Briquettes other than KBB?


 
I typically by Royal Oak lump because I don’t particularly care for the flavor of KBB. I also couldn’t stand how much ash was left over from KBB. I tried stubbs and was impressed, but I bought it when it was on sale and haven’t seen that sale price again. For the price I pay for royal oak ($.64/lb) I figure I could probably get some decent briquettes to try out. Like I said with KBB, the two things I didn’t like was the initial flavor when being lit and the ridiculous amount of ash by product. What do you use, how much does it cost per pound and where do you get it?

Also, has anyone tried the Kingsford flavored Briquettes? I see they have mesquite, cherry, apple etc. Do they consistently give flavor, or is only on the initial light up of them?
 
The hickory infused works great on the kettle without adding any wood,cant say about the other but would bet same great results but the price is a little over the top for me. When they first brought it out it was about the same as regular charcoal and then it all went up :(
 
Not sure if it is nationwide, but Royal Oak briquettes are on sale at Lowe's for $4 for 15.4 pound bag. Great price.
 
what about the ash? on par with KBB?

You know....as a longtime KBB guy, I tried the Royal Oak yesterday really for the first time for my standard grilling. $4 a bag...what the hell...why not?

I found:

1) RO seems less ashy than KBB
2) RO not as hot as KBB
3) RO has a nice mild smell once it gets going, but the initial light smells like pitch-wood to me (raw cedar or pine). Maybe its the sawdust in it?
4) RO's flavor contribution is mild...or rather, tastes a little cleaner than KBB...which isn't a bad thing.

I don't think I would use it in a smoker because it seems to fade quickly. I wouldn't use it for searing because it just doesn't seem to have the same temp as KBB (Kingsford comp is even better than KBB for hot and fast searing).

However, I would use it if I was doing burgers, dogs, sausages (indirect), or grill basket veggies though...enough so that I bought 3 more bags today with my KBB purchase. Not my favorite, but it definitely has its place.

Hope that helps. As usual...YMMV.
 
I've been using RO brigs and lump since around 06 or so when K changed their formula, and I like it, no complaints.:wsm:

Tim
 
You know....as a longtime KBB guy, I tried the Royal Oak yesterday really for the first time for my standard grilling. $4 a bag...what the hell...why not?

I found:

1) RO seems less ashy than KBB
2) RO not as hot as KBB
3) RO has a nice mild smell once it gets going, but the initial light smells like pitch-wood to me (raw cedar or pine). Maybe its the sawdust in it?
4) RO's flavor contribution is mild...or rather, tastes a little cleaner than KBB...which isn't a bad thing.

I don't think I would use it in a smoker because it seems to fade quickly. I wouldn't use it for searing because it just doesn't seem to have the same temp as KBB (Kingsford comp is even better than KBB for hot and fast searing).

However, I would use it if I was doing burgers, dogs, sausages (indirect), or grill basket veggies though...enough so that I bought 3 more bags today with my KBB purchase. Not my favorite, but it definitely has its place.

Hope that helps. As usual...YMMV.

Thanks for the review, Mike.

Since I bought 6 bags of the stuff at Lowes yesterday I was wondering how it would perform in the WSM so this review was helpful. I think I'll just use it for regular grilling and stick to the KBB whenever I break out the WSM.
 
Thanks for the review, Mike.

Since I bought 6 bags of the stuff at Lowes yesterday I was wondering how it would perform in the WSM so this review was helpful. I think I'll just use it for regular grilling and stick to the KBB whenever I break out the WSM.


My $.02 is that the RO is maybe a little more tempermental as far as controlling the temp. What I notice is if I get it too hot then try to bring it down if I am not careful it takes forever to heat back up again if that makes sense
 
Thanks for the review, Mike.

Since I bought 6 bags of the stuff at Lowe's yesterday I was wondering how it would perform in the WSM so this review was helpful. I think I'll just use it for regular grilling and stick to the KBB whenever I break out the WSM.


I'm still evolving on this, but I am not sure if I agree with you here.

I've used regular Kingsford for years for direct grilling, but when I first used it in a WSM, the initial results were disappointing. I had trouble keeping temps up where I like them (225° to 250°), and the ash was so bad, it choked the fire down. It was then I started experimenting Sam's Choice (Walmart - made by Royal Oak), and later on, I settled on Royal Oak lump.

Late last year, local Walmarts closed out on a ton of Royal Oak briquettes (24 pounds for $4.00), and I bought over 400 pounds of the stuff. I always used lump for the WSM, and briquettes for the kettle, but I eventually settled for a mix of the two for the 18.5" smoker, and have had better results ever since.

I recently purchased a 14.5" smoker, and after using all the choices mentioned above, I think Royal Oak briquettes gets the (tentative) nod for my charcoal of choice for this size smoker. That being said, I personally think Kingsford smells better firing-off than Royal Oak briquettes. However, this hasn't been a problem with pork butts, but it has for poultry. Anytime I do hot & fast foods, I make sure the coals are almost ashed over before grilling, or smoking without a water pan.

