Hey gentlemen. I recently moved to a place where I could have a grill. I got this one. My brother in law got kingsford matchstick charcoal.
We had a big match of meats to grill, about 9 lbs of chicken and beef. I found that the charcoal didn't last as long as I wanted it to. Is it becuase it was matchstick that it didn't last as long? Do those tend to burn out faster? Here's a photo of the grill and the amount of charcoal we used.
by Beerdom52
39 Comments
I recommend lump charcoal. They’ll burn hotter and last longer.
Ya lump charcoal is what I use. That bad boy is blazing. Maybe keep that bag and mix it with lump like 1/10 just so the matchstick speeds up the process. The lump will burn much longer.
Did you spread the coals when the flame went out and was ambered over?
Did you keep the lid open the whole time? Push them to the side? Closed the vents a bit?
Lump coals.
I wouldn’t buy that charcoal again, it has lighter fluid in it and is part of why it’s burning so quickly. Just go with the regular kingsford or whatever normal briquettes/lump you prefer. No need to use lighter fluid as it can affect the taste of your meat, look into getting a charcoal chimney to start your coals – it’s cheap, easy, and no lighter fluid required. Also if you leave the lid open the charcoal is gonna get more air and the flames will get bigger, plus you will lose the smoke to give it that flavor. That’s fine for quicker things or searing but most people get charcoal grills to get that smoky taste.
Use a chimney starter and you”ll never need to use matchstick light, lighter fluid, or lighter fluid related product ever again. Use baskets or SNS type product so coals don’t get too spread out.
I didn’t have lighter fluid, so I used a heat gun (Wagner Furno 500). I was using “Long Burn” kingsford. That fire stayed hot for 6 hours.
Definitely go with the charcoal chimney and no lighter fluid (with some normal coals). You should get plenty of time to finish your cook. 👍🏾
I’d be using binchotan in that thing
Lighter fluid/matchlight bad. Charcoal chimney and sitting outside drinking beer for 20 minutes good.
Also it’s always a good idea to have a hot and a cold side. This way if anything is charring up too quick just love it off the fire and let it cook with the lid closed for a bit
I would always use a charcoal chimney, then youre not consuming the combustible in the charcoal
It’s not the best but use what you’ve got. I find putting the charcoal on the opposite side of the smoke stack and using the other side as an indirect heat source works great. Imagine it as an oven on the other side, heat without the char.
What grill is that you are using. Not a bad looking grill. Looks like the charcoal box raises and lowers similar to a Hasty Bake or LSG charcoal rig?
It’s not done burning out. Wait for it to turn gray. Jesus. YouTube some stuff.
What grill is that? Looks awesome
Carbon chunks, actually wood. Not kingsford. The shit from Mexico.
Do not ever buy “match light” charcoal. It is impregnated with lighter fluid.
Do not ever use lighter fluid. It tastes like gasoline.
Get a charcoal electric lighter/torch lighter/tumbleweeds/ and or a chimney.
This looks like AI or accelerated frame rate! 🤔
Lump is the way
In my opinion, if you want longevity, get hardwood charcoal and not briquettes. I find it burns longer, but fair warning it also burns hotter.
Charcoal chimney and B&B briquettes are the way to go. Also, a lots of grill’n ladies in this sub (‘Hello Gentleman’) 😉
Keep working and learning with that grill, but also keep an eye out for a good used Weber kettle on Craigslist or Marketplace, the things last forever…
As far as learning with this one;
1; dump the match light/instant lighting/lighter fluid and get a chimney starter instead (either lighter cubes, newspaper, veg oil soaked paper towels) can be used to start the charcoal
2; try both lump and briquettes, find out which one works for you better, I prefer lump personally
3; if you decide on briquettes, make sure to buy only the premium ones, make sure they have only wood and starch as their two ingredients, Kingsford blue bag has additives like borax, limestone and mineral char (actual coal) in addition to the sawdust .
