What’s the practical difference between these two types of charcoal?
What’s the practical difference between these two types of charcoal?
by crabby_playing
17 Comments
Capamerica88
One provides more even consistent heat and has added chemical binders and compounds the other is more natural unprocessed state that generally will get hotter
Away_Suggestion_9471
One leaves more residue, the other is hotter and faster
h8mac4life
That would be charcoal briquettes the nice and even and lump charcoal which is typically pure wood with no binders. Briquettes will usually burn more even and predictable, lump would be most pure but difficult to do any shake method for long term cooks. They each have their place depending what you do and what grill or smoker you have. There are also huge brand preferences, some briquettes have more binders and crap, and some lump is low quality crap pieces depending on the brand. For that search r/smoking
yiannis666
The first one lasts longer. I personally use both light up the first one and then I add in a few of the first ones
GPadrino
I like lump for grilling and briquettes for smoking. Lump (depending on brand I suppose, I use Fogo and JD) burns “cleaner” to my nose and palate, and has more Smokey flavour naturally. Lights quicker but also burns up quicker. Also less ash production which I like.
The uniformity of briquettes make them a great option for smoking since you want predictable and reliable temperatures. Also more cost effective since they’re cheaper and burn for longer.
In any case, you can use either one for whatever you want. All personal preference
rodimusprime88
To add what others have said. Not only do briquettes burn longer, but since they are uniform in size you can better plan out how long they will burn and how many you need to for your cook. I smoke/slow cook with briquettes since I am adding wood chunks anyways. I grill with lump because of the flavor and temperature.
yungingr
Take the second one, grind it into a powder, add a binder and compress it into blocks. Congratulations, you have the first one.
Briquettes burn slower, don’t generate quite as much heat, and leave more ash. Lump is a hotter, faster burn that can be very sensitive to airflow, but is very clean burning (minimal ash)
Im_a_Tenn
Lump burns hotter faster and more inconsistent BUT adds more flavor depending on the type of wood (IMO)
Smoothdaddyk
Lump for hot grilling. Briquettes for low and slow.
wyflare
The cheap briquette brands stink! Can’t be anywhere near them when I light them
ccandide
Briquettes have much finer soot particles, so they’ll blow around more easily. I also like to reverse sear my steaks directly on the coals, and it doesn’t work with briquettes.
wildcat12321
Briquettes are manufactured both in physical shape and chemical composition to be nearly identical. This means you can expect very consistent heat, burn time, flavors, etc. between briquettes and across bags. Many are made specifically for different things – hotter fire, longer lasting, etc. Briquettes are less likely to be damaged in transit or fall through the grates of a chimney for lighting. The downside is that many briquettes are made with various “filler” chemicals.
Lump is generally 100% hardwood with no filler. Many lump products burn hotter and cleaner. But the less uniform shape means that you can have some pieces burn for minutes, while others burn for hours. It can be inconsistent in time and temperature. But with less fillers often comes a cleaner smoke and less ash. Lump can also range in size, and be damaged in transport, meaning you not only pay a higher price, but you can end up with a lot more small chips that are essentially useless as they fall through the chimney or burn too quickly. Lump can also be harder to light, but I find a chimney doesn’t care what is in it.
Neither is necessarily better or worse. They have different tradeoffs. I personally prefer briquettes for smoking given the consistency between briquettes. Much easier to control the fire. I like lump for hot and fast, and prefer the less ash, but use it far less given those benefits aren’t enough to justify the higher price. In every product, there are expensive and high quality versions as well as cheap low-quality versions. Different charcoals often have different taste profiles, so try a few different brands/products until you find what you like.
jsullrtv
Lump burns hotter, briquettes burn longer.
knowbodynobody
A lot
taiwanblk097
I love how the lump burns
kytulu
Briquettes are the WalMart of charcoal, lump is the Target of charcoal.
Bilbo_Baghands
The lump burns hotter, longer, no additives, and has way less ash. The briquettes burn more evenly and are more consistent and uniform.
17 Comments
One provides more even consistent heat and has added chemical binders and compounds the other is more natural unprocessed state that generally will get hotter
One leaves more residue, the other is hotter and faster
That would be charcoal briquettes the nice and even and lump charcoal which is typically pure wood with no binders. Briquettes will usually burn more even and predictable, lump would be most pure but difficult to do any shake method for long term cooks. They each have their place depending what you do and what grill or smoker you have. There are also huge brand preferences, some briquettes have more binders and crap, and some lump is low quality crap pieces depending on the brand. For that search r/smoking
The first one lasts longer. I personally use both light up the first one and then I add in a few of the first ones
I like lump for grilling and briquettes for smoking. Lump (depending on brand I suppose, I use Fogo and JD) burns “cleaner” to my nose and palate, and has more Smokey flavour naturally. Lights quicker but also burns up quicker. Also less ash production which I like.
The uniformity of briquettes make them a great option for smoking since you want predictable and reliable temperatures. Also more cost effective since they’re cheaper and burn for longer.
In any case, you can use either one for whatever you want. All personal preference
To add what others have said. Not only do briquettes burn longer, but since they are uniform in size you can better plan out how long they will burn and how many you need to for your cook. I smoke/slow cook with briquettes since I am adding wood chunks anyways. I grill with lump because of the flavor and temperature.
Take the second one, grind it into a powder, add a binder and compress it into blocks. Congratulations, you have the first one.
Briquettes burn slower, don’t generate quite as much heat, and leave more ash. Lump is a hotter, faster burn that can be very sensitive to airflow, but is very clean burning (minimal ash)
Lump burns hotter faster and more inconsistent BUT adds more flavor depending on the type of wood (IMO)
Lump for hot grilling. Briquettes for low and slow.
The cheap briquette brands stink! Can’t be anywhere near them when I light them
Briquettes have much finer soot particles, so they’ll blow around more easily. I also like to reverse sear my steaks directly on the coals, and it doesn’t work with briquettes.
Briquettes are manufactured both in physical shape and chemical composition to be nearly identical. This means you can expect very consistent heat, burn time, flavors, etc. between briquettes and across bags. Many are made specifically for different things – hotter fire, longer lasting, etc. Briquettes are less likely to be damaged in transit or fall through the grates of a chimney for lighting. The downside is that many briquettes are made with various “filler” chemicals.
Lump is generally 100% hardwood with no filler. Many lump products burn hotter and cleaner. But the less uniform shape means that you can have some pieces burn for minutes, while others burn for hours. It can be inconsistent in time and temperature. But with less fillers often comes a cleaner smoke and less ash. Lump can also range in size, and be damaged in transport, meaning you not only pay a higher price, but you can end up with a lot more small chips that are essentially useless as they fall through the chimney or burn too quickly. Lump can also be harder to light, but I find a chimney doesn’t care what is in it.
Neither is necessarily better or worse. They have different tradeoffs. I personally prefer briquettes for smoking given the consistency between briquettes. Much easier to control the fire. I like lump for hot and fast, and prefer the less ash, but use it far less given those benefits aren’t enough to justify the higher price. In every product, there are expensive and high quality versions as well as cheap low-quality versions. Different charcoals often have different taste profiles, so try a few different brands/products until you find what you like.
Lump burns hotter, briquettes burn longer.
A lot
I love how the lump burns
Briquettes are the WalMart of charcoal, lump is the Target of charcoal.
The lump burns hotter, longer, no additives, and has way less ash. The briquettes burn more evenly and are more consistent and uniform.