Briquette or Natural Lump Charcoal

[heath mcdaniel]

Do you recommend charcaol briquettes (like Kingsford) or natural lump hardwood charcoal for grilling and to start the fire process in the fire box?

 

[alelover]

Royal Oak Lump

 

[jrod62]

Royal Oak Lump

X2, you have very little ash from lump.

 

[cliffcarter]

Lump charcoal always, the ash produced by briquettes will limit the air flow that is needed to maintain the fire.

 

[thsmormonsmokes]

I prefer natural lump, but briquettes are often so cheap that I can't pass them up.  But you do need to be aware of the ash issue since briquettes produce so much more ash than lump.

As far as starting the process, get a charcoal chimney.  A few wadded up pieces of newspaper will get you off and running.  Or you can put the chimney on a side burner if you've got a gas grill nearby.  That works like a charm.  Either way, I wouldn't use lighter fluid near where I'll be cooking.  I saw a Grill Masters show a while back where Myron Mixon was hosing down his charcoal in his firebox, and Johnny Trigg stood there, slack jawed, watching him do it.  I'm not going to second guess Mixon because he obviously knows a lot more than me.  That said, I'm not fond of the idea of having burned lighter fluid residue in my smoker.

 

[dragonmaster194]

I also prefer lump to briquettes, I get better heat and a much longet burn.  Also the flavor is better, I used to get an off flavor with briquettes, and now with lump just a slight addition of smoke flavor.  If you have not used lump, try it.  And use the chimney liter too, fast start up and no starter fluid to worry about,  Steve

 

[flash]

I prefer natural lump, but briquettes are often so cheap that I can't pass them up.  But you do need to be aware of the ash issue since briquettes produce so much more ash than lump.

As far as starting the process, get a charcoal chimney.  A few wadded up pieces of newspaper will get you off and running.  Or you can put the chimney on a side burner if you've got a gas grill nearby.  That works like a charm.  Either way, I wouldn't use lighter fluid near where I'll be cooking.  I saw a Grill Masters show a while back where Myron Mixon was hosing down his charcoal in his firebox, and Johnny Trigg stood there, slack jawed, watching him do it.  I'm not going to second guess Mixon because he obviously knows a lot more than me.  That said, I'm not fond of the idea of having burned lighter fluid residue in my smoker.

 I always preferred briquettes. Lump burns alot hotter, gets used up quicker, therefore you need more of it for long smokes.

 

[bob1961]

i used 2 bags of royle oak lump when i did 2 pork shoulders for PP that weighed 10.5lb and 9.5lb each and i had them in the smoker for 10/11 cause of a nasty stall i had, i had lump left over as well.........bob

....

 

[deanoaz]

I saw somewhere that a good idea for starting anything in a chimney was to use crumpled newspaper and spray it with cooking spray before lighting.  I tried it last weekend and it worked well.

Deano

 

[s2k9k]

i used 2 bags of royle oak lump when i did 2 pork shoulders for PP that weighed 10.5lb and 9.5lb each and i had them in the smoker for 10/11 cause of a nasty stall i had, i had lump left over as well.........bob

....

What kind of smoker do you use?

Another question, how about mixing lump and briquettes?

Just curious, I've never smoked with charcoal but getting ready to build a Mini WSM and am trying to get ready.

 

[rowdyrawhide]

I use Royal Oak Lump for grilling and smoking.  In my WSM I can smoke for 14-16 hrs with an 8 lb bag, unless the temp is below 30*, then it gets used faster.  Yes it does burn hotter, therefore less of it is required to maintain the lower temps used for smoking.  Another plus is the ease of starting, lump starts much easier than briquettes.  For grilling I use lump, but I also buy a bag of the kingsford hickory briquettes and toss about 6-10 briquettes in my kettle with the lump, one bag of the hickory briquettes last me about 4 months this way.  Also as stated before, the ash is no comparison, I always clean out my smoker between smokes, and I bet I could smoke for 40-50 hours before I would ever have an issue with ash build up in my WSM.

I am getting ready to build my WSM, and will be interested to see how the lump works in the smaller area.

This as all based on my experiences with both, YMMV.

Aaron

ETA: for starting I use odorless fire starter gel, you should be able to get it at ACE or other places in the fireplace supplies, it is usually greenish blueish in color.  I squirt a pile about 3-4 inches in diameter out on some out on some lump and light it then place my chimney on top and in about four or five minutes I have enough coals going to start bringing my smoker up to temp.  I think once you try this for staring your smoker or grill you wont use newspaper anymore.  I don't care for the burning trash smell put off by the newspaper, which I used to do before someone told me about this.  I think the last time I bought a bottle of this it was around five bucks, and I believe I bought it about 8 months ago, and there is still some left in the bottle.  I always buy two or more then I am never out of it.

