Ok, tested Alton Brown's suggestion last night.


 
B

B. Foster

TVWBB Fan
Folks,

I was watching AB last night and learned something HUGE. With my chimney smoker, I've always coiled newspaper around the outside and put one crumpled bit in the middle.

Well, tonight I tried something off his show...I made a wick!
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Just like on his show, I dribbled two pieces of newspaper with cooking oil, set them under my chimney and watched..chuckling. Nope, he was right, my paper acted like a wick and lit the charcoal toastilly(new word).

So, instead of 4 pieces of newsprint, I could do the same with a bit of cooking oil and 1 sheet of paper. While not earth-shattering, it was something that made my bbq'ing life easier.
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Take care!

-brian
 
If I remember right, someone even posted just spraying paper/paper towels with Pam cooking spray. Never tried it myself.
I've been using the oil I drain out of the Wifes van......JUST JOKING!!
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Briam,

Someone else on this board suggested using oil on paper towels to "condition / lubricate" your grill and then use the oily paper towels to start the charcoal.

Ray
 
This is just one more thing I use my Misto for. I spray Olive Oil on the newspaper and it lights right up. I believe that part of the reason that it works is that it burns hotter and starts the charcoal with less paper. At least that is what I learned from Alton. Man, that guy knows all the tricks.

Scott
 
hmmm. i NEVER have a problem using 1 sheet of news paper. why would you wrap one on the outside? that totally defeats the purpose of the 'chimney'. you need that air intake to draw the heat up the center and thru the coals. fire on the ouside will do nothing. it really doesnt take that much fire for that long to get coals lit. one of the best tricks ive learned is to stack the coals around the outte edge. leave a valley in the center. some chimneys have a spring or coil up the center to make a 'cone'.
 
I always used newspaper until I tried the Weber Starter Cubes about a year ago. They work very well and very fast and there is no mess to clean up. I usually use two but one would probably be sufficient. They come in packs of 24 for about $2.29 at Home Depot in this area. Of course, newspaper is virtually free.
 
I've been using my weber chimney for a year now following their instructions (two crumpled sheets of newspaper in the bottom) and have never had a failure.
 
I used to use the 2 crumpled up sheets and have had more than one failure (course I just started this winter, and it's wicked here (VT)). But when I switched to rolling up each sheet and then making a donut shape out of each and using those, (prolly an inch more narrow in diameter than the interior of the chimney, one stacked on top of each other) I know once I light it, it'll stay lit.
 
I have used the oil ever since I saw that episode first run a few years ago, it seem to speed things up a bit IMO. I use my old deep fryer oil on it(not rancid though!!!)
 
I'm one of the 'clean yer grill with an oily towel, and then WHOOSH' folks. But I also use torn up Kingsford bag (burns nicely with that charcoal powder on it!) and regular old newspaper.
 
I also use the left over oil from my deep fat fryer. I have been using cooking oil on the paper in my chimney for almost a year now.
 
one starter cube here as well. I hated that flying around newspaper ash... I also put the middle section of the bullet over (around) the chimney to shelter the wind and create a great uniform shelter for perfect airflow...

PS.. Remember your gloves when moving the middle section back to the base after the coals get goin'
 
I'm currently using the Minion Method-RV (Rita's Version) - my apologies to Jim Minion
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I pour the proper allotment of coals into the charcoal ring and level them out a bit. I use a propane torch to light 2 or 3 Kingsfords in the pile for about 1 minute. Then I set a coffee can with holes punched in it with a can opener (toward the outside, or your coals won't drop out when removing it) on top of the lit coals and add about 12 or 13 unlit ones from the pile to the can.

Twenty minutes and you’re ready to cook. Just pull up the can and spread out the lit coals.....clean, quick, and reliable.
 
I'm a Pam and paper towel guy. Paper towel doen't fly all over when you light it like newspaper and it only takes 1 sheet sprayed with a little Pam.
 
You could always use my father's method: fill the chimney starter with coals then soak them in lighter fluid!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Frank C:
I also put the middle section of the bullet over (around) the chimney to shelter the wind and create a great uniform shelter for perfect airflow...

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That's freakin brilliant! *smacks head* I should have thought of that. I've rigged up some silly looking contraptions to block the wind from my chimney starter. Thanks
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will, dont know if you kidding or not....but putting lighter fluid on the coals kinda defeats the purpose of why we using the chimney in the first place......one main reason why we use it is so that we DONT have to use lighter fluid........

good luck
 
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