I use Royal Oak, and I found a flashlight in my bag like 3 yrs. ago!! I had to laugh thinking about the inspector trying to remember where he or she had the flashlight last!! Oh and it was dead!! new batteries and it worked!!
Somebody might want to call royal oak and make sure an inspector is not missing....hope he wasn't the lumps of charcoal.🤣.....that might be expected for the Russian made charcoal.....lol....comrade Ivan might of made fun of Putins bbq skills.
As a hobby, I started making charcoal a few years ago. I have made it with hickory, oak, cherry, mulberry and apple. The first four turned out about the same. Apple is a whole different story. I wouldn't say mine is any better than what you can buy except the apple. Adding apple chunks to a fire is one thing, lump apple for the entire cook is outstanding, especially for pork and chicken.
Great video! I live in Mexico and we only use Mezquite lump charcoal. We don´t use chimenies, we pile the big lumps up to start the fire and use the medium and small ones to maintain the desired temperature.
I think I was kind of reluctant to use it for smoking, but I think when I ran out of the jealous devil charcoal I think I threw in a lump of the Mesquite charcoal, and it actually helped me finish off the brisket
I love mesquite flavor but not for long smokes where it soaks in too much. I'd rather have some oak lung charcoal for long smoking. I'll throw in some wood chunks to try and achieve a specific flavor.
@@11onejayquestion for you. So what would you recommend mesquite charcoal for? You stated you don't like it for smoking so what would you recommend it for? Would you recommend for steaks, chicken or fish?
@jesv4026 it's best with steak and with quick cooking. I use it when ever I cook over an open fire like Santa maria style. If it's going to be an actual smoke I don't recommend it. I have so much trial and error but I've come to find for smoking u like using oak lung charcoal with a little but if apple and cherry wood chunks. If it's quick cooking on open fire mesquite lump for sure.
@@11onejay got it thank you. I'll take that into consideration. I have regular charicy ut just got a bag of mesquite but I guess I'll use them separately whether I'm grilling or smoking
In Argentina we use charcoal made from quebracho, a native wood, one of the hardest and heaviest of the world, (sinks in water) for very long lasting and extreme heat giving embers, and unique flavor fumes.
I got a hold of some Frontier South American charcoal briquettes like that one year. Walmart was selling it cheap. I was very pleasantly surprised by its performance!
Incredible job! And so timely! I stumbled across this because I needed some hardwood charcoal after my last BBQ. I have some BBQ cred as my father had actually done some professional level BBQ for some Org picnics and restaurants. I had helped BBQing dozens of chickens, some pigs, sausages and corn on numerous occasions. In fact we quasi invented the Keg-a-Que when a friend of the family saw my dad's quarter barrel cut in half to make a grill out of back in the '50's. The local paper wrote a story about him and the grill back then. There are still 6 of them in the family. And I am considered the go to in many connected families for BBQing as my sons have become as well. 3 generations. I did a 3 hour 5 lb stuffed prime rib roll ($$$$) rotisserie on Labor Day. Using B&B. I had been using Cowboy after trying others for years but the local ACE switched to B&B. I have had big problems getting the B&B started both times I tried it. Seemed like the bottom chunks in the chimney would start and quickly shed causing the bottom to close up and stop the chunks above from starting. I almost gave up and run to get something else. But was able to nurse it along enough to get things started. I lost half the volume of chucks in the chimney starting it and that had never happened with Cowboy! And the added chunks did not start well when added during the 3 hours. Lots of unburned chunks left. So I was checking to see where I could get Cowboy again locally and stumbled across this. Your results, with the exception of B&B's winning, matches what I have found. Cowboy starts fast and even and lasts a long time. It is also very predictable and easly controlled with the minimal vent control a half barrel cut in half and hinged to close, has available. But yes lots of dust and small chunks in the bag. And a few tree limbs on occasion. Not real consistent in sizing. I will go back and stick to Cowboy though. I almost lost a $165 beef roast with B&B!
Thanks for posting this! Great info. For the record, I have used Royal Oak, B & B and Cowboy frequently but have settled on B & B as my go-to. Great video.
I've found many white rocks and almost like lava rock in my Royal Oak. I've also just had a metal wood bundle band in my bag. I've liked how it cooked just wonder what all the 'extra' stuff is about, filler or accidental.
