Have you heard this before? “What about the kids? Hotdogs, Burgers… A Smoker Will Take Too Long!” Many people feel the need to keep a gas grill around simply because we believe it to be the fastest solution to cook outside when time is tight.
This was certainly an argument in my house many years ago, but I can’t help wonder if this is more urban legend than an objective truth. Armed with a stopwatch and some tools I am to find out which is actually fastest between Pellet Vs Charcoal Vs Gas Grill Startup Times.
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In a Hurry? Fastest Cooker? Gas vs Pellet vs Charcoal?
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I didn't know those Kamado joe's come pre loaded with charcoal.
Awesome video! I frequently have this conversation with gas grill owners. Now I can start sending them this video :).
Maybe do a vidieo on validating and calibrating the Temp gauges on a Komoto Grill
Gas would have been much quicker if you had lit all the burners.
I think my only issue with this video is that we didn’t account for cleaning out the ash and pouring in the new charcoal to create proper airflow.
Can i grill with charcoal immediately after 7 Minuten or does the charcoal have to Flow through First?
I’ve a grill gun but the simple cooks are easier on the gas Weber.
We are overlooking set up time and clean up of ash time in this test.
I bought a Kamado Joe Classic 3 a few weeks ago and a cheap version of that torch from Amazon and it's definitely quicker than my Weber gas grill. Thanks for sharing this!!! I hope more people realize the versatility and value of the Kamado style grill!!
I think the big difference is that at 5 minutes, your charcoal isn't going to be burning clean and going to impart some gross flavours if you actually start a cook before it starts to burn clean. I love my kamados, but the fact that I can start cooking at second 1 on a gas grill, vs 15-20 minutes for a clean burning charcoal.
James, only caveat to the experiment is you didn’t take into account how long you torched the charcoal, so you probably should add another minute or two to that time. Still not a bad time, but definitely took longer than turning a knob or pushing a button.
Another factor for me is set up and tear down time. My KJ is in the garage and take a bit of time that the gas grill doesn’t require.
People watching this should be aware that the start up time for pellet grills varies significantly by grill. A Weber Searwood will get up to 500 in about 10 mins and will go as high as 600 in 12 mins or less.
@SmokingDadBBQ Nice comparison James.
Cool down / clean up time is also something you need to consider.
Sure, my charcoal stuff can get hot pretty fast, but I can clean my gas grill by throwing the burners on high for 5 minutes and wacking it with a grill brush. Then it’s off and cool enough to cover and put away by bed time.
The charcoal fires are still smoldering halfway through to the next morning lol
Midweek winner is a PK360 you have to try it. Amazing grill/smoker
As far as fastest in a hurry cook there is one thing that is overlooked. When you are done how quickly can you shut the grill down safely? Currently I have a Napoleon P500 and a Traeger 885 pellet. Would love charcoal but no more room on my deck. My pellet grill takes awhile to shut down. The gas grill is shut off knobs and done.
I have a Konnected Joe and it takes about 10 minutes to get to 500 using its electric ignition. Great for mid-week cooks.
I have to admit – I never would have guessed the KJ would be faster even with the Grill Gun.
Great video James! I have a Napoleon Lex485 I bought a few years ago, that I also did a full set of custom Grill Grates. Fantastic gas grill….but ever since I got a KJ Classic 2 and KJ Jr. I NEVER use the Napoleon anymore. Also, not a knock against the Grill Gun, but since I now have a standard 20lb. Propane tank I’m not using for the grill anymore, I bought a $25 “weed” burner torch from Harbor Freight that does the same thing. 👍🏻
What is that attachment on your Joe Jr?
We experienced the same dilemma James. The mid week cooks were a 'challenge'… we ended up going ahead with a Kamado Joe Classic (also thanks to your videos) and have never regretted the decision. The food cooked on a KJ is something special.
Why didn’t you purchase a Napoleon gas grill which is made in Canada? Cheers!
I need to fire up the kamado more during the week. Great comparison video!
I use a 15 bucks weed burner. Same results. Charcoal is only 'difficult and slow' if you make it so 😊. Primo xl btw
Kamado style is the Swiss Army knife of grills.
I don’t buy it. Lighting the charcoal with flamethrower that’s ridiculously expensive is not an accurate experiment compared to lighting everything up from the stock gas and pellet grill. I would like to see how long with fire starters
Gas is the fastest to cook with after factoring setup time and only needs to be cleaned once or twice a year. It's also the cheapest to cook with. Gas has very little smoke or charcoal flavor unless using smoke tubes. I smoke pork butts and whole chickens all the time on my gas grill with a smoke tube, and they turn out great.
