It did not safely cook a hamburger with “plasma.” The 2017 Hackaday experiment used a high-voltage electrical arc to brown the outside of a hamburger patty that had already been microwaved. The result was a memorable maker demonstration—but not a validated cooking method, food-processing technology, or safe home project.
What the Hackaday experiment actually was
In an article published on May 8, 2017, Jenny List described a project attributed to Robots Everywhere. The demonstration placed a hamburger patty in a grounded metal frying pan and brought a high-voltage probe near it. A visible electrical arc crossed toward the pan and food, producing intense, localized heating and a dramatic browned or charred surface.
The sequence matters: according to the original Hackaday article, the patty was microwaved first and then exposed to the arc. The plasma stage was therefore primarily an improvised browning or broiling step, not an independent, uniform method for cooking the meat through.
What “plasma” means here
Plasma is an ionized gas. In this project, the useful phenomenon was an electrical arc: a conductive channel of ionized air between an energized probe and a grounded conductive surface. The arc can transfer heat to whatever it contacts or passes close to, which explains the visible browning.
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“Plasma cooking” is informal maker terminology in this context. It is not a standardized consumer cooking category. The experiment should not be confused with food irradiation, pulsed-electric-field processing, plasma-activated water, industrial nonthermal plasma treatment, or induction cooking.
For example, the FDA describes food irradiation as a regulated process using gamma rays, X-rays, or electron beams. That is fundamentally different from sending an exposed high-voltage arc across a hamburger.
How the demonstration was arranged
At a high level, the article reports a high-voltage supply, a push-pull MOSFET oscillator, two flyback transformers with their secondary outputs connected in series, a high-voltage probe, and a grounded frying pan. Hackaday noted that the transformer arrangement was not the most efficient way to use flybacks, but it produced enough voltage for the visual demonstration.
Those details describe the historical project, not a construction plan. The article does not establish a food-safe design, validated electrical protection, repeatable arc energy, electrode safety, thermal profile, or contamination testing. Exact voltage, current, power, arc temperature, electrode alloy, exposure time, and internal meat temperature should not be inferred from the description.
Why the surface browned
Browning requires heat at the food surface. An arc concentrates energy into small, shifting regions, so it can rapidly darken, dry, scorch, or char the exterior. That visual effect resembles the crust produced by a grill, broiler, pan, or torch.
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But surface browning is not proof of complete cooking. An arc can burn the outside while leaving colder regions inside, particularly in a thick patty. It may also move unpredictably, creating hot spots rather than even heating.
The preceding microwave step further complicates the result. Microwave heating can produce uneven temperatures and cold spots. Adding a hot arc to the surface does not validate the temperature of the patty’s center.
Does it make safe ground beef?
The available evidence does not show that it does. The demonstration evidently heated and browned the surface, but the source provides no validated internal time-temperature process, pathogen-reduction measurement, repeatability data, or measurement of the slowest-heating region.
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Nothing in the available coverage supports calling the patty sterilized, pasteurized, or safe to eat. Nor does it establish the nutritional, chemical, or contamination consequences of exposing food to an improvised arc.
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Why reproducing it is dangerous
Electric shock and stored energy
High-voltage supplies can cause severe injury or death. Circuits may remain hazardous after power is switched off because capacitors and transformer circuits can retain energy. Food, moisture, cookware, workbenches, and a person can all create unintended current paths.
A kitchen is especially poor surroundings for exposed high voltage. OSHA notes that wet environments increase electrical danger because water can reduce the body’s resistance to current.
Arc flash and arc blast
An arc is not merely a harmless spark. Depending on available current, clearing time, distance, and circuit design, an arc event can produce extreme heat, burns, ignited clothing, molten-metal particles, intense light, noise, and explosive pressure. OSHA’s arc-flash guidance makes clear that voltage alone does not determine the severity of an arc event.
Fire and ignition
Arcs can ignite grease, paper towels, packaging, clothing, vapors, and other combustibles. Cooking areas commonly contain all of these hazards, along with moisture and conductive metal surfaces.
Eye, skin, and hearing hazards
A bright arc can expose the eyes and skin to intense visible and ultraviolet light. An arc event can also generate sharp noise and pressure. Ordinary kitchen glasses or workshop eyewear should not be treated as sufficient protection.
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Food and equipment contamination
The original article itself raises concern about contamination from the electrode. Its composition, coatings, oxides, dirt, solder, and nearby materials could affect what reaches the food. The available source does not establish that the electrode was food-safe or that material transfer was tested.
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Improvised high-voltage arcs can create electromagnetic interference, damage nearby electronics, break down insulation, and send current through paths that were not intended by the builder. A grounded frying pan does not make the energized probe safe.
How it differs from other food technologies
| Technology | Main purpose | How energy reaches the food | Relation to the demonstration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plasma arc demonstration | Localized surface heating or browning | Direct electrical arc and concentrated heat | The Hackaday project |
| Microwave cooking | Heating food volumetrically | Electromagnetic energy absorbed by the food | Used before the arc in the reported sequence |
| Induction cooking | Heating compatible cookware | Alternating magnetic field induces currents in the cookware | A conventional enclosed cooking technology |
| Food irradiation | Microbial or insect control | Gamma rays, X-rays, or electron beams | Not the same as an exposed cooking arc |
| Pulsed electric field | Specialized food processing and preservation | Short high-voltage pulses through food between electrodes | An industrial or research process, not this setup |
| Culinary torch | Surface browning | Controlled combustion flame | A practical substitute for the visual effect |
These technologies should not be treated as interchangeable. FDA materials describe irradiation as a regulated process with specified sources and uses; its safety framework cannot be transferred to an improvised arc across food.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is there any legitimate engineering lesson?
As an engineering spectacle, the experiment raises useful questions about arc stability, current limiting, transformer insulation, enclosure and interlock design, grounding, return-current paths, capacitor discharge protection, electrode composition, thermal uniformity, fire containment, measurement, and repeatability.
However, the original article does not provide enough information to show that those criteria were satisfied. That makes the project interesting to observe, but unsuitable as a model for a food-contact high-voltage system.
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Safer ways to brown a hamburger
If the goal is a browned exterior, use a controlled cooking method designed for food:
- a conventional broiler or salamander;
- a cast-iron or stainless-steel pan;
- a grill;
- a culinary torch intended for food use; or
- a manufacturer-approved microwave browning or grilling accessory.
These options provide better control, repeatability, cleanup, and food-safety assurance. They also avoid combining exposed high voltage with wet food, conductive cookware, grease, and a kitchen environment.
Final verdict
“Cooking With the Awesome Power of Plasma!” refers to a real and visually striking 2017 Hackaday maker experiment. It appears to use an electrical arc to brown the surface of a patty that was already microwaved. It does not demonstrate safe, uniform, validated cooking of ground beef.
The right way to understand it is as an entertaining high-voltage demonstration—not a recipe, appliance category, or home-cooking technique. Do not reproduce the food-contact setup. For the same culinary result, use a broiler, pan, grill, or food-rated torch.
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