Ron Lencioni They use front loaders to load the wood into giant ovens. Im not surprised a little gets through. This last bag of not royal oak had a solid 2lb rock in it lol
Might have been said already, but the densities of the types of wood used to make each brand of charcoal will also affect weight volume and burn time. Here in New Zealand, I like to use South African hardwood. It's nice and dense, can get a couple of burns out of a single chimney.
I always use Weber briquettes, bought a bag of Cowboy last week. Was thinking to myself, half this stuff fall through the chimney and the other half are logs. This is exactly what I needed to see. I’ll give Royal Oak and B and B a shot. Thanks. Subscribed.
ROCKWOOD is the favorite in our house. The owner of the company is a Kamado Grill enthusiast. In fact he’s very active on BGE’s forum. Jonathan the owner is a supporter of our dad and daughter cooking adventure. He’s been a huge help, offering tips and tricks to help us along the way. My daughter who is only 10 competed at and received 2nd at a KCBS backyard event using his charcoal and wood chunks.
Really great video, thanks for sharing. The most consistent thing about lump is that it IS inconsistent lol but still the best way to cook bbq if not using sticks. Keep up the good work
I've got a bag of Royal Oak about 2/3 done and most the bag was very small pieces...some medium and only a couple of large. Pieces are so small that they would fall through the bottom grate and I've tossed away so much of it I had to buy other charcoal. No happy about that. Great video, thanks! Subscribed!
I bought my first bag of Royal Oak the other day and same here. 2/3 tiny pieces. That is actually my first bag of lump charcoal, been using Kingsford my whole life. I assumed it was supposed to be like that until I started watching these videos. B&B is going to be my next purchase
Love me some Royal Oak lump. Used Kingsford and other briquettes including Royal Oak, but once I tried RO lump I decided I’d stick to that. I can do hot and fast ir low and slow. Great stuff!
Love all the Weber Grills ya got goin on there !! I have a Weber Smokey Mountain 22" Smoker. Best Smokers around. Even the Pros use them because they are in the know. They just won't tell you that.
I've been using royal oak for about a year now and I've found some interesting objects inside the bag that I assumed they use to add weight. I've found metel, lava rocks and baseball size river rocks.
Thanks a mill from San Diego CA. Craig! I was waiting for a vid like this, you answer all my questions.. looking forward to a vid on smoking chips/chunks.( P.s. always respect a man that uses a Weber as a planter pot).
Man, thanks so very much. I'm making a new one this week!!! 5 more brands!! Thanks for watching and subscribing! Oh, and ring the bell and hit like, that helps out big time on my end!
Cowboy is hands down the worst lump you can buy. Rocks, siding, and uncarbonized pieces galore. FYI royal oak and BGE lump are the exactly same just different color bags and the green one is 2x as much
Teddy Tash nah it was farther South around the Houston, MO area I believe. Heck it’s been probably close to 15 years since I had been there and it was sold a few years ago. But I remember it had probably a dozen big concrete kilns and was surrounded in pine forest. It had been years since it was operated when we bought the property in the early 2000’s. And I remember one kiln had been blown up/ caught on fire and had the huge iron doors on it pretty mangled.
My wife bought some of that cheap "Cowboy"-type lump down at the Grocery Outlet and almost one-third of the bag was DUST!!! I said NEVER again. The other thing I noticed was that it popped and sparked like crazy sending embers all over our DRY, drought-ridden So. Cal landscape! Of course, this is my 1st experience using lump so I don't know what I don't know.
I'll never buy cowboy again. There were no large lumps. I could hear the "lumps" falling straight through My charcoal chimney and straight into the ash catcher of my Weber grill. And the end of the bag was just total dust. In fact I think I put out my fire when I dumped the end of the bag on to the orderly burning coals. I will not buy another bag of cowboy lump charcoal.
Have to agree. Cowboy is way too inconsistent. You never know what you are going to get when it comes to chunk size. Half the bag is usually gravel and it pops and sputters. It does cook really hot and it last long but while it is in the chimney I worry that I'm going to get sparks that will start a fire. Once it is in my Chimney it's just fine. BTW, to light your chimney quicker place a empty paper towel tube in the middle and build your charcoal around it. It lights very quickly and hot.
Where I live, we get the blue bag Royal Oak lump. I’ve only ever bought two bags, but the sizes were hugely inconsistent with a ton of pieces so small they’d fall straight through a standard chimney. I also found rocks in both bags.
