A charcoal grill is a device for cooking food over hot charcoal briquettes or lump charcoal. Essentially, it's just a metal box with two compartments -- a place to put the charcoal and above that, a place to put the food. Charcoal grills can be rectangular boxes, circular, or kettle-shaped. They range in price from around $25 to $2,000 depending on the size and materials used.

Are Charcoal Grills Worth the Price?

If you want the least expensive grill you can find, charcoal is your number one option. Some sell for as little as $25. If your budget is at least $200, you'll be choosing between gas and charcoal.

Independent tests show that charcoal grills burn hotter at the grill surface than gas grills. The radiant heat coming off the burning charcoal briquettes can produce temperatures higher than 600 degrees Fahrenheit.

Achieving the exact temperature you want on a charcoal grill requires some experimenting with your specific equipment. So if you are looking for high temperatures, and don't mind fiddling with controls to get the temperature you want, charcoal may be for you.

What Are the Pros and Cons of a Charcoal Grill?

The best thing about a charcoal grill is the initial price point. As mentioned above, charcoal grills are the least expensive of all grill types. And larger charcoal grills with premium accessories like side trays and smoker boxes are less expensive than other types of grills with similar features.

Charcoal grills are also simple to operate, especially for basics like grilling burgers and steaks. Anything you need is available at the nearest grocery store. If you only grill a few times a year, an inexpensive charcoal grill will probably meet your needs.

But if you plan to grill more often than that, or want to turn out better food, you might regret going for the lower cost of charcoal or even charcoal grills in general (learn more about why wood fired grills are better). Whatever you save in the initial purchase, you will eventually give back in time, effort, and additional cost.

Fuel Costs

The fuel source of charcoal grills -- charcoal -- is easy to find and relatively inexpensive. But if you grill more than a few times a month, the cost of charcoal starts to add up. Over the long run, gas and wood pellet grills offer more consistent heat and much lower prices.

Grill Cleaning

Cleaning is where the increased time and effort of using charcoal becomes clear. When you're done cooking, you must wait for the charcoal to cool down, then dispose of it. Ashes must be cleaned periodically too, or the grill will rust. (See below for more information on cleaning a charcoal grill.)

Ease of Use

A charcoal grill is a simple concept. Many of us grew up with them. You light the charcoal, wait for it to get hot, spread the coals, and cook. But in practice it rarely works so simply.

Charcoal burns at different rates depending on the brand you buy. Every brand uses a different mix of wood and fillers, and these combust at different temperatures. The outside temperature will affect the temperature inside your grill, and when it's cold, you need more fuel to achieve the temperature than you do when it's warm.

If you fail to spread briquettes evenly, or if a patch of briquettes ash over, you'll have hot and cool spots on your grill. So cooking even basic items like burgers and chicken requires full attention and a little bit of luck.

When you start to experiment with smoking barbecue classics like ribs, brisket, or pulled pork, charcoal grills require even more effort. When smoking with charcoal, you must keep nearly constant attention to the temperature of the grill. You'll have to experiment with opening and closing the vents to achieve the temperature you want. And you'll likely have to add additional charcoal for any smoking project that takes more than an hour -- which is most of them.

Flavor

Charcoal is made from wood and does impart a smoky flavor to food. Gas, by contrast, is tasteless, and flavors food no more than your oven would.

But delivering the natural wood smoke flavor that defines classic barbecue isn't easy with charcoal. Most charcoal grills are designed for direct grilling, not smoking. To cook low and slow, you need to manufacture a 2-zone cooking setup, where one side of the grill is for briquettes only, and the other side is for placing food. To get wood smoke flavor, you need wood chips or chunks. All of this requires yet more time and effort.

Grill Flavor Differences

When you cook on a charcoal grill, the flavor of the food is at the mercy of your charcoal briquette manufacturer. Most charcoal contains chemical byproducts. These chemicals create an acrid flavor that can transfer to the food you're cooking. Though charcoal is made from wood, they do not give off much natural smoke flavor.

The propane gas used in gas grills is tasteless and odorless. Gas won't interfere with any seasonings you put on your meat, but you won’t be able to get natural smoke flavor unless you add wood chunks or chips which are expensive and messy.

Wood pellet grills are designed to deliver natural smoke flavor to everything you cook. And you are in full control of that flavor because you decide which flavor of chips you want. You never have to worry about off-flavors from chemicals if you use Traeger wood pellets, and you don’t have to deal with burning wood chips or chunks. You can also blend wood flavors to get the exact taste you're looking for.

