So What Exactly is a Chimney Starter?
A chimney starter is an inexpensive device that is very popular with both campers and the culinary crowd because it uses a lot less fuel than a traditional oven.
You’ve probably seen a charcoal chimney starter in use when you’ve eaten out in a restaurant.
It is a cylindrical metal device with a long handle. It uses heat from a campfire to carbonize your hardwood charcoal.
Just a few hours earlier you had logs of wood and ash scattered about the campsite. After you’ve used your chimney starter, all that remains are some hot coals you can use to cook a delicious dinner.
Since they are so inexpensive, you might find yourself buying more than one chimney starter when preparing for that weekend getaway.
Buying 2 or 3 chimney starters lets you get 2 or 3 meals cooked in the same amount of time. Not to mention that, they are very affordable.
With a little gourmet flare and culinary creativity, you can turn your regular camping trip into a gourmet camping event. The charcoal you produce will be hot enough to prepare appetizers, mains and desserts for a larger crowd.
What Is a Charcoal Chimney Starter?
A charcoal chimney starter is a container made of metal or sturdy paper that is used to start a charcoal for grilling food. It is a very handy tool that makes it a lot easier to start a charcoal fire than it is with logs or briquettes.
As mentioned earlier, it comes in different shapes and sizes. But most of them look like a cylinder made of perforated sheets of metal or sturdy paper. The outside of the cylinder is covered with handle of some sort and the inside of it is perforated, too.
The dimensions of a chimney starter will depend on the size of the charcoal you’re planning to use.
Lighting your charcoal
A charcoal chimney starter is a vertical cylinder with a base and a rotating handle that’s used to light charcoal easily and quickly.
It contains a steel wire coil that retains and temporarily supports a fire, charcoal dune, or fuel log for starting.
The charcoal and the heat shield work together to ignite the coals. The thin metal heat-shield liner covers the charcoal and combustible items inside the chimney starter when the chimney is placed on the fire.
The heat shield protects the chimney from catching fire and being destroyed by the heat of the charcoal. It also allows you to easily enjoy cooking with wood in your fire place as it looks like you have a fire.
First, wide open the lid of the chimney starter and remove the wire tie. Then place the chimney onto the fire. Light the charcoal first and then add the charcoal to the chimney starter and close the lid. Put the whole chimney onto a flat surface that can support it.
Roast the charcoal until the starter is full of hot coals ready to be used.
What Is a Charcoal Chimney Starter?
A charcoal chimney starter is a container made of metal or sturdy paper that is used to start a charcoal for grilling food. It is a very handy tool that makes it a lot easier to start a charcoal fire than it is with logs or briquettes.
As mentioned earlier, it comes in different shapes and sizes. But most of them look like a cylinder made of perforated sheets of metal or sturdy paper. The outside of the cylinder is covered with handle of some sort and the inside of it is perforated, too.
The dimensions of a chimney starter will depend on the size of the charcoal you’re planning to use.
Using a chimney starter when cooking low and slow
Will help food get hot evenly and will save you fuel.
In a nutshell, the charcoal chimney starter can be a relatively expensive tool, but if you do a lot of grilling, its benefits will make it worth its weight in gold.
To make the most out of it, first, you need to fill it with coals. Just like when using a traditional grill, the coals should be vaguely shaped like a pyramid.
Fueled coals are a good tool for grilling because scorching the outside of your food will ensure that the inside will be cooked to a crisp. Aside from that, charring also gives your food a unique flavor.
After filling your chimney starter with coals, light them according to the manufacturer’s directions.
Once the coals are burning, carefully pour them out on the grill. The brick of coals should be placed an ample distance away from the food to avoid burning the food, but a small distance to ensure that the coals will spread evenly.
For large meals, the coals should be placed in the middle of the grill. For smaller meals, you can spread the coals out on one side of the grill.
Using a chimney starter for grilling or smoking hot
Have you ever wondered how those experienced barbecuers or grill masters can start a fire so rapidly and roast meat or prepare fresh vegetables and other side dishes in next to no time? Follow their lead by remembering one secret: it’s all about a chimney starter.
This handy outdoor tool is the favorite of newbie and seasoned grillers alike. A chimney starter can be a lifesaver because it would typically take you twenty minutes to forty minutes to light a large pile of charcoal just using newspaper and lighter fluid.
A chimney starter is mainly used to light a big pile of charcoal or hardwood that can be used for smoking or grilling. The product heats coals faster, especially when you are short on time, and also gives off much less soot than directly burning lighter fluid.
What Is a Charcoal Chimney Starter?
A charcoal chimney starter is a container made of metal or sturdy paper that is used to start a charcoal for grilling food. It is a very handy tool that makes it a lot easier to start a charcoal fire than it is with logs or briquettes.
As mentioned earlier, it comes in different shapes and sizes. But most of them look like a cylinder made of perforated sheets of metal or sturdy paper. The outside of the cylinder is covered with handle of some sort and the inside of it is perforated, too.
The dimensions of a chimney starter will depend on the size of the charcoal you’re planning to use.
Chimney starter tips
A chimney starter is a tool that you put coals into in order to light them. It is basically a cylinder that contains grate, similar in size to the size of the charcoal on your grill.
This starter is typically about 30 inches high and has large holes on the bottom and top. This allows air to flow through the brick and ignite the coals within.
Be sure to lightly oil the inside of the chimney starter, or it won’t relight easily. Contrary to popular belief, oiling the chimney will not render the starter ineffective.
To use a chimney starter, simply place the lit coals inside of it, and then slowly pile charcoal on top of the lit coals. Let it do its thing for about 20 minutes, and you’re ready to cook!
Weber SmokeFire Pellet Grill Review TEST
Grilling is amongst the most important of all social activities in the world. Men and women alike gather around the grill to see who is the best at cooking.
Grilling doesn’t just have to be for cookouts, however! Here are a few tricks that you can use in your own backyard.
{1}. Use an empty ice cooler as a makeshift grill (if you don’t have a grill). Just fill it with charcoal. You can even go ahead and add some wood to the charcoal to make it smokier. Get that sucker going and add any food you want for a proper backyard grilled meal.
{2}. Make your own charcoal chimney starter
The premise of a charcoal chimney starter is pretty simple. You need to put charcoal in an enclosed space, pour in some burning newspaper, and then let the fire burn to the point where the chimney starter is hot enough to cook your food.
What you need to make a charcoal chimney starter:
- $$ empty tin can
- $$ rubber band
- $$ cardboard
- $$ lighter
- $$ newspaper
Begin the process by putting the empty charcoal tin can on top of the newspaper. The height of the newspaper between the charcoal tin can and the floor should be about 2 inches.
Place the square piece of cardboard on top of the can.