Charcoal Question


 
K

Keith D.

New member
What kind of charcoal do you use? I used Mesquite Charcoal Briquettes the first time when I smoked two whole chickens and it turned out great. Second time I used lump charcoal and it seemed I had issues controlling heat. Im sure brands and types play a difference
 
I haven't tried lump yet because I think the owners manual said not to but it seems like most posts I've read said lump works great,the only issue is I guess is it burns kinda hot and a new user may have trouble controling temp. I used Kford blue the first time and Sams choice briquettes the second time both seem to be about equal to me.I have Stubbs but have been useing it for grilling only because of the cost I guess.I did get a free bag of Frontier lump when I bought my wsm and the pieces seem pretty small because they fell through the bottom of my chimney starter and by the time it was ready to use the chimney was only half full and was full when I started.
 
Keith, i use 50/50 kmesquite and kblue mixed together, start up the fire with about 10 lit coals of kblue. If i want stronger mesquite flavor i add more mesquite. Imo if mesquite is used to perfection, its the best smoke wood for bbq.
 
I use a combination of K-blue and Wicked Good lump with Kblue in the starter. The lump produces much less ash but burns hotter.
 
Lump burns hotter if it gets alot of oxygen. I think you can burn up a chimney with lump to ashes in 30-40 min.
So you can choke the smoker alot more and run at the same temp. And by doing this the coal last just as long as bricks.

Sure there is a big difference beetween brands.
Stick to quality fuel for an even/long burn.
 
We use K-competition and blue, and we use some lump. I am not a huge fan of RO because it seems to burn too fast compared to other lump charcoal. I use it if it is all I can get though.
 
I use lump - whatever I can get a good price on locally (except I've never tried Cowboy due to the poor reviews on this site). I've never "run hot" or had any problems controling the temp. I think the main reason for that is that I pack my ring tight. I'm not sure, but I think the air gaps that you get from lump if you don't pack it is what causes people to have issues with lump.

Personally, I've had more problems with briquettes because of the ash they produce.
 
I use lump 90% of the time and no problem at all. Royal Oak is a good stand by when I can't get Wicked Good Weekend Warrior.

As someone already said lump will burn hotter IF it gets oxygen. But it also burns much longer once you get the lower vent settings figured out.

Just for example, I smoked a 14 lb turkey for Easter last week. As expected it only took about 5 hours at 225��° using Royal Oak. Monday morning around 10:00, almost 18 hours after taking out the turkey, I noticed the old WSM was stilling idling right at 225° and I hadn't done a thing to keep it going. I love that cooker!!
 
Oh and I have to agree with Jerry, I personally would stay away from Cowboy. Tried it twice because it was on sale and had very poor results.
 
Ditto. Odd pieces - some huge, some that have scarcely made it to the charcoal stage at all - lots of dust and crumblings. I avoid the stuff.

Stubb's is okay and convenient to buy in Okla. In Fla I use comp K mostly. My preference is Wicked Good Weekend Warrior. Very low ash, great burn.
 
Side note, I would avoid trying to start lump in a chimney, unless you pick out the smaller pieces.
But then, I cook on a wooden deck attached to my wooden house.
 
I use blue bag K for longer cooks (butts and brisket) and lump,if I've got it,for shorter cooks(ribs) and for grilling.
 
Wicked Good lump and or briqs, B&B Oak lump, RO Lump and Stubbs briqs are in my garage quite a bit. All have there place with my many cookers and what I am cooking. If I could get my hands on Ozark Oak or Humphreys I would for sure load up.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Hartwell:
Side note, I would avoid trying to start lump in a chimney, unless you pick out the smaller pieces.
But then, I cook on a wooden deck attached to my wooden house. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah, I always have some Briquettes around to use in the chimney to start the cook. Otherwise, I would just pick out some of the bigger pieces to put in the chimney.
 
Since I started using lump, I don't use briquettes very often. The US made RO is, IMO, pretty good; the South American, not so much. The US made bag is pretty prominently marked "Made in USA." If you have a Wegman's, they sell a lump that they brand that is pretty good. I'm not sure who makes it but they are a reliable source year round.
 
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