XL lump charcoal costs more, BUT it claims to burn hotter, last longer, and save money in the long run. To find out if XL charcoal lump is worth the extra cost, I’ve come up with some tests using identical charcoals… save for the size.
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Chapters
00:00 – Is XL Lump Charcoal HYPE?
01:19 – Two Tests Will Prove Which Is BEST
02:09 – Charcoal Comparison & Test 1
03:42 – Test 1 Results
08:10 – Test 2
10:23 – Test Highlights & Take-aways
#lumpcharcoal #charcoal #biggreenegg
@BigGreenEggHQ @FOGOcharcoal
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27 Comments
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Great video. I find when using xl chunks the temp spikes when new pieces catch. Possibly a skill issue, but curious if you noticed it too
Where did the kamado Joe's go?
A few other observations I have had between Fogo XL and Fogo black bag.
– XL is harder to start for grilling temps and takes longer to come up to speed.
– XL can flow air better but as long as the grill is drafting well the higher surface area with a filled basket yields higher temps when using medium
– Medium charcoal is better when grilling as it comes up to speed quicker and is easier to move around and distribute the heat more evenly
– With a full basket you can fit more XL by weight (contributing to longer cook times)
Love your content and the level of details you provide. NOBODY else does it this way. Also… I see you using the BGE more than the Kamado Joe nowadays.
Because these pieces are inherently so inconsistent in size, you'd need to run test 1 at least 10-20 times to get a better average of exactly what is happening.
I am good with kingsford briquettes.
Nice comparison. I've found medium lump from Fogo black works best overall for cooks on my Weber and WSM. The XL pieces come in useful for my offset when I'm dealing with green/wet splits and trying to get temps up
Scientists just found out that water gets you wet!!! All this has been known for YEARS, pretty much anything of higher quality will last longer so in the long run you will save money. Larger pieces also mean less tiny pieces that just end up choking out your coal bed, so less waste there too.
Brilliant work 👏 wonder if ceramic quality also plays a part 👍
Thank you! I love big lump and now I feel comforted that it’s not just me using it for convenience! Awesome video – much appreciated!
Appreciated excelent cool It's gotten to the point where I try to predict what you are going to come up with next. I did not see this level of detail on a charcoal burn coming. Well done. You have great content.
If youve ever tried to cook with those cheapo chunks that look more like gravel instead of lumps, you already know large lumps are better. BTW I bought FOGO at BBQ Galore. They claimed thier charcoal is "hand selected". Total BS. The bag I got was pebbles and was unusable. FOGO is TRASH.
Lately I been using KJ Lump Charcoal in my Kamadoe Joe 2. It's decent for the money. I have used Fogo as well in the past and it is good too, however, I always feel like it's the 4th of July when I light up Fogo because sparks shoot out all over the place. For me, I have always had a great experiece using Jealous Devil. Burms great and no sparks.
Love your channel! I came across it and did my first brisket yesterday. Overnight and it was a huge success! I could not have done it without you! Truly exellent content
Love it. Have you thought about doing a kick ash basket VS BGE firebowl video? I suspect they'll have different charcoal consumption rates
Love how you broke everything down, was a super informative video!
Great video! Hoping you do a video on double indirect on a weber summit in the future!
still salty that you changed to green.
Interesting video, great results, very graphic. But cost isn't the right metric. If you save 13% a bag, at $30/bag (and I pay less, but that's a nice round number), and over 10 bags time, that's only $39. That's not significant considering these cookers cost….$2k or whatever. The real metric needs to be quality of the product, and ease of use. That would be a tougher metric to test, and I don't have any good ideas. Maybe a brisket cook over each? Or a pork shoulder? Key thing is why would I want to use one over the other, and in my mind, cost is not the reason. But always looking forward to your next video.
Great video! looking for a new charcoal! Broilking keg charcoal is nothing but dust these days I live in a smaller town, so my options are limited without having to travel to the city. Its Like they are playing catch with the bag in the store. Thanks!
Great video, love the real world results. I typically use B&B which has small to XL chunks in the bag. I always refrained from using the larger chunks in my OKJ Bronco and save them for the stick burners. I thought the larger pieces took up to much space, therefore limiting the amount of fuel and burn time….. maybe I've been wrong (not the first time). Thanks!
Great video. I usually do a mix of medium and XL lump and use that. Your results confirmed my thoughts, but did surprise me a little. I never calculated the reuse factor.
The charcoal is supposedly the same between the 2 variations and the only difference is the size of the pieces. As a fuel, the charcoal would have a certain BTU per quantity. In this case the quantity would be by weight and not by volume. Your test was done by weight which is correct. So when you loaded up the 2 Eggs with 8 pounds of charcoal, you actually loaded up the Eggs with XXXX BTU's of fuel. So, the big question is why the larger pieces burned more efficient. What made the smaller pieces burn less efficient? What can be done to increase the efficiency of the smaller pieces since it has the same BTU's per pound as the larger pieces.
great test….confirms what i thought. Thanks for posting. I use B&B XL Texas size in the Black Bag.
Would like to see a long-cook comparison with Brisket
Great video, but I’m still having trouble excepting you jumped off the KJ ship….especially after me buying 2 after watching your content.
Great data in this video. For me, I buy both sizes of fogo for different purposes. I find that the large XL size is best for my low & slow cooks, but when i'm doing high heat grilling where i'm using much more of the surface area (burgers, multiple steaks, or carne asada, for example), i prefer the medium sized chunks, so I can distribute them more evenly below the grates. That way I don't end up with too many hot or cool spots at different parts of the grill grates.