Lump Charcoal

[redfan]

Anybody got a source in/near KC? Bag or bulk, TIA.

[In58men]

Albertsons carries 8-10lb bags of lump charcoal.

[Stewie]

Price Chopper used to sell lump and I assume they still do. I get mine (Ozark Oak) from my butcher in DeSoto, KS. Probably not convenient for you, though.

[Predarat]

This brand is good, and its at Wal Marts around here.

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpdatabase/bag11s.jpg

[Great Expectations]

Royal Oak at Wal-Mart is very good, and priced well. It comes from the same processing plant as The Big Green Egg brand lump.

[Stewie]

Royal Oak at Wal-Mart is very good, and priced well. It comes from the same processing plant as The Big Green Egg brand lump.

Best Choice from Price Chopper is also from Royal Oak.

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpdatabase/lumpbag34.htm

[bevischief]

This brand is good, and its at Wal Marts around here.

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpdatabase/bag11s.jpg

Good stuff.

[Stewie]

I found this interesting from the link I posted earlier:

Other brands made by Royal Oak: Chuckwagon, Grill Time, Big Green Egg, Real Flavor (Wal*Mart), Wegmans, Best Choice, and Nature-Glo.

[Great Expectations]

Helpful reviews on lump options:

www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpindexpage.htm?bag

[gblowfish]

I bought the Royal Oak in the red bag at Wal Mart. It costs a little more than Kingsford. Use Kingsford to start the fire, then fill in with Royal Oak. It'll last longer that way.

[lewdog]

I bought the Royal Oak in the red bag at Wal Mart. It costs a little more than Kingsford. Use Kingsford to start the fire, then fill in with Royal Oak. It'll last longer that way.

I just got a smoker and ended up doing my seasoning with just the Royal Oak and that shit burned out too fast!

I was thinking of using Kingsford briquettes and the Royal Oak using the Minion method. Was wondering what you would light first and which one you would use for your base? I was thinking of using the Kingsford as the base and lighting a half chimney of Royal Oak and putting it in the middle. Start with the faster burning stuff then the slower briquettes will heat up the rest of the way and keep the temp up longer.

Thoughts?

[RJ]

I just got a smoker and ended up doing my seasoning with just the Royal Oak and that shit burned out too fast!

I was thinking of using Kingsford briquettes and the Royal Oak using the Minion method. Was wondering what you would light first and which one you would use for your base? I was thinking of using the Kingsford as the base and lighting a half chimney of Royal Oak and putting it in the middle. Start with the faster burning stuff then the slower briquettes will heat up the rest of the way and keep the temp up longer.

Thoughts?


After much charcoal experimentation, my advice is to stick with the Kingsford. It starts reliably, burns slow, doesn't leave any funky flavors and is reasonably priced. What's not to like?

[cdcox]

I've had good luck with lump + smoking wood. Throw a lot of fuel on at once and keep the damper down to control the burn rate. I can smoke a whole butt over 8 hrs on a 10 lb bag.

Basically you have to find a method/fuel/cooker combo that works for you. It's different for everyone and you can only find your way by cooking a lot of meat on your rig trying different things each time and finding what works for your tastes.

[Planetman]

I've had good luck with lump + smoking wood.
So has Gonzo.

[cdcox]

So has Gonzo.

Perfect reply.

[Planetman]

Perfect reply.
You threw the pitch. I took it yard. Let's grab a beer ... or 12, and call it even. :D

[cdcox]

You threw the pitch. I took it yard. Let's grab a beer ... or 12, and call it even. :D

:toast:

[redfan]

Thanks for the info!! I've heard about Royal Oak, and I've heard good things about the Price Chopper brand.

[Predarat]

I bought the Royal Oak in the red bag at Wal Mart. It costs a little more than Kingsford. Use Kingsford to start the fire, then fill in with Royal Oak. It'll last longer that way.

Hmm I have never tried that, thanks for the idea!

[Stewie]

I just got a smoker and ended up doing my seasoning with just the Royal Oak and that shit burned out too fast!

I was thinking of using Kingsford briquettes and the Royal Oak using the Minion method. Was wondering what you would light first and which one you would use for your base? I was thinking of using the Kingsford as the base and lighting a half chimney of Royal Oak and putting it in the middle. Start with the faster burning stuff then the slower briquettes will heat up the rest of the way and keep the temp up longer.

Thoughts?

I've done the Minion method a few times. I've found that mixing in some fruit wood among the charcoal works best. I use the smallish pieces of wood so as not to raise the temperature when a big hunk gets fired.

The Minion method is a great technique for really long smokes that allow you time away (sleep) and not worry about temperature. It's rock steady

[Lumpy]

So has Gonzo.

ROFL

[tooge]

I've done the Minion method a few times. I've found that mixing in some fruit wood among the charcoal works best. I use the smallish pieces of wood so as not to raise the temperature when a big hunk gets fired.

The Minion method is a great technique for really long smokes that allow you time away (sleep) and not worry about temperature. It's rock steady

THis. I'd stay with kingsford regular briquettes tho. I've found that they burn slower, and are thus easier to control a constant temp. I've done the lump thing with several different brands and I ended up back at plain old kingsford briquettes. Incidentally, for smoking, I do the minion method with one chimney down, with several wood chunks on the pile, then one lit chimney poured over that. Seems to get a good 8 or 9 hour burn in decent weather on a weber wsm.

[lewdog]

Thanks for the great info guys! And tooge, I think I will do the minion method but start with a half lit chimney because I have a small vertical smoker and I live in Phoenix and that smoker gets hot when I am cooking it in the sun anyway so I might not need as much lit charcoal or the temp gets to hot. I did a full lit chimney of the lump charcoal and the temp spiked up to 300-325 for 45 minutes.