Best charcoal ?

[gentlegreen]

I seem to be dining outdoors ....
Do I want lumpwood or briquettes for that authentic experience ?
(leaving out the joys of lighting the thing - is the natural-looking charcoal in the instant BBQs soaked in something ? It seems to get going suspiciously easily ...)

I only need one bag for the summer - one disposable BBQ has twice as much charcoal as I need for one meal ...

 

[Crispy]

The briquettes are bulked out with non-combustible materials (you can seive it out of the ash and it's basically just sand)
Make sure you get FSC stamped lumpwood. The instant ones are soaked in accelerant yes.

To get the fire going quickly I recommend the use of a hair drier to turn it into an inferno in no time at all

 

[JimW]

One of my old school mates took up traditional charcoal burning after a bit of a breakdown, the stuff for artists is really not cheap but building and tending the burn really did look to be quite some business.
Tangential anecdote ends.

 

[spitfire]

Aussie heatbeads are best briquettes.

https://www.bbqworld.co.uk/heat-beads/australian-heat-beads-4kg-bag.asp

There's loads of artisan locally produced lumpwood available in the UK, the Big K stuff is very often shipped in from Africa. The artisan stuff is pricy but if you aren't using much then may work for you. Lumpwood burns quite quickly though so you may end up topping it up.

3 picked at random from a google search for UK lumpwood charcoal.

The Oxford Charcoal Company | British Barbecue Charcoal Experts

100% Sustainably made lumpwood Charcoal, Charcoal Briquettes, Pizza Logs and smoking chips. Grill with no nasty chemicals or additives.

www.oxfordcharcoal.co.uk

West Sussex British Lumpwood Charcoal - Green Olive Firewood

Our British Lumpwood Charcoal is crafted from locally sourced hardwood, from managed woodlands, in our own zero emission retort.

greenolivefirewood.co.uk

Lumpwood Charcoal UK | British & Sustainable | Slate Hill Charcoal

Slate Hill Charcoal produces sustainable British lumpwood charcoal which adds great flavour to your BBQ, order online for fast delivery.

slatehillcharcoal.co.uk

I use a chimney starter on a camping gas stove but hair dryer sounds like a great idea. Or a heat gun if you have one of the powerful ones.

UK's best bbq starter chimneys that start charcoal easily

Did you know there's a new way to start charcoal on your bbq without too much smoke and absolutely zero hassle - and I actually mean that! You need a few

www.gardentoolbox.co.uk

 

[gentlegreen]

Heat gun FTW.
Almost took my eyebrows

 

[farmerbarleymow]

(leaving out the joys of lighting the thing - is the natural-looking charcoal in the instant BBQs soaked in something ? It seems to get going suspiciously easily ...)

If you soaked the charcoal in petrol that should get it burning fairly well.

 

[gentlegreen]

If you soaked the charcoal in petrol that should get it burning fairly well.

Luckily I don't currently own a motor vehicle

 

[gentlegreen]

One of my old school mates took up traditional charcoal burning after a bit of a breakdown, the stuff for artists is really not cheap but building and tending the burn really did look to be quite some business.
Tangential anecdote ends.

No it's food for thought - must be a niche area - growing and harvesting withies and then the very careful process of making charcoal without losing the whole lot in a big flash ...

 

[UnderOpenSky]

If you soaked the charcoal in petrol that should get it burning fairly well.

For that authentic British barbecue taste.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I use a chimney starter on a camping gas stove but hair dryer sounds like a great idea. Or a heat gun if you have one of the powerful ones.

UK's best bbq starter chimneys that start charcoal easily

Did you know there's a new way to start charcoal on your bbq without too much smoke and absolutely zero hassle - and I actually mean that! You need a few

www.gardentoolbox.co.uk

I got one from Aldi a few years ago. Great buy!

 

[gentlegreen]

I think I need more than a fire-starting chimney ...
Walking to the end of the garden to burn my food takes away the spontaneity of simultaneous grazing and burning -...
And if I'm going to be doing this all summer I will need to deal with smoke too near the house ...

Annoyingly I binned a cooker hood last year - but I have some suitable fans -... unfortunately I need my roof water downspout and I'm growing salads in the spare pipe I had ...

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I think I need more than a fire-starting chimney ...
Walking to the end of the garden to burn my food takes away the spontaneity of simultaneous grazing and burning -...
And if I'm going to be doing this all summer I will need to deal with smoke too near the house ...

Annoyingly I binned a cooker hood last year - but I have some suitable fans -... unfortunately I need my roof water downspout and I'm growing salads in the spare pipe I had ...

Just have it next to the BBQ?

 

[story]

gentlegreen
Have you considered a solar oven?

 

[gentlegreen]

gentlegreen
Have you considered a solar oven?

I'm looking for the authentic carcinogenic smoke experience

Plus I only eat in the evenings when the sun is a bit less intense...

Now you've mentioned it I will fettle something just to see

 

[kittyP]

The briquettes are bulked out with non-combustible materials (you can seive it out of the ash and it's basically just sand)
Make sure you get FSC stamped lumpwood. The instant ones are soaked in accelerant yes.

To get the fire going quickly I recommend the use of a hair drier to turn it into an inferno in no time at all

I hope that Dessiato isn't reading this

 

[story]

I'm looking for the authentic carcinogenic smoke experience

Plus I only eat in the evenings when the sun is a bit less intense...

Now you've mentioned it I will fettle something just to see

Check out the Wonderbag. An insulated slow cooker. You bring your cooking to the right temperature (so use the solar oven during the day) and then pop it into the wonderbag to continue cooking. I’ve not tried it but it gets good reviews etc. I‘s sure you could make one for yourself. There are probably YouTube tutorials for doing so.

Wonderbag - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[dessiato]

I hope that Dessiato isn't reading this

I used to use lighter fuel. It works perfectly.

 

[Dovydaitis]

Big k Lumpwood is pretty good, Morrison’s had the restaurant grade on offer for £22 a 15kg bag. We do a fair bit of outside cooking including smoking and slow roasting and this stuff is pretty decent

 

[gentlegreen]

The stuff I bought at Tesco seems OK - no lingering stench from the paraffin it's impregnated with- it probably helps that I'm starting it efficiently with a hot air gun.
I just need to find a suitable bit of steel to bend into a starter chimney ...