Yeah I don't think I'm going to be using Royal Oak anymore. I have the same problem with the Royal Oak that I've bought before for smoking briskets, little small pieces and a bunch of powder at the bottom because a big Pieces come apart easy
Same here, I've been a dedicated RO fan for 6 yrs now, but the last 4 bags I've purchased, I've found med to lrg size rocks in them while the price keeps in inching up 18- 28 cents each season. Now I'll have to start looking at other brands.
It's not rocks it's concrete from the kilns i worked for royal oak it's in my home town most of it is pine the reason you get the strips is because all the wood they use are slabs
I'm glad you read the temperatures because at the end of the day that's really the most important piece of information to have. How hot does it burn. Then how does that temperature vary over time.
My question I'm using the Pit barrel cooker, and kingfords is crap now, was told cowbuy bought a small bag my question is do I fill the basket still or half basket? Only ask I used a full basket and it stayed at 340° not 275-300°. Any advice
DUDE - this is SO helpful!! Thank you so much for this. I'm new to outdoor grilling and just got an SNS Travel Kettle and in just over a month, I've come to be absolutely HOOKED on grilling outdoors. BUT I'm thinking I want to move away from Kingsford charcoal into lump. Kingsford was what we used 30+ years ago and it's literally been THAT long since I cooked outside. I don't know why it just didn't happen or I used a propane grill which was never truly satisfying.....certainly not like charcoal grilling. Now I'm all in on charcoal grilling but literally know nothing about lump. I've been using the tumbleweeds as starters instead of the blocks. IS that a bad idea? Are the blocks somehow better? Also I noticed this vid is over 4 years old and was wondering in 2023, if your opinions had changed? Anyways thanks again for the great info.
I have bought over 100 bags of royal oak and never once have I seen large chunks like what you have poured out. 85% are sizes of about a golf ball with maybe 4 or 5 soft ball sizes. Would love to buy what you had in that bag
Ok, I'll see what I can do to add that to a current video. If not, I'll make sure in the next version I do that, and show what the past test cost. Thanks!
In S Texas those bags of cowboy coal different brands will run at 7.50 off of importers to 10.00 at local supermarket. Vaquero brand is the same meaning Cowboy.
They both work great. Briquettes can cook a lil slower, and not as hot. So, I would try cooking the same item, like a chicken, 2 days in a row w different coals. Test is the best!
Great video, I have used Cowboy and Royal oak on a regular basis and have had great grilling and smoking results.. How about a wood. Chip challenge for smoking
I started with BGE and was satisfied until I found a SOFTBALL SIZE rock in my third bag! I thought the quality control would be better @ nearly $2 per pound ! I have since tried Royal at roughly half the cost of BGE and recently picked up a few bags of Cowboy “Southern Style” which doesn’t have the round logs your bag did. I know everyone loves to hate Cowboy; but @ $4 for an 18 lb bag (Lowe’s Clearance ) it is a worthy contender. Yes it “flames” more in the beginning, and certainly takes longer to get ready to cook, but it’s not junk.
Am I missing something here? It seem's like you're dissatisfied with cowboy but the video show's it burns just as good as b&b which came in "1st". I would be more than happy to buy the already cheaper brand and almost half the price. That's a win /win for me.
Wow the quarantine taught me that lots off folks are very passionate about some very random things! I mean I can see these dudes actually brawling over which brand off whatever is the best.
This is one of my favorite BBQ reference videos. Thanks to this video I've found my lump coal of choice... B&B. I tried royal oak and Lazzari. B&B all the way, for my WSM.
I have seen huge inconsistencies with Cowboy charcoal which is what I have used for years. I purchase it at Costco and always have lot of “gravel”. Your video really makes me think about changing where I purchase mine to see if it is larger size pieces at another retailer.
Been using RO lump for years with good success (minus the occasional small concrete chunks from the kiln). According to their marketing it contains Hickory, Oak, and Maple. Whether or not that’s true? I don’t know, it could be old pine slabs from Lowe’s for all I know haha. I’ve really wanted to try B and B, but it’s really hard to find locally here and Amazon prices are outrageous from vendors. Lowe’s has a newer Cowboy lump called “Southern Style” which says its made with Oak and Hickory. Bag looks different also than the grocery store version you have. I used it a couple times and works good also. Great vid, my search for B and B will continue.
