Gas or Charcoal?

[CYdTracked]

The A1 vs Heinz poll made me want to create this one as it is relevant to that debate.

I prefer to use charcoal whenever I can. It's all I use to grill or use in my offset smoker with some wood at home but for tailgating I use a small gas grill because charcoal is just too messy and a pain to deal with when you have to pack the grill in the back of your car.

 

[BCClone]

Eat it raw like it was intended. You don't see lions, bears and tigers cooking the animals after they catch them.

 

[JP4CY]

I have all of the above. Gas during the week. Charcoal on the weekends.

 

[KnappShack]

I have all of the above. Gas during the week. Charcoal on the weekends.

The mullet of grilling

 

[CYCLNST8]

Eat it raw like it was intended. You don't see lions, bears and tigers cooking the animals after they catch them.

Are you Dee Snyder??

 

[Cyclones_R_GR8]

Charcoal

 

[jdcyclone19]

Own a gas grill and charcoal smoker.

Prefer the flavor of charcoal, however, when it comes to grilling the time savings of gas is worth it to me.

 

[Clonefan94]

Charcoal for me (And a pellet Grill for low cooking). For no other reason than that's all I had. I was gifted a nice weber kettle grill when my wife and I were first married and said the next grill would be a top notch gas model. Well, when I cooked on my in-laws gas grill, I would either burn everything or not cook it enough, so I never bothered to buy one because I felt i'd have to learn all over again.

I just can't get used to the flare ups on a gas grill.

 

[CYCLNST8]

Own a gas grill and charcoal smoker.

Prefer the flavor of charcoal, however, when it comes to grilling the time savings of gas is worth it to me.

If you're in a hurry, you're doing it wrong. Crack open a cold one and enjoy the fire.

 

[CtownCyclone]

I love charcoal grilling. The whole experience of getting it all set up, getting the coals going just right, and enjoying a beer or two while all that happens is great.

However, I have 2 young kids. It's all gas at the Ctown house at this point.

 

[iahawks]

Charcoal for me. Don't understand how charcoal takes that much longer than gas.

 

[Cardinal2001]

Both here too, in addition to a smoker. They all have their purpose.

 

[jbindm]

I love charcoal grilling. The whole experience of getting it all set up, getting the coals going just right, and enjoying a beer or two while all that happens is great.

However, I have 2 young kids. It's all gas at the Ctown house at this point.

Could've copied and pasted your post. When the kids are older and I have a little more time for myself I'll probably switch back to charcoal AND invest in a smoker but right now I just don't have enough time.

 

[JP4CY]

Charcoal for me. Don't understand how charcoal takes that much longer than gas.

Gas can get to 400 deg in 5 minutes and you don't have to get anything out of the shed or deck box.
With my charcoal I get the chimney, remove top grate, get the charcoal and pour in, light the newspaper, wait 20-30 min, then pour the charcoal out, put the chimney somewhere to cool off, then put the grate back on, then let it get to 400.

When done I shut off the gas tank and leave the lid open while I eat, when I'm done eating shut the lid and done.
When done with charcoal, I shut all the vents, it takes longer to cool down, then cleanup the ashes.

 

[CYdTracked]

You should be able to get your coals hot enough to start grilling in about 10-15 minutes if you use a charcoal chimney to start them. Keeps the briquettes confined where they will heat up faster. Once I dump mine out and put the grill grate on by the time I go inside and get the meat it's ready to go.

 

[iahawks]

Gas can get to 400 deg in 5 minutes and you don't have to get anything out of the shed or deck box.
With my charcoal I get the chimney, remove top grate, get the charcoal and pour in, light the newspaper, wait 20-30 min, then pour the charcoal out, put the chimney somewhere to cool off, then put the grate back on, then let it get to 400.

When done I shut off the gas tank and leave the lid open while I eat, when I'm done eating shut the lid and done.
When done with charcoal, I shut all the vents, it takes longer to cool down, then cleanup the ashes.

I have a Weber Performer and really don't need to do half of this stuff. Charcoal is stored under the table. It has a gas assist to light it. While it is getting lit, I go inside and prep my food. Usually by the time I'm done prepping, my charcoal is ready so no time lost at all. When I'm done, I just close the vents and use the sweeper to sweep the ashes into the pan.

I do agree Gas is easier and quicker, but it isn't that much easier or quicker. Plus I love the versatility with charcoal that is a lot harder to replicate with gas.

 

[CYCLNST8]

You should be able to get your coals hot enough to start grilling in about 10-15 minutes if you use a charcoal chimney to start them. Keeps the briquettes confined where they will heat up faster. Once I dump mine out and put the grill grate on by the time I go inside and get the meat it's ready to go.

Yeah, that's nice. Or... you could

 

[CYdTracked]

Gas can get to 400 deg in 5 minutes and you don't have to get anything out of the shed or deck box.
With my charcoal I get the chimney, remove top grate, get the charcoal and pour in, light the newspaper, wait 20-30 min, then pour the charcoal out, put the chimney somewhere to cool off, then put the grate back on, then let it get to 400.

When done I shut off the gas tank and leave the lid open while I eat, when I'm done eating shut the lid and done.
When done with charcoal, I shut all the vents, it takes longer to cool down, then cleanup the ashes.

Ah you beat me to my post while I was typing it! It shouldn't take that long to get your coals hot. I dump mine out when I can tell the bottom half is nice and hot and by the time the air hits the top half that were just getting started the whole pile of them are no longer black in a matter of minutes once that open air hits them. Usually from the time I light the coals to when the meat hits the hot grill is about 15-20 minutes and I usually have to put the lid on right away to cool down the temp a bit otherwise once the juices start to hit the coals it flares up pretty quickly.

 

[CYdTracked]

I have a Weber Performer and really don't need to do half of this stuff. Charcoal is stored under the table. It has a gas assist to light it. While it is getting lit, I go inside and get lit while I prep my food. Usually by the time I'm done prepping, my charcoal is ready so no time lost at all. When I'm done, I just close the vents and use the sweeper to sweep the ashes into the pan.

I do agree Gas is easier and quicker, but it isn't that much easier or quicker. Plus I love the versatility with charcoal that is a lot harder to replicate with gas.

Fixed it for ya

 

[jdcyclone19]

If you're in a hurry, you're doing it wrong. Crack open a cold one and enjoy the fire.

Easier said than done with a busy family.