The Grill Mistake You're Making Before You Even Start Cooking
If you do it often enough, lighting up the grill becomes second nature. However, you might be making a big mistake when you start your charcoal grill that's causing your food to taste funny. Using lighter fluid or match light coals (which contain lighter fluid) can make your food taste like ... well, lighter fluid. It's a very convenient and quick way to get the grill heated up quickly, but it's not ideal.
If you ever notice that your grilled food just doesn't taste quite right, this could be why. When you burn fuel to heat your grill, the taste of the fuel can attach to your food. In fact, Guy Fieri told Parade that using lighter fluid when you grill is the biggest mistake you can make. "Get some real charcoal, something that's got wood in it, and none of that self-lighting stuff," he says. As Fieri mentions, charcoal is made of wood. The process of creating charcoal involves heating wood to a high temperature in an oxygen-deprived environment. This burns off elements like water and methane and leaves the coals behind. When you re-light the charcoal to grill your food, the grill can reach temperatures upwards of 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This can result in some delicious grilled food, as long as you ditch that lighter fluid.
How to avoid a bad taste when using a charcoal grill
There are a few different ways to solve this problem. One of the easiest and most common ways is to use a chimney starter for a charcoal grill. They're relatively inexpensive, with many costing less than $20. A fire starter is another great option. Simply place it under your coals then give them some time to get hot. You can even put the coals around some crumpled-up newspaper and light the newspaper with a match.
If you're in a bind and don't have any other options, make sure you put the lighter fluid directly on the charcoal without touching the grates. Let it soak into the charcoal for a few minutes before lighting. Once you light the coals, let them burn for a bit before adding your food. The same is true if you're using match light coals: Let them burn for 10 to 20 minutes before you add your food. This will allow the lighter fluid to burn off and help eliminate that bad taste. You'll know your coals are ready to be used once they start to get covered with gray ash. And for next time, be prepared with a lighting method that doesn't involve lighter fluid.