Without cooking food, you can't judge it's flavor. They all smell very similar in the bag, and burning. Most flavor comes from the wood or spices you use. I've don test to see what tasted better, lump or briquettes, no real difference. Thanks for watching! #BBQiT
@@BBQiT I'm a gonna strongly disagree sir! the smoke and aroma have a huge impact on the flavor of the finished product. I have also been learning that certain lump charcoal does a terrible job of providing smoke and flavor. and yes, the flavor comes from the wood, and spices we use. hence the importance of testing the wood (charcoal is wood) for it's ability to give us the aroma (aroma is part of what equates to flavor, such as does appearance, taste and texture) and tastes it can give us. burn time is the least of our concern when it comes to quality cooking. (no doubt annoying when we have to feed it nonstop...)
I use Royal Oak. I've had no problems with it. The big mistake people make is NOT using enough charcoal. Never skimp because it will ruin your cook every time.
I used to use BGE lump and got tired of the pallet straps and trash I'd find nearly every bag. Switched to Jealous Devil and haven't looked back. Great job and thanks for the video!
I used to love Royal Oak. However, my last 3 bags (44lbs), have all been small pieces (smaller than wood chips) that burn up in 5 minutes. The top of my chimney will still be untouched, while the bottom is dead.
I also got a bag of "Cowboy" and it was all old hardwood flooring... I used it because I had no choice at the time. I have never got another one. I now go to a commercial restaurant supplier that sells firewood and charcoal. I get stuff there. And when I think that I want to try and cook like a competition BBQ team I will get all different types of fruit woods.... Cherry, Apple and others, their selection is amazing...
I bought cowboy twice because I couldn't find Royal Oak where I was. Both times I pulled out what I swear was a piece of plywood sheathing that had been charred up. It sparked and popped like crazy both times and I felt like the flavor was off. I'd use briquettes next time if I couldn't find any other lump.
I'm through with lump, tired of little pieces of charcoal all over the yard and worrying about an ember sparking into my eye. I'm back to briquets and I often put a few B&B char logs in to increase the temperature.
I'm down with Royal Oak. I seem to have better luck then some because my bags are always consistent, not much gravel at the bottom. Price is also good and it burns consistent for long periods. I have tried Cowboy once, it worked but lots of gravel in my bag.
I'm in N Center of Arkansas and one that I've found to be best around here is OZARK CHARCOAL from Missouri. And and I get to cheat a bit on my char griller. I put the whole 20 bag inside my box the pile on about 10 to 15 pounds of PECAN TREE LIMBS... And Yes my neighbors come around wanting to know what's on the grill. I can cook about 30 Whole Fryers at 1time or 4 whole Boston Butts or I can put about 25 to 30 lbs of beef on at one smoking.😁
I used kingsford for years but recently started using royal oak lump. Less ashy. Dont have to empty the ash tray alot. Burns long and hot. And gives the food a good flavor
Rockwood or The Good-One is the best when it comes to consistency and clean cooking. No weird stuff in the bags. Cowboy definitely has had flooring planks, rocks, concrete, wire, burlap, etc in it at times.
I use Royal Oak, and I found a flashlight in my bag like 3 yrs. ago!! I had to laugh thinking about the inspector trying to remember where he or she had the flashlight last!! Oh and it was dead!! new batteries and it worked!!
Score.
Good story. I use royal too my last bag crackled and popped alot. Have you experienced this?
that was the adult version of finding a prize in your cereal box thats all🤣🤣🤣
THAT IS AWESOME!! Thanks for watching!
Somebody might want to call royal oak and make sure an inspector is not missing....hope he wasn't the lumps of charcoal.🤣.....that might be expected for the Russian made charcoal.....lol....comrade Ivan might of made fun of Putins bbq skills.
You’re the man. Doing the shit no one wants to do, but getting the answers we all need
Well stated!
Yeaaaaaaaaaah!
As a hobby, I started making charcoal a few years ago. I have made it with hickory, oak, cherry, mulberry and apple. The first four turned out about the same. Apple is a whole different story. I wouldn't say mine is any better than what you can buy except the apple. Adding apple chunks to a fire is one thing, lump apple for the entire cook is outstanding, especially for pork and chicken.
pp
Fantastic!
