So I am brand new to charcoal grilling. I have a Weber charcoal grill that has two vents. One on the bottom and one on the lid. What I am trying to figure out is how to get the grill up to 400°. Do I want to keep both vents all the way open? Each vent cracked? Both halfway? I was grilling four hamburgers, eight hotdogs and some zucchini and the grill was only getting up to 300°. Any and all feedback much appreciated.
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I would leave the vents wide open and build a two zone fire. One zone would cover half the charcoal grate two to three briquettes high. Then second zone would have no charcoal. That way you can move your food to the cooler zone to finish cooking after searing or when flare ups occur. I am guessing your fire was only one briquette high. Keep grilling. -
Or ya could do like my neighbor, put a half a bag of briquettes in the kettle. Fill er’ up almost to the grates, wash em with about a fourth of a can of lighter fluid, let her rip!
Do what LA Pork Butt says.Comment
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Vents wide open. The only time you want to restrict airflow in a kettle is if you are trying to use it as a smoker - low/slow.Comment
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You must have been lite on charcoal, or did not wait until it was all started good, all vents open, give it some air , it will get hot.Comment
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One Weber chimney of lit charcoal should easily reach 450* to 500* with both vents wide open.Comment
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It’s not just about the vents. It’s also how much coals you start with, how well lit it is, what type of charcoal, etc. It just takes practice.
If I was shooting for 400 for a short cook like burgers on my Weber 22, I’d probably use 3/4 chimney of fully lit KBB in the SnS with vents fully opened and the charcoal grate outside of the SnS covered in foil.
I personally prefer to reverse sear burgers at a lower temp, around 200-225. Then add a chimney of lit coals for a very quick sear.Last edited by Red Man; April 27, 2019, 09:38 PM.Comment
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I am using Jealous Devil charcoal. The chimney was 3/4 full. Burned it for 20 min before I pre-heated the grill. I don’t have a thermometer on my Weber so installed a Tel-Tru thermometer. Got the grill up to 400 with no food on it but as soon as food hit it it was only in the low 300’s.Comment
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Question - Did you spread the charcoal over the entire grate or stack it 2-3 briquettes high on half the grate? If you are grilling you might try the one Mississippi, two Mississippi... counting method to determine how hot your grill is. If you can’t hold you hand 4-5 inches above the grill for more than 2 or 3 Mississippi’s you have a very hot fire. When you add food your dome thermometer will drop even though you still have a very hot fire. Remember the dome thermometer is measuring the air inside dome more than five inches from the grill not the temperature above the grill. The farther you move from the fire the less intense the heat from the charcoal.Last edited by LA Pork Butt; April 28, 2019, 08:04 PM.Comment
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One other thing to note - temps are higher at the dome than at the grate.Comment
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For grilling...WIDE OPEN! And make sure you have plenty of charcoal AND that it’s well lit...covered in ash. And don’t put the top on until that fire is rip roaring hot!Comment
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1) For a hot fire, open them bottom vents all the way.
2) For a really really hot fire, get an SnS, fill it with a full rip-roaring chimney of briquettes so that the coals are just below the grate. The SnS funnels the heat up rather than spreading it all around the Kettle, though it will still cook burgers or steaks more slowly on the cooler side and you can then add them to the hot side for a hard sear to finish off. This will be a smaller cooking area than if you pile up a bunch of briqs over half the coal grate, but it will be closer to the grate and much hotter.
3) Don't trust the dome thermometer. It's ok for ballpark, but it's not telling the whole story.Comment
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