The Tricks to Keeping a Charcoal BBQ Lit

I’ve probably seen it a million times at the park or camping or my personal favorite, in a friend’s back yard. They can’t seem to keep the briquettes lit. I guess it happens to us all every now and again, until you learn the sure fire – no pun intended – way of properly lighting, and keeping them lit in your charcoal barbecue, briquettes for your next meal.

Ways of Lighting

There are a couple variations on how to actually light the charcoal. Some people refuse to use lighter fluid of any kind, even if it says ‘leaves no taste’ on the package. For these folks, getting some wood to catch first is the way to go. Then there’s the other side of the fence that won’t even bother with anything but lighter fluid. I tend to lean towards the latter unless wood is my only option.

Soak It!

For those of us that follow the lighter fluid school of thought, there is a tried and true method that works every time.

First, take the time to build a pyramid out the charcoal in the center of the grill. Its okay to dump it all in at first to make sure you’re using the right amount, then after that you need to build the pyramid. Take your technologically advanced lighter fluid and thoroughly soak ALL of the briquettes. Then you need to be patient and wait at least 15 minutes for them to soak properly. When the egg timer finally buzzes, carefully light four sides of the pyramid at the very bottom. Sit back and watch the entire thing go up in flames.

Once again, you need to be patient and let all of the briquettes catch. This does not mean when the fire dies down, this means when you have a completely grayish-white pyramid. It will take a while, so you can look but don’t touch. Once this phase is complete you may now spread out the briquettes. If you find one or that aren’t like the rest, simply place them against ones that are fully lit. They will eventual catch up and join the party. Viola, you have charcoal that won’t go out until you either put them out or they finally burn themselves out.

Using Wood

Using wood to light your briquettes is very much the same, well in the patience area anyway. First you will start yourself a little fire made out of wood and let it turn red hot. It may take a fair amount of wood at first. After you have a small bed of wood coals going, you can start adding in some charcoal, careful not to smother the wood fire. This method has the same end results; it just takes quite a bit longer.

Chimneys

Using a charcoal chimney is the preferred method for a lot of people. It essentially concentrates all the heat and helps get the briquettes burning evenly and protects them against the elements while also using a significantly smaller amount of lighter fluid. The major drawback to using them is that you are limited to the size of the chimney as to how many briquettes you can light at once.

Wait For It!

The key ingredient, no matter which method you use is patience. If you light the charcoal right the first time, there will be no need for you to stand next to the grill shooting dangerous streams of lighter fluid at the fire. Even though it can be amusing, yet dangerous; while I keep waiting for my friend to ask me to hold his beer.