Expensive video, the starter buckets, grills, bags of lump charcoal, good vid 👍🏻
Aye, wonder who paid for the video
Out of pocket as always... I need a sponsor!!
Great video! I live in Mexico and we only use Mezquite lump charcoal. We don´t use chimenies, we pile the big lumps up to start the fire and use the medium and small ones to maintain the desired temperature.
I think I was kind of reluctant to use it for smoking, but I think when I ran out of the jealous devil charcoal I think I threw in a lump of the Mesquite charcoal, and it actually helped me finish off the brisket
I love mesquite flavor but not for long smokes where it soaks in too much. I'd rather have some oak lung charcoal for long smoking. I'll throw in some wood chunks to try and achieve a specific flavor.
@@11onejayquestion for you. So what would you recommend mesquite charcoal for? You stated you don't like it for smoking so what would you recommend it for? Would you recommend for steaks, chicken or fish?
@jesv4026 it's best with steak and with quick cooking. I use it when ever I cook over an open fire like Santa maria style. If it's going to be an actual smoke I don't recommend it. I have so much trial and error but I've come to find for smoking u like using oak lung charcoal with a little but if apple and cherry wood chunks. If it's quick cooking on open fire mesquite lump for sure.
@@11onejay got it thank you. I'll take that into consideration. I have regular charicy ut just got a bag of mesquite but I guess I'll use them separately whether I'm grilling or smoking
Day 6 of being in quarantine. Im watching random stuff on youtube.
Emmanuel Amoyan hahahaha me 2
Literally my life too...I don’t even grille
Time to learn a new skill lol
yall hang in there
Lol for reals man must be bored
In Argentina we use charcoal made from quebracho, a native wood, one of the hardest and heaviest of the world, (sinks in water) for very long lasting and extreme heat giving embers, and unique flavor fumes.
Nice
Good stuff. Jealous devil brand in the usa is that wood. Best charcoal ever.
Quebracho, Acacia, Marabu and oak. All very good woods for charcoal.
I got a hold of some Frontier South American charcoal briquettes like that one year. Walmart was selling it cheap. I was very pleasantly surprised by its performance!
Incredible job! And so timely! I stumbled across this because I needed some hardwood charcoal after my last BBQ. I have some BBQ cred as my father had actually done some professional level BBQ for some Org picnics and restaurants. I had helped BBQing dozens of chickens, some pigs, sausages and corn on numerous occasions. In fact we quasi invented the Keg-a-Que when a friend of the family saw my dad's quarter barrel cut in half to make a grill out of back in the '50's. The local paper wrote a story about him and the grill back then. There are still 6 of them in the family. And I am considered the go to in many connected families for BBQing as my sons have become as well. 3 generations.
I did a 3 hour 5 lb stuffed prime rib roll ($$$$) rotisserie on Labor Day. Using B&B. I had been using Cowboy after trying others for years but the local ACE switched to B&B. I have had big problems getting the B&B started both times I tried it. Seemed like the bottom chunks in the chimney would start and quickly shed causing the bottom to close up and stop the chunks above from starting. I almost gave up and run to get something else. But was able to nurse it along enough to get things started. I lost half the volume of chucks in the chimney starting it and that had never happened with Cowboy! And the added chunks did not start well when added during the 3 hours. Lots of unburned chunks left.
So I was checking to see where I could get Cowboy again locally and stumbled across this.
Your results, with the exception of B&B's winning, matches what I have found. Cowboy starts fast and even and lasts a long time. It is also very predictable and easly controlled with the minimal vent control a half barrel cut in half and hinged to close, has available. But yes lots of dust and small chunks in the bag. And a few tree limbs on occasion. Not real consistent in sizing.
I will go back and stick to Cowboy though. I almost lost a $165 beef roast with B&B!
Thanks for posting this! Great info. For the record, I have used Royal Oak, B & B and Cowboy frequently but have settled on B & B as my go-to. Great video.
Atta boy!!
BGE lump is actually Royal Oak lump just labeled under BGE.
That's what I've been hearing for years! BGE is just a little higher quality
They make coal for a few companies. Thanks for watching!!!
I use the 30LB bags of royal oak. Super consistent and lasts ages
does a good job I hear!!
I found several rocks in my last 30lb bag lol. Been using royal oak for years though. Never let's me down.
