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This post is about charcoal grilling for beginners.
Are you looking to buy your first grill for your new home? Regardless if you have little experience grilling, you want a grill that will last and is beginner-friendly. Enter the charcoal grill. Charcoal grills are fantastic for imparting wonderful smokey aroma in your foods, more so than gas grills. You can experiment with both charcoal briquettes and different woods for varied flavors.
Charcoal grills also have a high heat potential, ideal for creating a nice crust and caramelization on the outside of your meats. This high heat potential also creates even heat distribution across the charcoal grill’s grates, which results in even cooking across all your food.
Charcoal grills are affordable and accessible to most, which makes this the perfect entry level grill. However, there is a wide range of charcoal grills at different prices. Take the time to find the right one for you.
This post is about charcoal grilling for beginners.
BEST CHARCOAL GRILL FOR BEGINNERS
There are 3 main types of charcoal grills: kettle, ceramic, and barrel. Kettle grills are the best charcoal grills for beginners. They are simple to use, small, and portable – yet so versatile!
Barrel grills have more surface area to grill on because they are shaped like a barrel. However, it can be challenging to maintain the temperature while cooking when using a barrel grill because there is more to manage.
Ceramic grills are egg-shaped with large domed lids, which are coated in a ceramic lining. This allows the grills to reach the highest cooking temperatures up to 800°F. Because of this, ceramic grills are also challenging for a grill novice to manage.
This charcoal grill is beginner friendly, and perfect if you have no experience with a charcoal grill.
CHARCOAL GRILL TOOLS FOR BEGINNERS
There are several tools you’ll need to grill successfully on a charcoal grill. A charcoal chimney starter, Grilling utensils (tongs, spatula, grill brush, etc.), and instant-read thermometer are just a few to name. Our recommended products are listed below. These are the best charcoal grilling tools for beginners.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO LIGHT CHARCOAL GRILL FOR BEGINNERS
Lighting a charcoal grill is easier than you think! Grab some old newspaper (or any paper), and crumple it up into 3 or 4 larger balls. Remove your grill grate and load in your charcoal briquettes. Push the balls underneath your pile of charcoal and light them with a torch, stick lighter, or matchstick.
Allow the flames from your firestarter (paper) to catch the charcoal. Your charcoal will ignite— but don’t put your food straight on the grill just yet! Cooking over top of flames will char and burn your food. Wait until the flames die down and your coals become ashen. This entire process takes some time (up to 1 hour depending on the size of the grill and the amount of charcoal used), so don’t feel pressured to rush it. Leave the lid off of the grill during this time, as smothering your flames can cause them to extinguish too soon.
Another technique to light your charcoal grill is to use lighter fluid. Start by removing your top grill grate and load in your charcoal briquettes. Form a mound with the charcoal and squeeze the lighter fluid over the top of the mound for 10 seconds. Light your charcoal with a torch, stick lighter, or matchstick.
Again, it is crucial that you allow your flames to die down completely, and the coals become ashen before you start grilling your food. When the coals have ashed over, spread them across your bottom grate and place your top grate back on the charcoal grill.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW MUCH CHARCOAL TO USE
How much charcoal to use on your charcoal grill will depend on the size of the grill itself, as well as the temperature that you want to cook at. However, as a general guideline, you’d want enough charcoal to cover the bottom of the grill in one layer.
For the Weber 22-inch grill that I suggested above, you’d want to use about 25 briquettes for low heat (250°F to 350°F), 50 briquettes for medium heat (350°F to 450°F), and 100 briquettes for high heat (450°F to 550°F).
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO USE A CHARCOAL GRILL WITHOUT CHIMNEY
If you choose to light your charcoal grill without a chimney, you need to select a firestarter. You can use newspaper, wood pellets, firestart cubes, or lighter fluid.
While newspaper, or any paper, might be the most convenient option, it doesn’t always burn clean. Using old paper can create a lot of smoke, as it burns quickly. A tip to prevent the newspaper from burning too quickly: scrunch it up into a ball as tightly as possible.
Lighter fluid is a good option, as it catches fire immediately. However, if you use too much lighter fluid, you can get big flames and your fire can get out of control quickly. If you cook too quickly, there’s a chance your food can taste a bit like the lighter fluid. Let the lighter fluid burn off completely and your coals ash over before grilling.