What Do You Need to Grill on a Charcoal Grill?

This is all the equipment needed for grilling on a charcoal grill.

• Charcoal
• A method for lighting the charcoal (lighter fluid, chimney starter, or other)
• Long-handled tongs for arranging the charcoal once it's lit

Charcoal Briquettes and Lump Charcoal

Charcoal briquettes are available at most hardware stores, supermarkets, and gas station minimarts, but not all briquettes are created equal. Generally speaking, less expensive charcoal contains more chemicals and fillers, and less natural wood. Good quality briquettes provide a relatively consistent heat because they are manufactured at the same size and for the purpose of burning evenly.

At specialty food stores or larger hardware stores, you may be able to find lump charcoal which can also be used on charcoal grills. Lump charcoal is sold in larger pieces than briquettes and is usually made of pure wood rather than fillers. Lump charcoal burns hotter and longer than charcoal briquettes, but the fire won't be as consistent. Every lump will be a slightly different size and burn at a slightly different rate.

Charcoal Grill Lighting Methods

When you cook with charcoal, you need a way to get the briquettes or lump charcoal to start burning. The simplest method is to douse the charcoal in lighter fluid and light them with a match. You can also use chemical firestarter products (there are a few different types). Most charcoal grill manufacturers recommend using a device called a chimney starter which we'll describe later on in this piece.

What Is the Difference Between Using a Smoker and Using a Charcoal Grill?

Charcoal grills are designed for direct-heat cooking where the food is placed directly over the hot coals. This method of cooking is also called grilling and is ideal for hamburgers, steaks, thin pieces of chicken, hot dogs, and anything else that can cook through in a matter of minutes.

Smokers are designed for indirect heat cooking where the heat source is not immediately below the food. Instead, a smoker burns wood in a connected container and creates smoke that slowly cooks the food. This method of cooking is called smoking. Large cuts of meat like brisket, ribs, pork shoulder, and turkey, cannot be cooked using direct heat because the exterior would burn before the interior is cooked. Also, the long cooking time allows for the infusion of natural wood smoke flavor.

Why Can't Charcoal Grills Be Used on Decks or Apartments?

Charcoal grills require fire to light them, and they heat food with an open flame. Any type of open combustion is dangerous. Fires involving open-flame grills cause (on average) 10 deaths, 160 injuries, and $149 million in direct property damage every year. For this reason, charcoal grills are sometimes banned by HOAs or condominiums.

How to Use a Charcoal Grill

The following are some guidelines to give you an idea of how charcoal grilling works.

How to Start a Charcoal Grill

If you are using lighter fluid, arrange the charcoals in a pyramid shape on the lower grate of the grill. Douse the charcoals all over with lighter fluid, squeezing for about 10 seconds to make sure the charcoals get plenty of fluid so they will catch. Using a lighter or long match, light the charcoals at various places on the pyramid to help the briquettes combust evenly.

If you are using a firestarter follow the instructions on the package.

If you are using a chimney starter, place crumpled up newspaper or butcher paper in the lower compartment, and pour charcoal into the upper compartment. Use a lighter or long match to light the paper.

When most of the charcoals are covered in gray or white ash, you are ready to cook. Spread the briquettes out in one even layer, place the cooking grate atop them, and begin grilling.

How to Keep a Charcoal Grill Hot

As charcoal burns, briquettes can get covered by ash or food drippings which will cause the fire to lose heat. Like any fire, a charcoal fire needs oxygen to stay hot. To get more oxygen to your briquettes and make the fire hotter, you can move the briquettes with metal tongs, dislodging some of the ash buildup and exposing different surfaces to oxygen. You can also gently blow on the briquettes to create a burst of oxygen, or simply add more briquettes.

How to Put out a Charcoal Grill

The best way to put out a charcoal grill is to cover the grill and close any open vents. This will deprive the charcoal of oxygen, and the briquettes will burn out on their own. Spraying or pouring water on briquettes will also work but will eventually cause your grill to rust.

How to Clean a Charcoal Grill

Scraping food bits off your cooking grates is a good habit after every grilling session. It's something you can do while the grill is still hot, and takes only a few seconds. Ashes should be removed and thrown away, once completely cool.