I've found many white rocks and almost like lava rock in my Royal Oak. I've also just had a metal wood bundle band in my bag. I've liked how it cooked just wonder what all the 'extra' stuff is about, filler or accidental.
Ron Lencioni They use front loaders to load the wood into giant ovens. Im not surprised a little gets through. This last bag of not royal oak had a solid 2lb rock in it lol
Might have been said already, but the densities of the types of wood used to make each brand of charcoal will also affect weight volume and burn time. Here in New Zealand, I like to use South African hardwood. It's nice and dense, can get a couple of burns out of a single chimney.
I always use Weber briquettes, bought a bag of Cowboy last week. Was thinking to myself, half this stuff fall through the chimney and the other half are logs. This is exactly what I needed to see. I’ll give Royal Oak and B and B a shot. Thanks. Subscribed.
ROCKWOOD is the favorite in our house. The owner of the company is a Kamado Grill enthusiast. In fact he’s very active on BGE’s forum. Jonathan the owner is a supporter of our dad and daughter cooking adventure. He’s been a huge help, offering tips and tricks to help us along the way. My daughter who is only 10 competed at and received 2nd at a KCBS backyard event using his charcoal and wood chunks.
Costco carries Cowboy and I have had no issues with it. Glad to see it fared so well. Well done vid.
I have never seen any at Costco, is it online only?
Great video dude. You should do a burn test on GrillHunx charcoal. Curious to hear your opinion.
Really great video, thanks for sharing. The most consistent thing about lump is that it IS inconsistent lol but still the best way to cook bbq if not using sticks. Keep up the good work
Love it! Thanks a Arnie!!
this man really put so much effort into this video
Mesquite coals from the heart of the wood and from root crown in my opinion is grade A. The taste of it smoking meat is supper.
I've got a bag of Royal Oak about 2/3 done and most the bag was very small pieces...some medium and only a couple of large. Pieces are so small that they would fall through the bottom grate and I've tossed away so much of it I had to buy other charcoal. No happy about that. Great video, thanks! Subscribed!
I bought my first bag of Royal Oak the other day and same here. 2/3 tiny pieces. That is actually my first bag of lump charcoal, been using Kingsford my whole life. I assumed it was supposed to be like that until I started watching these videos. B&B is going to be my next purchase
Love me some Royal Oak lump. Used Kingsford and other briquettes including Royal Oak, but once I tried RO lump I decided I’d stick to that. I can do hot and fast ir low and slow. Great stuff!
Wow that was a great test and super consistent! Thanks for trying to make it as even across the board as it could be.
I use Cowboy and Royal Oak all the time and haven't had any issues.
I use the Cowboy all natural briquettes in my Weber kettle, works really well and fits better in the Slow-n-Sear than lump.
Love all the Weber Grills ya got goin on there !! I have a Weber Smokey Mountain 22" Smoker. Best Smokers around. Even the Pros use them because they are in the know. They just won't tell you that.
Make BBQ great again, best dig I’ve heard in a while
By far the best comparison video on charcoal. Do a taste test next time pls. I love eating charcoal.
super kind words sir! thank you very very m;much!
i use royal oak only because i can find it easily in every store around me home depot, Lowe's, Walmart, and grocery stores all carry it near me
It's good charcoal. I use it all the time.
Yes! Cowboy came in 2nd! That’s what I use 🥩🍖
3:11 I love when pets come to see what is going on with their humans. 😂
Hey man , this was a really informative video!!!! Great work !!
I've been using royal oak for about a year now and I've found some interesting objects inside the bag that I assumed they use to add weight. I've found metel, lava rocks and baseball size river rocks.
Same and recently most of my bags have been very inconsistent.
Thanks a mill from San Diego CA. Craig! I was waiting for a vid like this, you answer all my questions.. looking forward to a vid on smoking chips/chunks.( P.s. always respect a man that uses a Weber as a planter pot).
San Diego over here too! Don't forget we have access to some awesome 100% mesquite lump charcoal too. Siesel's market sells it year round
@@elhefe63 San Diego Poser here,IE twice as hot and half as much.
Hey. Seriously . Excellent effort. Thanks!
Man, thanks so very much. I'm making a new one this week!!! 5 more brands!! Thanks for watching and subscribing! Oh, and ring the bell and hit like, that helps out big time on my end!
BBQ iT Done.
