One of the pleasures of being in the great outdoors, whether your backyard or a national park, is cooking. And one doesn’t have to resort to caveman cuisine – you know, sticking a piece of meat on a twig and hanging it over an open fire. A portable charcoal grill adds a touch of civilization without ending the adventure of outdoor cooking or losing the outdoorsy taste of the food.
Of all the types of outdoor cooking contraptions available, the portable charcoal grill is the sensible option for most folks. The fuel used with the portable charcoal grill is inexpensive and easy to find. Charcoal and lighter fluid can be purchased at just about any typical shop – grocery stores, pop-ins, hardware vendors, gas stations, etc. Propane is not quite as ubiquitous. Also, propane tanks are heavy, require a considerable deposit, and hooking them up to a grill can be a bit of a bother. And propane isn’t exactly cheap either, especially when compared to charcoal.
So, you have a portable charcoal grill, a sack of charcoal and some lighter fluid. What’s next? Easy. Rip open the bag and pour about a quarter to a half of the contents (figuring the size of your grill and the amount of food you intend to cook) into the bottom of the grill. Close the bag and remove it to a dry place. Now, start stacking the little briquettes into a pyramid of sorts. Dust off your hands and grab the can of lighter fluid. Liberally douse the pyramid of charcoal with the fluid. The fluid will seem to disappear as it is absorbed by the charcoal. So don’t think you need to keep dousing until the bricks appear moist. In fact, it’s best to err on the side of caution in this instance. Besides, you can try this again should the briquettes not turn into coals as desired. With a match or a lighter, put the flame to one of the coals toward the bottom of the pyramid. It won’t burst into flame as if it were gasoline, but blue flame will start to jump from briquette to briquette. (Incidentally, NEVER use gasoline to light the charcoal! You’ll end up cooking a lot more that a couple of steaks!) Wait awhile until the briquettes start to glow and develop an ashy surface, usually about ten minutes. At that point, spread the glowing briquettes evenly over the bottom of the grill and place the cooking rack above the coals. Then, get your apron, your fork, your flipper and a plate of food. Start cooking.
Portable charcoal grills come in a lot of different sizes. It’s easy enough to find a grill that is small enough for one person, or large enough to cook for a dozen. If you’re the kind of host that likes to have all the neighbors over for a grilling festival, you might have to go online to find a grill large enough to suit you. So always consider the number of people you’ll be grilling for, or you might end up cooking in shifts.
Portable grills offer another great feature we don’t want to overlook. Taste. Food grilled over a glowing bed of charcoal is imbued with a rich, outdoorsy taste. Cooking without constant attention, propane often browns the outside, leaving the inside raw. Glowing charcoal provides a steady flow of heat that cooks slowly and thoroughly.
As you can see, there are a number of good reasons to go with a charcoal for your outdoor cooking. There are a few downsides: Getting the charcoal to the glowing point takes a while longer than turning on a propane grill. Cooking time with charcoal needs to go a bit slower than with propane. So what. Charcoal grills can’t blow up. And charcoal chefs have exclaimed the virtue of charcoal grilling for more than the last five decades. So, don’t mess with success and the promise of great grilled food.
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