How are you supposed to prepare charcoal for cooking?!
How are you supposed to prepare charcoal for cooking?
I went camping this weekend and brought my little charcoal hibachi style grill, two bags of Kingsford regular charcoal, and lighter fluid. And I had one hell of a time keeping it lit.
I followed all of the directions and advice I could gather from sources...here's what I did: I piled the charcoal up in a nice pyramid, soaked it with a good 8 oz of charcoal fluid (bottle suggests 1.6 oz per pound, was only using a few pounds tops), and lit it. It stayed on fire for a few minutes and then when they went out I waited a little while for them to get hot...some of the coals in the bottom middle were glowing red, others were still mostly black and not ashy. I then spread them out and tried to cook with them, but the grill would stay hot for about 5-10 minutes, and then most of the coals cooled down lower than the cooking temperatures.
This was very frustrating, I used a TON of lighter fluid the last day and it still wasn't good enough. Anyone know what I'm doing wrong?
2 weeks ago
I used two different bags. I waited until it seemed like the coals weren't going to get any hotter - the ones on the outside were just sitting there while the ones on the inside were red hot. I waited just a few minutes the first time, 10-15 the second time and even longer the third.
I'm probably just going to get the match-lite kind now if this is how difficult it is to use the regular charcoal.
Answers:
2 weeks ago
I used two different bags. I waited until it seemed like the coals weren't going to get any hotter - the ones on the outside were just sitting there while the ones on the inside were red hot. I waited just a few minutes the first time, 10-15 the second time and even longer the third.
I'm probably just going to get the match-lite kind now if this is how difficult it is to use the regular charcoal.
You should have left the pyramid intact. Charcoal cooking requires a bit of patience. Sometimes it will take a good hour for the brickettes to lite and burn. You should wait and cook when all the brickettes have totally lit and ashed over. You may have just had a bad batch or last years charcoal, it has happened to me.
Try using some bits of timber in with the coals, then light them. But your better of getting the easy to light stuff.
wait until the whole pyramid is reddish and ashy and then spread it out. it can take up to an hour for a pile of coals to get hot enough to cook on and you say you "waited a little", which makes me think you didnt wait long enough. what i do to encourage them all to get glowy is pile some twigs/small branches on the top of the pyramid - the twigs catch fire and heat the outside while the inside is heating up. remember that charcoal fluid or "no match" charcoal is infused with nasty petroleum-based chemicals, and you need to wait quite a while for them to burn off before you put the food over them. good luck!!
Try this after you put the fluid on the charcoals let set for a couple of minutes, then put a paper towel or a piece of newspaper on top of the coals and light it.Then watch your coals and make sure they are all the same color as they burn.If some are not burning, remove them and just use the ones that are burning.
There is a charcoal barrel its not big fits right in any pit it is a metal cylinder, you lite it from the bottom, when they turn white there ready. good luck you can find this any where you find a pit
I had the same problem...this is the easiest, safest and surest way to start charcoal, perfect everytime!
Take some paper, newspapers(work great) or paper towels will work. Crumble them up, make a bed of paper.
Put your charcoal on the paper, stacked as much as you plan to use.
(the secret) Lightly pour cooking oil over the charcoal and let the drippings fall onto the paper.
Wait 2 minutes, light the paper on four corners, at first there will be more smoke than fire, then a small fire then the coals (about 30 minutes), knock down the coals and your ready.
It is very easy to get perfect coals and very difficult to burn yourself, or catch something on fire, as I've heard others do.
I BBQ every weekend and actually light the paper and go inside to prepare the meat, the coals are always ready.
Happy Grilling