If you use a charcoal grill without a chimney, you’ll need wood pellets or firestart cubes underneath your charcoal mound to start your fire. Put your fire start on the bottom grill grate and build up your charcoal in a pile around the firestart. Use a torch, matchstick, or stick lighter to ignite the firestart and let the flames catch the charcoal.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO USE A CHARCOAL GRILL WITH CHIMNEY
Using a chimney is an efficient way to light the charcoal. Pour your charcoal briquettes into the top chamber of the chimney, and put your firestarter (balls of paper) underneath the chimney. After the firestarter is lit, allow the flames to burn and eventually catch the charcoal. This may take 10 minutes. Because you heat all the briquettes at once in the chimney, all the charcoal should be at the same temperature. This creates an even heat distribution in your grill and will cook all your foods evenly.
There are a few drawbacks to using a chimney in a charcoal grill. Because you are limited in how much charcoal can fit in the chimney, you may need to add more charcoal to your grill throughout your cooking process. Using a chimney requires time to heat the coals evenly, which may be a problem if you’ve got hungry mouths to feed!
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO USE A CHARCOAL BBQ WITH LID
The purpose of a charcoal grill lid is to retain heat and moisture. The lid traps the heat from the charcoal and creates an even cooking temperature for your grilled foods. If you don’t use a lid, the hot air will escape and you will lose all the lovely smokey flavor. Your food will also become charred on the outside and dry on the inside.
The vents on the lid of your charcoal grill allow you to control how much smoke you want in your food. If you open them completely, you will have less of a smokey flavor. Using the lid creates a convection oven effect, which is ideal for smoking and slow-cooking your foods.
The lid is crucial when managing flare-ups. When the flames become too high, you use the lid to smother them and control the fire. Adjusting the vents in the lid can also control these flare-ups by reducing the oxygen.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO USE CHARCOAL GRILL VENTS
To maintain temperature control of your grill, you will manipulate the charcoal grill vents by opening and closing them. There are two sets of vents: bottom vents and top vents.
The bottom vents fuel the fire by allowing oxygen to reach the flames. You should start with all three bottom vents open, and then slowly close them one by one until you reach the desired cooking temperature.
The top vents allow air and smoke to escape from the grill. If you were to close these vents completely, the fire would eventually extinguish itself, because the smoke needs to escape for fresh oxygen to be pulled in through the bottom vents.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS – HOW TO SMOKE FOODS ON A CHARCOAL GRILL
But wouldn’t this be counterproductive if you want to smoke your food? Not exactly. When trying to smoke your meats, you’ll need to cook over indirect heat, also known as “two-zone grilling method”.
In this case, you would push your ashen coals and wood chips, to one side of the grill, using this side as your direct heat. This is where you would get that initial sear and char on your foods. When you are ready to smoke the food, move the food over to the side of the grill without the coals. This indirect heat from the coals will slowly finish cooking your food while allowing the smoke to flavor your food. For more information on the differences between direct and indirect grilling, check out this grilling for beginners guide.
The wood chips thrown on top of the ashen coals will eventually catch fire and produce an aromatic smoke. Hickory, applewood, mesquite, and cherrywood are all popular varieties of wood chips. You can also mix and match the woodchips to create a unique flavor.
CHARCOAL GRILLING FOR BEGINNERS Q&A
When is charcoal ready to cook on?
The charcoal is ready to be cooked on once it has become ashen. This means that the flames have died down, and the coals have a white or red hot look to them.
How long should charcoal burn before grilling?
You should allow the charcoal to turn ashen (white and red hot) before attempting to grill food.
How do you use a charcoal grill for the first time?
Do you leave grill open when starting charcoal?
Yes! Leave the grill lid open when starting your charcoal. Allow the large flames to subside before grilling your food.
When cooking on charcoal grill do you leave vents open?
You should leave the top vents open when grilling as this allows the airflow to the fire. You’ll need some airflow to ensure the fire doesn’t extinguish itself.
When you light charcoal do you close the lid?
After you light the charcoal, leave the lid open until the large flames have burnt out and the charcoal has become ashen (white and red hot).
What happens when you close the vent on a charcoal grill?
If you close the vent on a charcoal grill, the fire will eventually extinguish itself. The grill needs proper airflow to ensure even cooking.
How long do you let charcoal burn before putting meat on?
You should wait until your charcoal has become ashen before putting meat on the grill. This can take up to 45 minutes.
How many charcoal briquettes to use?
Depending on the size of the grill and the temperature you wish to cook at, will determine how many charcoal briquettes to use. However, a good rule of thumb is to have enough charcoal briquettes to cover the bottom of the grill.
How do you know when your charcoal is ready?
You will know your charcoal is ready when the charcoal takes on a white color and becomes red hot.