Cowboy is hands down the worst lump you can buy. Rocks, siding, and uncarbonized pieces galore. FYI royal oak and BGE lump are the exactly same just different color bags and the green one is 2x as much
I bought a bag of Cowboy it had hardwood flooring in it! Didn't catch it in time and had to throw out meat
Shout out to Missouri... my family used to own an old charcoal plant here!
Sick! Thanks for watching!
Drew w
Was it in Vienna MO? I hunt a place that has an old charcoal plant near there
Teddy Tash nah it was farther South around the Houston, MO area I believe. Heck it’s been probably close to 15 years since I had been there and it was sold a few years ago. But I remember it had probably a dozen big concrete kilns and was surrounded in pine forest. It had been years since it was operated when we bought the property in the early 2000’s. And I remember one kiln had been blown up/ caught on fire and had the huge iron doors on it pretty mangled.
My wife bought some of that cheap "Cowboy"-type lump down at the Grocery Outlet and almost one-third of the bag was DUST!!! I said NEVER again. The other thing I noticed was that it popped and sparked like crazy sending embers all over our DRY, drought-ridden So. Cal landscape! Of course, this is my 1st experience using lump so I don't know what I don't know.
Were you having a Baby Reveal BBQ?
I'll never buy cowboy again. There were no large lumps. I could hear the "lumps" falling straight through My charcoal chimney and straight into the ash catcher of my Weber grill. And the end of the bag was just total dust. In fact I think I put out my fire when I dumped the end of the bag on to the orderly burning coals. I will not buy another bag of cowboy lump charcoal.
Have to agree. Cowboy is way too inconsistent. You never know what you are going to get when it comes to chunk size. Half the bag is usually gravel and it pops and sputters.
It does cook really hot and it last long but while it is in the chimney I worry that I'm going to get sparks that will start a fire. Once it is in my Chimney it's just fine.
BTW, to light your chimney quicker place a empty paper towel tube in the middle and build your charcoal around it. It lights very quickly and hot.
Where I live, we get the blue bag Royal Oak lump. I’ve only ever bought two bags, but the sizes were hugely inconsistent with a ton of pieces so small they’d fall straight through a standard chimney. I also found rocks in both bags.
Yeah I don't think I'm going to be using Royal Oak anymore. I have the same problem with the Royal Oak that I've bought before for smoking briskets, little small pieces and a bunch of powder at the bottom because a big Pieces come apart easy
I've found actual limestone gravel in several bags of Royal Oak. I switched to Saffire. Burns longer. No rocks either.
Same here, I've been a dedicated RO fan for 6 yrs now, but the last 4 bags I've purchased, I've found med to lrg size rocks in them while the price keeps in inching up 18- 28 cents each season.
Now I'll have to start looking at other brands.
It's not rocks it's concrete from the kilns i worked for royal oak it's in my home town most of it is pine the reason you get the strips is because all the wood they use are slabs
I have found the same thing
I found a boot with a foot in it at the bottom of my bag of royal oak lump. They have terrible working conditions there.
I'm glad you read the temperatures because at the end of the day that's really the most important piece of information to have. How hot does it burn. Then how does that temperature vary over time.
Well done my dude! Started using B&B this year and really impressed
My question I'm using the Pit barrel cooker, and kingfords is crap now, was told cowbuy bought a small bag my question is do I fill the basket still or half basket? Only ask I used a full basket and it stayed at 340° not 275-300°. Any advice
Thank you for doing this test! I will be using B&B from now on, and if I can't get it, I'll be sticking with Royal Oak as a backup!
If you have an ACE, or want to pay shipping to ya house, here ya go!
www.acehardware.com/search?query=B%26B+charcoal
DUDE - this is SO helpful!! Thank you so much for this.
I'm new to outdoor grilling and just got an SNS Travel Kettle and in just over a month, I've come to be absolutely HOOKED on grilling outdoors. BUT I'm thinking I want to move away from Kingsford charcoal into lump. Kingsford was what we used 30+ years ago and it's literally been THAT long since I cooked outside. I don't know why it just didn't happen or I used a propane grill which was never truly satisfying.....certainly not like charcoal grilling.
Now I'm all in on charcoal grilling but literally know nothing about lump. I've been using the tumbleweeds as starters instead of the blocks. IS that a bad idea? Are the blocks somehow better?
Also I noticed this vid is over 4 years old and was wondering in 2023, if your opinions had changed?
