Everything You Need to Know About Charcoal
Grill Prep
- Arrange briquets in a pyramid at the bottom of the grill
- Pour approximately 2 oz of Kingsford® Lighter Fluid over the top of the stack of briquets and carefully light with a match; you've added enough lighter fluid when briquets appear glossy
- When coals are ready for cooking, spread them in a single layer or bank them, set the grilling grid in place and put on the food
- To cook food evenly, charcoal should extend about one inch beyond the area covered by the food
Ready to Go
Briquets are ready for grilling when they are at least 70-percent covered with ash and have a slight red glow. This takes about 20 minutes.
How Much Charcoal?
Direct grilling:
Generally, use 30 briquets (just over 1½ lbs) to grill 1 lb of meat or poultry. The size and type of your grill, the type of food and the weather all affect the amount of charcoal you need.
Indirect grilling:
Use approximately 25 briquets on each side of the drip pan for the first hour of cooking time. After each additional hour, add 8 new briquets to the outside edges on either side. Move them to the center when they're ashed over.
Bad weather:
Use a few more briquets than normal to make sure the fire stays hot.
