Charcoal Test

So many different charcoals to choose from! What’s the best?… I’m not comparing brands here, but am comparing different coals and wood on the market. In the attempt to perfect the BBQ i measured burn/heat time over a 6 hour period. I’m testing 4 different coals/wood that are designed for both outdoor and indoor cooking. I’ve used the approx same amount (g) of each in this test and lit them all consistently in the wok burner.

The coals being tested are (left to right);

Cuban Marabu Restaurant Grade Lumpwood Charcoal (Outdoor)
Briquettes 100% natural, made from tropical coconut shells (Outdoor)
Ubame oak called Binchō-tan, designed for indoor use Japanese style (Indoor)
Regular supermarket lumpwood (Outdoor)

The coals were lit in the evening at 19:30 and used for cooking at 21:30.

The starting process – Wok Burner!

Flame

2 Minutes

5 Minutes

Cuban Marabu Restaurant Grade Charcoal (lumpwood from LABTOS)

larger pieces of dense lumpwood imported from Cuba. The Marabu charcoal is sustainably and ethically sourced from an invasive thorn tree. For outdoor cooking, it’s up there as my favorite… The starting temperature was above 550 degrees c, max on the temp gun, and remained stable throughout. The average temperature was 465 degrees c for 6 hours. The lumpwood was mostly ‘ashed out’ with heat above 250 degrees c at 6 hours.

Briquettes 100% natural, made from tropical coconut shells

Coconut shell charcoal and dense – the least Co2 emitting charcoal in the world and made from coconut shells. The manufactures claim this charcoal burns hotter than conventional charcoal?… Pillow shaped, difficult to start, a good high temp starting but 2 hours in a notable drop in overall temperature. The starting temperature was 518 degrees c and dropped below 200 degrees c within 2.5 hours. The coal was ‘ashed out’ within 3 hours.

Ubame oak called Binchō-tan

Large pieces of manufactured oak called Binchotan that’s very dense, difficult to start. This is a smoke free coal designed for use indoors or for long and slow bbq’ing. This stuff is insane, the heat was stable and burned for a total of 6 hours at an average burn temperature of 460 degrees c… Ideal for indirect cooking or regular day-long quick cooking.

Regular supermarket lumpwood

Small pieces of lumpwood, quick to start and burn at an average of 428 degrees for a duration of 2 hours before almost becoming unusable. The coal was ‘ashed out’ within 2 hours but did come back to life briefly once shaken. OK for a very quick BBQ but anything lasting longer you will need to keep topping up.

Summary of the results

The Cuban Marabu burned consistently and the No.1 choice for outdoor cooking with real lumpwood… Bincho-tan burned incredibly well and held the highest heat throughout the 6 hour burn. It’s relatively smoke-free coal and used extensively in Japanese cooking (Konro or Yakitori), especially indoors (with ventilation!). The regular lumpwood ‘ashed out’ very quickly and was closely followed by the coconut briquettes.