There was mention of Royal Oak briquettes burning too hot. That may be true in my experimentation's with the 14.5" WSM, so I think my next smoke in Weber's little brother will be a mix of Kingsford and Royal Oak briquettes. Royal oak should provide the heat I'm looking for, and cut down on the ash content too.

Frankly, I wish the charcoal makers would concentrate on a briquette for smokers only. That would be interesting.
 
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Thanks for the review, Mike.

Since I bought 6 bags of the stuff at Lowes yesterday I was wondering how it would perform in the WSM so this review was helpful. I think I'll just use it for regular grilling and stick to the KBB whenever I break out the WSM.

No problem Brian. Yeah I was curious myself. I have always bought KBB and occasionally lump, but never RO briquettes. I wanted to try it with something I make frequently (tri tip).

I haven't yet used it in my WSM, just for the first time the other day on my 22.5" kettle. Maybe try RO with a chicken or pork butt and see what you think in the WSM? I may do something small just to see how I can maintain temps with it.

I have to admit my pepper and onion grill baskets that I did with the RO the other day really had a nice subtle flavor that I really enjoy. My father and father-in-law both commented how well they tasted.

I am going to be cooking again today and might try two chimneys and see if I can get some more heat to sear a few tri tips. I'll report back.

UPDATE: So after my second cook I can say that I like the RO briquettes....and they are a little bit frustrating as well.

Love: the mild flavor they give to food. Probably their best quality....next to a little less ash. I actually added apple chips to them because the kabobs needed a little bit of "character."

Hate: that they seemingly take forever to ash over. Maybe its me, but I timed the meal tonight according to what I would do for KBB...and I was waiting....and waiting. Finally after about 30 minutes, I said screw it and put them in the kettle. My wife even said..."what is taking so long?" I told her I am using a different type of charcoal. She said, "next time experiment when we don't have company :)"
I do a typical 2 zone cook with my 22.5" kettle. It seems that the RO responds pretty well to vent adjustments, but with KBB I can set my kettle and pretty much crank out food by a clock.

RO is not bad...maybe it just takes some getting used to. I still think the initial start-up smells like pine or cedar. I guess its a little different. I am eager to try the RO lump in the future.
 
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I bought a bag of RO Embers briquettes 2 years ago and just tried it. I love it. KBB makes SO much ash and so little heat that I would never again use it in the WSM. I only use lump in the WSM now, but the RO briquettes are more convenient for grilling on the kettle. They light well, they relight well next time and don't seem to turn to mush like used KBB if left in the grill for a week, and in my limited testing so far the heat seems better than Kingsford. Yes, they smoke on startup like any other, but it's a woodier smoke smell than the hardwood lump I use and not any sort of chemical smell like I seem to get with regular Kingsford.
 
Frankly, I wish the charcoal makers would concentrate on a briquette for smokers only. That would be interesting.
What characteristics would that briquet have that you can't find in a product today? Because I can think of at least one manufacturer who thinks they're already making that product.
 
I used RO for the first time in years for my thigh cook on the WSM Monday.
Wanted them ashed over in the chimney before dumping, and that took a good bit longer than KBB.
Smoke density wasn't too bad, kind of dark blue, pretty acrid/pungent smelling, but that cleared up later.
 
What characteristics would that briquet have that you can't find in a product today? Because I can think of at least one manufacturer who thinks they're already making that product.

Less ash (than Kingsford), long burn times, and something that doesn't produce acrid smoke that Bob alluded to when firing off. Royal Oak lump fits some of those categories, but it tends to burn low after the 8-hour mark without refueling.

Granted, I haven't experimented with charcoal by Stubbs or Weber, and it's possible either of these may fit the bill, but they don't sound economical.
 
I used RO for the first time in years for my thigh cook on the WSM Monday.
Wanted them ashed over in the chimney before dumping, and that took a good bit longer than KBB.
Smoke density wasn't too bad, kind of dark blue, pretty acrid/pungent smelling, but that cleared up later.

I tried regular Kingsford for the first time in about two years, and it fired off quickly and didn't smell that bad, so I can see myself using it for direct grilling more often.
 
I'm curious what most people use in their smoker - briquettes or lump?

I've always stuck with briquettes in the smoker as I've thought I get a more consistent temp. Lump has too many size variations etc.

Thoughts???
 
I'm curious what most people use in their smoker - briquettes or lump?

I've always stuck with briquettes in the smoker as I've thought I get a more consistent temp. Lump has too many size variations etc.

Thoughts???

I like briquettes in most situations. I use lump in my offset to get it started. I used to run my offset with just lump and wood chunks. Briquettes would create too much ash in a very long cook. The WSM has plenty of room for the ash to fall and the briquettes are more consistent.
 

 

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