I have been considering purchase of a PBC but then came across some disturbing reviews regarding the deteriorating quality of Kingsford Briquettes noting that they are now made with with fillers such as crushed coal and saw dust and that they burn out so fast they are no longer a viable smoker fuel. There were also numerous complaints that the product is instilling a bad chemical taste to the food. Royal Oak was mentioned as a good alternative brand.
Does anyone out there has something to say about this?
I've been charcoal grilling for only 2 years now. When I started I used lump because that seemed like the "best thing" to do, but as I later learned why that is not the case, I switched to briquettes. Since then I've been exclusively Kingsford.
I don't have enough experience with my WSM to say regular Kingsford burns too fast. Nothing seems out of the normal there for me. Where I do notice a difference is when I add briquettes to my kettle on long rotisserie cooks. Granted I just bought my rotisserie accessory. But in the two long cooks I've done with it I have noticed a slight taste difference when I needed to add briquettes.
I was going to start a thread to ask my question, but I guess this discussion is as good as any, when you add briquettes to a long cook are you suppose to pre-light them with the chimney first? I've seen posts were people say no you do not need to, but that smell and taste of newly lit briquettes are coming through on to the meat (chicken in my case).
What reviews do you speak of, if so this is disturbing. Knowing what goes on here, many will get to the bottom of it if it’s true. Some very good companies have messed with their success before. At the same time I wouldn’t want to spread news from somebody with an axe to grind or worse, making something up.
These were actual reviews on line of Kingsford products. One individual went on to say the company was taken over by Clorox who was intent on making the charcoal light faster and therefore they fiddled with the ingredients to do same!
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Pit Barrel Cooker (which rocks), named Pretty Baby
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I'm a PBC owner and have never experienced a bad taste while using Kingsford charcoal. The key for charcoal use is to let it get a good burn going, from what I understand. People who add food to the cooker before the fire is fully going can experience a chemical taste.
I use Kingsford Original and Kingsford Professional. The burn time using those products both for short and long cooks has not changed, in my experience, over the past several years. I keep a cooking log of every single cook, so I would notice a difference if there had been a recent change in performance. I buy my charcoal on sale at Lowe's, usually, so I'm guessing there's a pretty good turnover of it there and I have some of the newest production supply.
I'm with FireMan . Link us to the source for these observations, and the more seasoned experts here can help us all to get to the bottom of it. I believe Kingsford has always mixed in coal and sawdust, so is the question whether the proportions have changed?
FWIW, you won't regret getting a PBC. I get between 8 and 11 hours of cook time on one large load of Kingsford Original in the basket, depending on what I'm smoking. That's pretty good and well within the range of cook times of other smokers.
You can burn charcoal other than Kingsford in it, if you don't want to go the Kingsford route. Talk with the PBC folks about it and I'm sure they will be able to answer your concerns. They have the best customer service ever.
I just went on to goggle and typed in Kingsford and up came user reviews. The reason why I did this is that I haven't cook with charcoal for a very long time until I tried it last summer to cook a small pork loin and I was gobsmacked at how fast the briquettes bunt out even with a minimum amount of draft.(Kingsfords') As I had originally stated Im' kicking around the idea of buying a PBC and was wondering what brand of charcoal to use in it.
coventryhale , you won't regret purchasing a PBC. It's such a fun cooker and turns out great food with minimal effort. You can certainly use other charcoals in it. Some members here use lump charcoal exclusively in it. But many other PBC users who post on this forum use Kingsford. There is a video on the PBC site showing them using lump when grilling (not smoking) on the PBC. Here's the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dNPbU4Yt8w
The bags I have are from last year's Labor Day sale and I used some this week and it was fine. I'd like to believe if they really did have a change to their formula it would have been big news in these circles given how omnipresent and ubiquitous Kingsford is.
Also have kettle and PBC, use Kingsford for years, have not noticed anything different. This came up some time ago here.
I was going to start a thread to ask my question, but I guess this discussion is as good as any, when you add briquettes to a long cook are you suppose to pre-light them with the chimney first? I've seen posts were people say no you do not need to, but that smell and taste of newly lit briquettes are coming through on to the meat (chicken in my case).
I add unlit briquettes when needed (Slow n Sear) Razor since the charcoal is burning slowly like a fuse you don't get that cloud of white smoke and funky taste IMO like when you first start a full load in your chimney.
If I need to add coals during a low n slo in the SnS that usually means its been running 5 to 7 hours..... so not more then a big handful. 5 or 6? Razor like the avatar. first thought it was the setting sun over a lagoon.
LOL, thanks. I've been playing around with a FLIR camera I bought that attaches to the iPhone. I was grilling corn and burgers last night having a little fun on the deck.
I'm usually roasting if I'm going over an hour so. Everything is going full bore so I've been adding like 10-15. That's probably why. I don't get the same taste when adding smaller amounts like that to the WSM.
Still experimenting and learning with all this... So much to learn.
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I use solely Kingsford briquettes and I love them. They are consistent, available everywhere, cheap and sometimes cheaper, predictable in performance from bag to bag year to year, and all natural. For me personally, I have not found anything that trumps it in all the above categories combined.
I have only had my PBC for almost 2 months but I have had no problems using regular Kingsford or the Kingsford professional. Before the PBC I used Kingsford in my Weber kettle and other charcoal grills for over 10 years. I can't say for sure there isn't something better but it has been consistent and steady for me. That consistency combined with its wide availability and affordable price makes it hard to beat in my book.
I have used Kingsford for years and I have never had a problem. I use the minion method when cooking with my wsm, and I have never had a problem with the food picking up any bad taste.
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The minion method is described in this link about the wsm.
I have never had any issue with taste other than one time when I was in a hurry and didn't let them burn enough. Never made that mistake again. Nowadays there are so many other choices out there though.
coventryhale yes i am happy with the PBC, in 7 weeks i have had it i have made pastrami, chicken, pulled pork, chuck roast burnt ends. basically every weekend and one or 2 weekdays. wish i had bought is sooner.
I’m not sure where some of these things start. I’ve used Kingsford many times and never experienced a chemical taste or smell. fzxdoc nailed it, gotta let them burn to a certain point. Having said all that, I prefer RO simply because it’s what I’m used to. If I need charcoal and there isn’t RO, I would not hesitate to buy Kingsford.
I have a garage full of both KBB and Kingsford Pro. I've tried Royal Oak (didn't like it), B&B, Weber and about every cheap knock off brand out there and keep coming back to Kingsford. Why? Well for the most part it's because I'm a cheap bastard that's why. If you catch their sales (now going on btw) it's cheap fuel. Been using it for at least 40 years, ain't gonna stop now.
As far as ash, yea it makes a lot of ash. If they didn't have the fillers it would take forever to catch. As far as the chemical taste, that's a bunch of hogwash. Probably using starter fluid and putting their meat on too soon. I always use a charcoal chimney to start my coals and get them good and ashed over before applying my meat.
I wouldn't call it a chemical taste. It's a slightly sour taste. Nevertheless, IMO it's subtle and I really only notice it when using it for low/slow. I like Weber for that now.
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