Charcoal grilling produces the best grilled BBQ anywhere you go. This is because the charcoal mostly has some flavors based on the surroundings from which it came from. The charcoal grills are smokier as compared to the gas or electric ones. In fact, most chefs will agree that though they are gas and electric grills that use flavor bars, their flavors can’t match the amazing wood-smoke flavor produced by charcoal. The charcoal grills cost much less as compared to the gas and electric counterparts not unless you are buying one made of titanium or carbon fiber. Moreover, the charcoal itself is very cheap as compared to liquid propane.
Although charcoal grills look like the ultimate grilling tool, don’t celebrate too soon, it has a number of drawbacks too. For instance, coal takes much more time to fire up, mostly 20-25 minutes more than the gas or electric would. Cleaning the charcoal grill is a daunting task for many especially because the grill has to be often cleaned for optimal performance. The charcoal produces a lot of ash which is somewhat tiring as you have to remove the ash regularly.
Enough said about the advantages and disadvantages of the charcoal grill; it is now a high time we look at the Charcoal grilling 101: Read These or You’ll mess things up!
- Electric chimney starter; this one takes 8-15 minutes for you charcoal grill to be ready. Caution. Do not use the electric starter in the rain. Otherwise, you might end up being the one grilled.
- Get a charcoal chimney starter- it is relatively cheap, and you can get one for under ten dollars. With the chimney starter, all you need is to put a paper and light it then your charcoal will be fired in about 20 minutes.
- Do Not use lighter fluids which are petroleum-based to light up your charcoal. These are hazardous as they produce volatile organic compounds which are a health risk to your lungs. A good alternative for this is to;
- When using a charcoal grill, either indoors or outdoors ensure you have a fire extinguisher in sight or just a bucket of water. This is because charcoal produces sparks that could at times start fires.
- Let the charcoal burn to red hot before grilling you meat when charcoal burns, especially in not very well ventilated rooms, it produces carbon monoxide which is a killer gas. Allowing the charcoal to burn to red hot makes sure all the carbon has burnt out and won’t be deposited in the meat.
- It always a good idea to marinate the meat before grilling so as to reduce the effect of hydrocarbons. During the grilling process, use vinegar or lemon based marinade such as green chicken marinade.
- Always allow the starter to cool completely before packing it.
- Do not dispose of the charcoal until it is completely burned into ashes.
- Finally, precook the meat before grilling it on the charcoal grill.
Let these simple but necessary steps always stick on the front page of your charcoal grilling rule book. If you adhere to this steps, your grilling experience will be maintained to that excellent level, and you will continue to enjoy the grilled BBQ for a longer time without risking your health.