Grilling 101

Lighting Fires for Cooking All Summer

Good Day Friends,

We are diving into a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Cooking with Fire 🔥

Today is the first drop in a series all about Cooking with Fire 🔥 which is one of the oldest cooking methods known to mankind.

So let’s embark on a delicious journey and up our cooking game using fire 🔥 . It really is such a versatile technique.

Fire & Cooking

I’m here with good news because most people are intimidated to cook with fire…. the good news is that you can quickly become comfortable cooking with live fire once we demystify some basics.

It’s all about controlling heat… more airflow (oxygen) to the fire? The heat will increase… Less airflow to the fire? The heat level will go down. Just like using a cooktop with a knob to turn up or turn down heat, we can do this same thing by regulating the amount of airflow.

This is admittedly an over-generalization but the principle still stands and we can get in the weeds later with building, managing and manipulating fires. Especially important is to remember that there is good smoke and bad smoke; again will deep dive that later.

Grilling vs Smoking

There will be a range of opinions on technicalities but for our purposes grilling speaks to cooking with fire at temperatures above 300F.

Smoking would be cooking with low temperature heat of 275F or less. If you want to get really in the weeds, cold smoking occurs by holding the temperature below 90F.

The reason for these distinctions is that, as you’ll see later, with grilling we can cook directly over coals or we can use an indirect heat method that will allow a “softer” cooking environment.

As with all talk of heat and cooking, an important thing to remember is that once meat or vegetables come off the grill, carryover cooking occurs. This was discussed in a previous substack on steaming as well as target temperatures for certain proteins.

Fuel: Gas vs Wood

You will have a battle royale between the purists and convenience crowds. There is no “right” answer… it all depends on your situation. Flavor-wise you will get a more pronounced smoke and perfume by cooking over coals vs cooking with propane gas. So let’s go over some options

Hardwood Lump Charcoal

Regarded by many as the “most pure” fuel for cooking with, lump charcoal burns hotter, produces less ash and lights more quickly than its’ Briquette cousins. You can find lump charcoal in many different varieties from Oak to Mesquite… up to your own taste preferences.

Charcoal Briquettes

This is classic Americana 🇺🇸 fuel that you’d expect for 4th of July Cookouts. Made in a different way from Lump Charcoal, Briquettes are made by compressing which is why they retain a uniform shape. These tend to burn longer than lump charcoal but do not get as hot.

Most contain additives as well. Briquettes are “fine” to use, they are cheaper than Lump and more uniform.

At this point, we should address lighter fluid.

Avoid. It leaves a recognizable flavor no matter how long you burn the fire. While some of us grew up with that distinct smell of lighter fluid on charcoal and have some nostalgia, it’s not optimal. It’s also unnecessary when alternatives like chimney starters are simple and work wonderfully.

Propane Gas

The quick and easy option. Burns clean. Just flip a switch and you’re off to the races. The expense of convenience is a very mild flavor, lacking the depth and perfume that cooking with coals or wood provides.

Wood

This will be covered more in Smoking Substack (upcoming) but this is the preferred fuel for BBQ purists. You’ve got all sorts of options like Alder, Hickory, Pecan, Fruit Woods like 🍒 or 🍎 , Mesquite and Oak… but we can’t even stop there… some purists swear by Post Oak while others swear by Red Oak… Live Oak… White Oak… you get the idea 😂

While type of wood can effect flavors, building and maintaining a clean fire is by far more important to final outcome.

Age of wood is also important. “Green wood” which has been freshly chopped/harvested has a much higher % of water content. This creates more steam when burning which keeps the fire temperature lower, for a longer period of time. Some pitmasters want 3 month or 6 month (or even longer) aged woods to allow for a reduction in the water content.

As you can see, there’s a lot to talk about with Smoking 😉

Binchotan Charcoal

Possibly my favorite fuel. This is a Japanese charcoal that is essential for making preparations like Yakitori and other traditional grilled Japanese delicacies. Usually made from the Ubume Oak, binchotan is prized for burning at a very consistent temperature and makes a very clean fire. There are grades that take this from expensive charcoal, to very expensive charcoal… but that’s for another Substack. Here’s an old YouTube video of the sorting and packing process for those interested

Pellets:

Not going to speak too much on this except: Avoid

Pellets are made from basically saw dust. They burn differently, produce a different type of smoke… none of which are optimal IMO.

Grills:

For the sake of brevity I’ll keep this short. Specifically talking grills here, not smokers.

Charcoal Grills

The most efficient option is the Weber kettle grill. They are cheap, heat quick, easy to clean and can take a literal beating. As the old saying goes: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

That’s not to say there aren’t other “fancier” options out there. If you want to geek out and that floats your boat, go for it.

Yes I’ve cooked on many a Big Green Egg and other ceramic grills. These are wonderful for heat retention. Once hot they can stay warm for days which is perfect for low and slow cooking, but also high heat like pizza 🍕 . They will eat more fuel and for just basic grilling the Weber is faster and easier.

Gas Grills

If you’re set on using propane, then consider your needs. If you want to do indirect cooking you’re going to ideally want at least 3 heat bars, to properly setup that indirect zone (More on that in the next Substack).

Another consideration is BTU’s. This was a gold standard for a longtime but not necessarily accurate since the output is rated per hour, not intensity. One cheat method to use is take the BTU number, divide it by the square inches of the grill rack. Any numbers between 80-100 would indicate the grill packs a good heat punch.

Quality of build is really most important. Tight fitting lid and heavy duty parts that are made to last.

Weber and Charbroil both make good quality gas grills, I lean to Weber.

The above should provide some clarity and point of view as we embark on cooking with fire.

Stay Tuned for Tomorrow’s Follow Up… I’m dropping a list of tools needed for live fire cooking, an intro to heat and fires and then dropping our first grilling recipe… Don’t Miss it! 🔥 🙌

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Until Next Time! 🥂