A deeper clean will be more of a seasonal project to reserve for a weekend. For one thing, the grill must be completely cool. For another, you'll need an array of brushes, sprays, oils, and scraping implements -- depending on your grill. And you'll want to give yourself time to fully dry the grill once you're done.

What Can You Cook on a Charcoal Grill?

Charcoal grills are designed for fast cooking food over high heat (such as steaks and burgers). A Traeger grill, by comparison, generates both the high heat needed for fast cooking and gives you the option of cooking low and slow to add more natural wood flavor to your food.

How to Cook Chicken Thighs on a Charcoal Grill Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

Cooking chicken thighs on a charcoal grill can be tricky especially with thick, bone-in, skin-on thighs. If you cook large bone-in thighs directly over hot briquettes, the exterior may burn before the interior of the meat is cooked. Also, the sizzling skin will drop hot fat on the charcoal, which can cause flare-ups.

On a Traeger, the chicken thighs are much less likely to burn, because they won't be over an open flame. You can simply set the temperature you want, and let the Traeger do the rest. Check out our BBQ Chicken Thighs recipe for details.

How to Cook Ribs on a Charcoal Grill Compared Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

Ribs must cook at a low temperature for several hours which -- on a charcoal grill -- requires indirect heat from a 2-zone cooking setup. This means that you need a fairly large grill because one-half or more of the cooking surface will be directly over the coals and unavailable to you. You'll also need to keep the temperature of the cooking area consistent throughout the cook. This will require adding charcoalevery 30 minutes or so, as well as periodically adjusting the grill's vents. If you want natural smoke flavor, you'll need to add wood chips or chunks to the charcoal periodically.

On a Traeger, you simply place the seasoned ribs on the cooking surface and set to the desired temperature. Heat and smoke from natural wood pellets will cook your racks of ribs to perfection. See our article on How to Make the Best BBQ Ribs.

How to Grill Ribeye on a Charcoal Grill Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

To grill ribeye, place it over high heat and, flipping periodically, keep it there until the interior of the meat reaches the desired temperature. This basic method works on either a charcoal grill or a Traeger. However, a Traeger gives you an easy way to do the popular reverse sear method which gives you better grill marks, makes it easier to avoid overcooking, and delivers natural wood smoke flavor.

How to Smoke Meat on a Charcoal Grill Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

Smoking meat on a charcoal grill means setting up a 2-zone fire and monitoring your grill constantly to make sure the temperature is staying consistent. With big cuts of meat like brisket or turkey, you'll be getting up in the middle of the night to add more charcoals or open and close vents. On a Traeger, you simply set the temperature you want and the Traeger does the rest.

Here are some recommendations for The Best Meats to Smoke on a Traeger.

How to Grill Fish on a Charcoal Grill Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

To grill fish on a charcoal grill, place it on the cooking grate over medium-high to high heat and cook until the fish meat flakes easily with a fork. This is easier said than done. Many types of fish are too delicate to withstand the high heat of direct grilling. Fish can also be difficult to flip, and the skin burns easily.

On a Traeger, you have the best of both worlds. You can direct grill firm-fleshed fish like salmon over high heat if you like. For more delicate fish like cod or halibut, you can set the temperature lower. Because there's no open flame on a Traeger, you can use a baking dish just like in your home oven -- no need to worry about flare-ups or flipping.

How to Grill Burgers on a Charcoal Grill Vs. a Traeger Wood Pellet Grill

To grill burgers on a charcoal grill, place them on the cooking grill over high heat and flip periodically until they are cooked through. Be careful, though. Burgers are prone to drip fat onto the charcoals causing dangerous flare-ups that can burn your burgers, or worse, you. Most charcoal grills have cold and hot spots, so every burger will likely cook at a different rate. You'll have to check and keep flipping. And if you prefer thicker burgers, this is even trickier, because it's easy to burn the exterior while the center is still raw.

On a Traeger, you can direct grill burgers over high heat just like on a charcoal grill. But you don't need to worry about flare-ups because a Traeger doesn't have an open flame. Burger patties of 1½-inch thickness will cook in about 8 minutes (4 minutes on each side).

If you have a Traeger you can easily smoke your burgers for more natural wood flavor. With this method you start the burgers low and slow, letting them absorb delicious smoke flavor. Then you finish them off over the grill's highest setting to get that appetizing surface char. See How to Grill the Best Burgers for more info.