Don’t be afraid to experiment, you learn by doing (and by making mistakes)
Charcoal only lasts so long so it’s probably not something you did or didn’t do. You should get yourself a chimney starter then you can start some more charcoal while cooking and add them to the grill when ready to keep the fire hot. A chimney starter more than pays for itself if you are going to be doing a lot of grilling. Experiment with lump charcoal as well. It’s much cleaner and hotter but does cost more. It is the preferred choice for grill experts really. So clean its amazing. Virtually no ash left behind.
And i agree about the charcoal with lighter fluid in it! Don’t use it. Again get a chimney starter and all you need is a big piece of crumpled newspaper or firestarter. No fluid needed. Much cleaner and better taste too
Next time, buy 2 bags of charcoal. It will burn longer. Avoid using match light but it will work in a pinch. If you’re going to cook for a big family, buy 2 charcoal chimneys, fill, and start them at the same time. If this is your first time, it’s going to take some trial and error. Looks like a nice grill. So you should be okay.
Edit: to add some reference: https://youtube.com/@daddydiygrilling?si=DHfLPIPf3j5sZRdH
I just got my first charcoal grill last year and the problem with that is if you want to cook a steak, you almost don’t need any charcoal at all. Maybe 15 coals. It’s more difficult to slow cook with than a pellet grill or some other automated system. But if you’re cooking a steak or a couple pieces of chicken, I think a small amount of coals half of what you have on that video is actually plenty. Only thing I wonder is how close the coals were to the meat?
I use a firestarter cube under the charcoal because I don’t buy newspapers, and catalog pages don’t burn well. After the coals are glowing pretty well, I dump them into the bottom of the Oklahoma Joe open fire grill. I then put a nice pile of medium-sized split, seasoned Live Oak or Post Oak on the charcoal to burn. When I have a nice pile of wood coals, I bank them on one half of the open fire grill, creating different heat level cooking zones.
That cool!
I use those little fire starter sticks (leftover sawdust I believe) and a propane torch
DEFINITELY get a chimney starter and a couple charcoal baskets. (Check out on youtube how to use a charcoal chimney.) This charcoal is producing way too much flame.
Think of a gas grill. You want blue flames, not yellow. The same goes for the charcoal. The flames should be invisible actually, it will look like a mirage.
I like to use lump charcoal. It’s the most natural and lasts a long time. You can reuse what didn’t burn off too if you get the baskets.
My method when cooking lots of food is to place a decent layer of unlit briquettes spread evenly in the grill, usually about 2 full chimney’s worth, then dump a full chimney of lit briquettes on top.
Spread the lit briquettes evenly over the unlit to get a nice, long lasting burn. Use a charcoal rake make it uniform, and the chimney replaces the need for lighter fluid.
The key is to keep the grill lid closed and use the vents to control temperature.
Charcoal chimney all the way. A full sized heaping chimney will get you there
There are two things to note; for the amount of meat you used, were the coals at least 3 high (stacked), did you add new coals (at the perimeter) to slowly ignite, and then moved to be under the meat to replace briquettes that had burned out?
I find that the match light charcoal burns hotter and faster than the regular blue bag. I believe there is something different in the actual composition of the two – besides the lighter fluid obviously.
I’m team chimney/no lighter fluid, but lighter fluid doesn’t necessarily make your food taste bad. Not letting your coals burn long enough to burn all that stuff off is what gets you. People that taste lighter fluid in their cooks started cooking too soon.
Use real wood charcoal man! Don’t use that toxic crap
Wrong charcoal I would guess. I don’t these fuel laden ones, and I can easily cook for an hour + on my grill.
People still buy charcoal? I haven’t bought that in so many years now. Lump coal or wood splits for me
There’s no shortcuts with charcoal really. No match light or accelerates cause you’ll taste it in the food. I use Kingsford regular charcoal, I get it going with a chimney. I arrange my charcoal in a manner that it’s not completely piled up, close the lid and adjust the air to get it up to temp. Lots of waiting, but with charcoal it’s worth it.
I wouldn’t use matchlight or starting fluid, unless I had to…but let it burn until all the lumps are no longer black. Controlling the burn rate is a little finesse, depends on temp, wind, vents. If it’s burning too hot or too quickly…close the vents a little. Maybe close them a lot. A meat thermometer that measures internal and ambient temp is your friend here.