Charcoal has longer set up time and has to be cleaned almost after every use. But when it comes to direct grilling like steaks and burgers, you can't beat the flavor. If the charcoal pan or grilling surface isn't adjustable, then it's too hard to control the heat or flame while cooking things like chicken. I miss having a charcoal grill just for steaks and burgers.
The next time I buy a grill, it will probably be a pellet grill with a char/sear option or get a cheap charcoal grill to go with it.
Good points. We get lazy to fire up the outdoor grill during the week, for no reason. In most cases, it takes me over 20 minutes to prep anything to BBQ. I start prepping before I light the fire.
The thing about gas is that it’s ready to go with the turn of the knob. On my charcoal I have to spend time cleaning out the ashes and refilling. That’s maybe 5 minutes but but the whole point is being lazy or not having time to
I cook on my Green Egg or LP grill 3 to 4 times a week and what makes me choose one over the other is what I want to cook and the weather. I don't have a roof over either of my cookers. I store all my gates, cast iron and tools under my gas grill, so I have to get it cool enough to put the cover back over it before it rains or snows. I cook and smoke with my Green Egg in both rain and snow. The Green Egg does take hours to cool off compared to the LP grill that is less than an hour. If it is not going to rain or snow, I choose my grill based on how much favor I looking for and if it is worth the time and effort to clean out the Green Egg and start a fire. This only takes less than 5 minutes to do, but for most fish and hamburgers I go for the LP grill with a pellet tube with pellets and wood chips. If it is a steak or better, it is always the Green Egg.
Good test as I'd previously looked for exactly this type of info and not found it. A follow up with timed startup/cooking/cleaning would be nice to show true real world performance.
I am almost one year into having my Big Joe Series I and instead of spending the $$$$ on the gun I bought a $20 weed torch from Harbor Freight and it works just as good, if more cumbersome. Do I eventually want to get the gun? Heck yes. But regardless, starting the fire that way makes getting up to temp REALLY fast.
James, Great Video! I agree with the ROI of the KJ but you also have to take into account the cleanup and setup time after each cook.
My guess – slow to fast
1) pellet
2) gas
3) charcoal
There is a caveat though, charcoal depends on how you light it.
Even if the Kamado reach 500 deg impressively quick doesn't it need more time before it is safe to cook on charcoals or is this an old misconception? Or is that another advantage of this grill gun?
While heating the grill up to temperature is of course an important factor. It is also important to know how long it takes to cool down and just be finished for the night. I suspect the propane grill cools down significantly faster than the Kamado-Joe to the point you can have it cleaned and covered earlier. This is also important for weekday meals because many people have to put a cover on their grill to decrease weathering.
For a fast cook like steak, if you preheat the gas, charcoal, or pellet grill while you prepare your meat the start time shouldn't matter as much. You're always going to lose a lot of time in the prep and firing up any kind of grill. To minimize the prep times and cooking on the grill, I cook a big batch of BBQ. Keep it in the fridge so I can reheat with steam in the instant pot through the week. It's more time saving, economical, and practical IMO.
Just a question for the Kamado: Why not use Briketts? Greekfire are just pressed charcoal without anything and i Like Coconut Briketts from Tom Coco which dont have any smoke when i burn them although they have a binder. Tom Coco said it is technically necessary.
I’ll even up the ante. As a dad with two sweet girls who need to be in bed by 7:30, I have an even shorter window than most. My Joe’s and Grill Gun are up to the task 💪🏻 The Jr. is really ideal for our basic weeknight meals.
on the masterbuilt i have a 1050 and i put a brick on the top switch so i can keep the hopper open and use the fan to fan the flames and get the charcoal lit in no time, once its ripping hot send it to warm up the grill in 2m flat.
I think most people are not going to have a 150$ torch to start. Maybe should have used a fire starter bundle.
Another grill form to run the experiment on is the Lodge Sportsman. You're not going to cook for a party on it, but if you just looking for steaks, grilled chicken, etc for a family of four, it's fast and it does an amazing job on steaks.
Also, any thoughts on KJ vs the Komodo Kamada. Those look like tanks in the Kamado world.
Reqtec had a pellet grill shaped like a kettle, it can get to 500 in 15 minutes in my experience, their newer model which i don't have can get close to 1000 though I don't know how long it takes to get there. In my experience you don't need less than 15 as you start it and do meal prep and by the time you are done with meal prep its ready. Though i don't think I shoot for 500 very often. I expected charcoal to be the fastest but don't think people use pellet smokers for speed. Its ease of use, you turn it on and walk away. I will say until a certain government organization passed some dumb laws, you could turn your pellet smokers on through wi-fi while on your way home from work and it would be up to temp when you got home.