Best Charcoal to use in for smoking

[kjbrown20]

I have seemed to notice a difference in the charcoals I have been using. I tried some cheap stuff from Menards and it didn't seem to burn very long. I started using the wicked good charcoal and it seems to burn longer and maybe hotter. Do any of you experts have a charcoal that you might recommend that you use. Just a little confused about all the choices. Thanks, Kevin

 

[backwoods bbq]

It depends on the application; Lump charcoal is made from whole pieces of wood exposed to HIGH heat then eliminating oxygen to the fire leaving it natural lump charcoal. Chemicals are driven out of lump charcoal this way leaving only carbon. In this case lump charcoal will burn HOTTER! great for steaks. We are talking temperatures of upwards of 1000 da-grease! it will de-grease believe me!  This does burn cleaner, HOWEVER, think about this...lump is made from natural wood even though it makes less ash some companies use scraps from lumberyards and construction sites! this isnt bad if its a hardwood i do know of companies that use PLYWOOD (yes believe it or not) whats bad about plywood? GLUE they use glue to bond it. as long as you know what you are using lump is awesome with lots of oxygen! It depends what your doing sometimes i use lump sometimes briquettes, sometimes just straight wood!

hope this helps:

'The mark of a good BBQ cook is his fire'

 

[cliffcarter]

I have seemed to notice a difference in the charcoals I have been using. I tried some cheap stuff from Menards and it didn't seem to burn very long. I started using the wicked good charcoal and it seems to burn longer and maybe hotter. Do any of you experts have a charcoal that you might recommend that you use. Just a little confused about all the choices. Thanks, Kevin

Try the Royal Oak lump charcoal available at WalMart, many use it with good results and it is nowhere near as expensive as the Wicked Good.

You can also go here for more research on lump charcoal-

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpindexpage.htm?bag

 

[backwoods bbq]

since i am in Texas and brands vary state by state. I often make my own charcoal...but that is a whole other discussion in itself that will probably take place at a later time. Often times I use a grocery stores brand of charcoal (formed) not lump as you can pick and choose which woods it is made from and it alot cheaper. for lazy saturdays i do not use any charcoal i start my fire and end my fire with wood. perhaps the best way to do this for anyone who is trying to save time is to go by a handheld propane  torch and light your charcoal or your wood or both with this. you dont have to have a chimney stack or lighter fluid. If you do Q right, the charcoal will not  matter much at all on bigger cuts of meat i.e. brisket, butts, and picnics. Alot of charcoal performance depends on its age and how you stack it when burning. When charcoal is on "sale" its not necessarily a good thing. Bags could have gotten wet in a truck and now dried out creating a possibility for mold or damp charcoal or it could just be old and crushed and you will be getting alot of dust and not chunks. I could go on forever about this. but try a non name brand starting out...they will often times put out a good product in hope that it will catch on then they will raise their price. Hope this helps.

Kepp on Q'in!