Lighting Your Charcoal
Lighting with firelighters / Kindling
- Stack your Binchotan charcoal evenly in the BBQ Starter or inside your Konro/grill.
- Place a few firelighters/Kindling between the pieces of charcoal.
- Light the firelighters/Kindling and allow to burn for around 15/20 minutes. Rotate your binchotan intermittently so that the Binchotan charcoal heats evenly.
- As the charcoal begins to glow and is covered with a white ash layer, you can start grilling. This is when the Binchotan charcoal has reached its maximum heat.
- Be patient dont start grilling before binchotan charcoal reaches peak heat.
Do not use a synthetic fire starters or you will end up with unhealthy and distasteful chemical fumes.
Some chefs find it useful to you a handful of natural lumpwood charcoal to aid in ignition.
Binchotan Lighting without firelighters
Place charcoal in a charcoal starter chimney directly over a naked flame Example: side burner on your gas barbeque, camping stove gas ring , or open flame for about 20 minutes. The binchotan should be consistently glowing.
Or use an electric lighter like a Looftlighter
- Place the charcoal in the Konro or Grill.
- Hold the lighter 2 cm above the charcoal and press the button.
- Light the charcoal at various points.
- As the charcoal begins to glow and is covered with a white ash layer, you can start grilling. This is when the Binchotan charcoal has reached its maximum heat.
Safety
- Use in a well ventilated area.
- Would strongly recommend lighting your charcoal ouside and extinguishing the coals once you have finished you cook.
- Store binchotan in an airtight container to keep dry.
Chef's Tips
- Use tongs to evenly place charcoal in your barbeque. If you are only using half your barbeque, stack binchotan evenly on one side. stack at least 2-3 layers deep of binchotan logs. This will give you good vertical heat and a more reliable grilling experience.
- Be patient. Often people start grilling before the charcoal has reached it’s peak heat potential.