke alarm off!
With 1500W of power, and a cooking temperature that can be set from 120ºC to 230ºC, you know you can always get the doneness you desire, plus an excellent tasting sear on your burger patties, just like a real charcoal grill – without the smoke.
3. Use Gotham Steel Smokeless Grill
The Gotham Steel Smokeless Grill is made of non-stick titanium and ceramic, which makes it both solid and non-stick when used. The 15″ by 10″ large grilling surface gives you enough space to cook at least 5 burger patties at once, which is great if you’re batch cooking for guests.
The drip tray attached to the base of the Gotham Steel Smokeless Grill cools down all the grease that drips down, reducing the smell and appearance of smoke immediately for the ultimate smokeless grilling experience.
4. Use Liquid Smoke
Using liquid smoke is an incredible hack to get a grilled taste on my burgers without firing up a grill. We all know that the great taste of a burger comes from the smokey flavor of the wood that it was cooked over. Liquid smoke basically takes that once gaseous smoke and condenses it into a liquid form through a distillation process.
With so many options available on the market, all you need to do is choose which liquid smoke flavor you want on your burger, then put a few drops onto your burger patties while they’re cooking on your skillet, smokeless grill, or in the oven. You’ll get the great taste of a smoky grilled burger without the hassle of firing up a grill!
5. Use Charcoal and a Cooking rack
There’s a hack that you can use to get a smokeless grill experience right in the comfort of your home kitchen. All you need is a stovetop, some charcoal, a cast-iron skillet, and a heat-proof cooking rack.
Simply heat up your charcoal over the fire on your stovetop until they turn white-hot. Use a pair of tongs to flip them over so that the entire piece of charcoal is white-hot.
Once the charcoal is white-hot, place them into the cast iron skillet using the tongs, and put medium heat on the cast iron skillet via the stovetop. Now, take your heat-proof cooking rack, place it above your charcoal that’s inside the cast iron skillet, and voila – you now have a grill that you can use to cook your burgers on!
The most significant benefit of this method is that there is no smoke from the charcoal – the only smoke that comes out is from your burger patties as they cook on your “hacked” home grill!
Once you’ve finished reading this article here’s another helpful article about “How to Cook Burgers Indoor without Grease Splatter”
Considerations when grilling burgers without a grill
You can also add some BBQ sauce, ranch, or even vinaigrettes to your liquid smoke to create a simple beef burger marinade to deepen your burgers’ smoky flavor and aroma. Get creative with this, and you’ll be surprised to discover what complex flavors you can create with just small amounts of sauces and liquid smoke.
Also, consider that while trying to recreate the smoky flavors of a wood-grilled burger with a smokeless grill is great, you definitely don’t want to smoke up the house and risk triggering the fire alarm.
To avoid this situation, you’ll want to choose the leanest ground beef patties, as this will stop any fat dripping and smoking up as much as possible. Most of the smoke that occurs during grilling results from the grease and fat that drips down onto charcoal or a heat source such as a skillet on the stovetop – so with less fat, you’ll have less grease and fat, and thus less smoke while making your burgers.
Conclusion
While it’s hard to beat the experience of flame-grilling burger patties using a real griller on a hot, sunny summer’s day with a beer in one hand, and a spatula in the other, you can definitely put some sunshine into those cold days with the tips listed above.
If you’re creative enough with your liquid smoke, spice, and smokeless grills, you can definitely make your boring old burgers taste grilled without using an outdoor grill.
Photo altered by simplelifesaver.com | Photo attribution: Oliver Sjöström
