My humble opinion on lump charcoal


 
I have been using lump charcoal instead of Weber briqs in the last 3 months. It last for ever and I can amoke all night long without any problem!
Much less ash and better flavour imo.
 
Enrico said:
I have been using lump charcoal instead of Weber briqs in the last 3 months. It last for ever and I can amoke all night long without any problem!
Much less ash and better flavour imo.
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Hey Enrico,

What brand(s) of lump do you buy in Italy? Are the pieces generally larger or smaller than a Kingsford briquette? I like lump a lot for grilling, never tried it for smoking. My biggest beef with the brands of lump I've used is the inconsistency of size in the pieces. There will be one piece that's the size of my forearm, and then a bunch of other pieces that are small enough to fall through the Weber chimney. Nevertheless, I really enjoy having both in the arsenal, to choose whichever seems to suit the mood I'm in, or whichever best suits (for me) the type of cook I'm doing.

Cheers!
 
I agree Danny, I've been smoking with blue and white Kingsford since the 80s and with a variety of woods, mostly oak and I've always, always loved Kingsford above all others.

I'll eat food cooked with lump, it's great, not knocking lump, it's wild with cool shapes and it burns fast and bright but it's not what I grill on.

I didn't click ur link Chris but is that, that coconut one???
 
I have used lump for low n slow cooking with no issues. As stated, Using lump does take a few more minutes prep time then briquettes because of its inconsistent size. With briquettes you can pour them into your charcoal ring and you are good to go. With lump you need to strategically place each piece to fill the gaps. This might even include breaking the bigger pieces into more manageable sizes. It is not that big a deal though as this can be done in just a few minutes. Use what you like-its your Que.
 
Not all lump is created equal. Some like Royal oak is a great grilling lump, burns hot but doesn't last to long. But for smoking I usually turn to Wicked Good I have consistently gotten 15+ hrs out of a well packed ring using minion method. The only briquette I use now is Trader Joes, though by me its getting harder and harder to come by. It too has a good burn time and doesn't give off all that black garbage that KBB does and is cheaper then King Comp
 
Lump is all I use in both the WSM and my kettle. I've tried a few brands of briqs, but keep coming back to the taste and purity? of RO lump. My 18 /2" WSM will easily run all night on a full ring of lump, and once I got used to it, regulating temp is really about the same...

FOR ME, the taste of KBB was awful. I guess I'm just sensitive to it, but everything I cook with the Kingsford tastes like a campfire. In my cookers, the lump always burns without any hint of smoke (sans wood), foul smell, or off taste.

Again, just my opinion, and that's all it's worth.
 
Steve Whiting said:
I have used lump for low n slow cooking with no issues. As stated, Using lump does take a few more minutes prep time then briquettes because of its inconsistent size. With briquettes you can pour them into your charcoal ring and you are good to go. With lump you need to strategically place each piece to fill the gaps. This might even include breaking the bigger pieces into more manageable sizes. It is not that big a deal though as this can be done in just a few minutes. Use what you like-its your Que.
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Agree. I think the OP had issues due to lack of experience with lump and would recommend trying again with the above advice. We call it packing the ring and it's essential to get a long steady cook with lump.
 
Just did 6 butts in a 22". Loaded ring with about a bag and half of cowboy, 15 lit briquettes, stabilized at 280 and burned 12-13 hours.
 
I share the opinion that lump burns hotter and faster than briquettes whether it be because of inconsistent sizing for lump (allows more air into the fire) or some other factor. I also tend to have more waste from lump as there are invariably really small pieces of charcoal that fall between the grates, etc. That said, lump does clean up easier because it seems to produce a more fine ash.

I tend to use lump for grilling and briquettes for smoking.
 
Lump for grilling hot, fast and clean (e.g., steaks, London Broils, etc.) Occasionally, I'll throw a New York directly on the red hot lump, brush off the ashes and flip it, no grill needed. Best sear ever. I would not do this with KBB.

Sometimes use both, KBB and lump, start the heat with KBB, spread them out and then for extra heat, through some lump on top, wait ten minutes then good to go.

For everything else, KBB is my go to.

CraigW
 
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