 

[heath mcdaniel]

I use a Char-Broil (Char griller) off set smoker (with no Mods).  I used news paper once to start the coals in my chimney, but I didn't care for the paper ash it left behind.  From that point on I used the side burner.  It works great if you have one.  To add to this tread, and again I'm a major rookie, on my first and only 2 smokes I have dumped hot coals in the fire box then added a few dry apple wood chunks on top of the coals.  The problem I am having is trying to keep the cooking area at a certain temp. (in this case 250).  I have the fire box damper 1/2 way open and the chimney 1/2 way open.  I have been adding a few un-heated lump coals and a few dry wood chunks to the fire box about every 45 minutes to maintain 250 degrees. What is the preferred method of maintaining heat? Any recommendations would be helpful.

Heath

 

[jwbtulsa]

I use Ozark Oak lump. In Tulsa you can get it for $4.99 @ 10lbs. Bag. I picked up a big bag of Western brand hickory from Academy Sports for $10.99.

I add a bit of wood periodically to keep my thin blue smoke but not too much.

Using my Maverick ET732 thermometer, I can keep a tight range of temps. I add a bit of lump if I need to whenever I add the wood as to minimize loss of heat from opening the firebox.

I use a BellFab offset smoker. Thick steel. Holds the heat well.

 

[cliffcarter]

I use a Char-Broil (Char griller) off set smoker (with no Mods).  I used news paper once to start the coals in my chimney, but I didn't care for the paper ash it left behind.  From that point on I used the side burner.  It works great if you have one.  To add to this tread, and again I'm a major rookie, on my first and only 2 smokes I have dumped hot coals in the fire box then added a few dry apple wood chunks on top of the coals.  The problem I am having is trying to keep the cooking area at a certain temp. (in this case 250).  I have the fire box damper 1/2 way open and the chimney 1/2 way open.  I have been adding a few un-heated lump coals and a few dry wood chunks to the fire box about every 45 minutes to maintain 250 degrees. What is the preferred method of maintaining heat? Any recommendations would be helpful.

Heath

 You should keep the exhaust fully open, otherwise what you are doing is what you need to do to cook on the unmodded offset. I use charcoal to start the fire and cook with wood splits for the most part. When I used mainly charcoal I maintained the fire just as you do.

 

[thsmormonsmokes]

I use a Char-Broil (Char griller) off set smoker (with no Mods).  I used news paper once to start the coals in my chimney, but I didn't care for the paper ash it left behind.  From that point on I used the side burner.  It works great if you have one.  To add to this tread, and again I'm a major rookie, on my first and only 2 smokes I have dumped hot coals in the fire box then added a few dry apple wood chunks on top of the coals.  The problem I am having is trying to keep the cooking area at a certain temp. (in this case 250).  I have the fire box damper 1/2 way open and the chimney 1/2 way open.  I have been adding a few un-heated lump coals and a few dry wood chunks to the fire box about every 45 minutes to maintain 250 degrees. What is the preferred method of maintaining heat? Any recommendations would be helpful.

Heath

I think the consensus is if you're looking for set and forget it consistency, you need to go electric or a UDS.  You're not likely to get it out of an offset.  I've been able to get a few hours straight of consistent temps in my Chargriller Smokin' Pro offset, but it needs to be checked in on about every 1.5 hours to ensure you're maintaining temps.  

Minion Method helps considerably, but even with that I've found that I often need to make minor adjustments to my air intake to keep temps where I want them.  But the constant tinkering is what keeps this fun.  And the fact that it takes so much attention and skill to do right makes the sense of accomplishment all the more satisfying when you knock something out of the park.

 

[jcurrier]

Nat Lump for me- Never going back

 

[dragonmaster194]

I have a Brinkman Pitmaster Delux Side Fire Box smoker with no mods.  I now use only lump charcoal with Minion method.  After getting up to temp ~250 I add my meat.  I have a Mav732 now and the last smoke was a 9lb picnic.  Using i 8.8lb of lump, about 10 chunks of Hickory I was able to maintain temps with stack open full and only adjusting inlet vent twice.  This smoked for 12.5 hours to IT of 200.  I enjoy my Brink with lump and Minion method.  Steve

 

[heath mcdaniel]

I just discovered what the Minion method is.  The next time I smoke something I am going to try all of your suggestions.  Thank all of very much for your input.  I'll let you how turns out.  Have a good weekend.

Heath

 

[thsmormonsmokes]

As I said in another thread, this is why I use briquettes.  Get them while the getting is good and it's a lot cheaper than lump.  And since I don't think it changes the final product any, I'm going the cheaper route. 

Anyway, Lowes has a pretty good deal on Kingsford right now.  Looks like I'll be stocking up again soon.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_361268-308-...ingsford+charcoal&pl=1&currentURL=&facetInfo=

Credit for the find goes to this thread:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/126595/lowes-charcoal-deal#post_851376

 

[arkashby]

I did some research and found out that Best Choice lump charcoal is made at the same plant as Royal Oak Lump and is much cheaper. Just thought you should know.