Anyways thanks again for the great info.
Glad I could help! Thanks for watching and the sub! Keep Cookin'!
Agree with Cowboy. It burns hot but, at the end of the bag, you’re throwing sparks ⚡️!
I have gotten sparks out of all the different lump I have used. But that is just me.
I have bought over 100 bags of royal oak and never once have I seen large chunks like what you have poured out. 85% are sizes of about a golf ball with maybe 4 or 5 soft ball sizes. Would love to buy what you had in that bag
Would be good to know the price per pound or per bag etc. to validate the value vs. performance. Interesting comparison
Agreed
Ok, I'll see what I can do to add that to a current video. If not, I'll make sure in the next version I do that, and show what the past test cost. Thanks!
Perfect bbq knows no price.
In S Texas those bags of cowboy coal different brands will run at 7.50 off of importers to 10.00 at local supermarket. Vaquero brand is the same meaning Cowboy.
You want to measure charcoal by volume, not weight.
First time watcher. Great video. Really appreciate the info.
I havent tried anything other then Royal Oak.. i picked up 2 16lbs bags for 9.98 a bag at walmart. It hasnt let me down yet.
What walmart? I'll have to go pick up a good amount for that price!
consistency, quality and great video pace. no fluff. Subbed instantly. keep it coming.
Thanks Nikita, trying!!
Thanks for this useful information. I'm just getting into lump and this is a great help.
So I’m fairly new to grilling/barbecuing, should I be using this over kingsford type charcoal?
Curious to what kind of mic do you use. Is it on the camera or a lapel? Great quality video and great content! Awesome job!
Pondiver Mics are: Lectrosonics, and sennhiesers, Cams are : GH5, Sony A6500, Gopro 4+Blacks;)
Wow, great video! Wish I had come across this sooner. Appreciate the effort to do this comparison! Subscribed!
And thank you a ton!!!
Why didn't you test kamado joe big block xl lump charcoal?
Ditto, I'd like to know how it stacks up...it does seem a bit inconsistent size wise though. Some of them are logs and some are too small.
@@nullrout556 I agree about the size inconsistency however I am only on my second bag.
Most of all are made in the same place. The only difference is the bag it goes in. Been to a plant in Arkansas many times.
B&B runs it's own show. That's why they make the best now!
I used to buy Cowboy, but too many bags were essentially charcoal dust.
I am new to smoking. I have a small barrel smoker. I can't figure out which I should use. Briquets, lump, or charcoal logs. Which do you recommend?
They both work great. Briquettes can cook a lil slower, and not as hot. So, I would try cooking the same item, like a chicken, 2 days in a row w different coals. Test is the best!
@@BBQiT Thanks. I appreciate your time.
Great video, I have used Cowboy and Royal oak on a regular basis and have had great grilling and smoking results.. How about a wood. Chip challenge for smoking
I used royal oak for the first time last week before viewing this video and I was impressed. Burns hot and it wouldn’t ash over. Nice.
I've been using Royal oak for years now and very happy with it. If I can't find it i use cowboy. Great long burn for smoking meats
NIce!! Thanks for watching and subscribe in you haven't!!
This man speaks and presents so well! My first time here. Subscribed!
I started with BGE and was satisfied until I found a SOFTBALL SIZE rock in my third bag! I thought the quality control would be better @ nearly $2 per pound ! I have since tried Royal at roughly half the cost of BGE and recently picked up a few bags of Cowboy “Southern Style” which doesn’t have the round logs your bag did. I know everyone loves to hate Cowboy; but @ $4 for an 18 lb bag (Lowe’s Clearance ) it is a worthy contender. Yes it “flames” more in the beginning, and certainly takes longer to get ready to cook, but it’s not junk.
I agree, it works just fine. It has a lil more scraps and small pieces, but hey, it works!!
7:31 The straight pieces looks like it could have been flooring
I know I'm probably not the only person to ask, but what is the price difference in the price/per lb.
I"m working on resolving the cost situation. BGE is the most expensive. B&B is worth every penny!
Make bbq great again, lmao
Does any of these have PAH's Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in it?
lol, and here I've basically been using B&B because it's usually the cheapest.
I use B&B it is excellent for the grill and for cast iron cooking.
Well that explains why I now see Cowboy Lump and Brickets on clearance at Kroger stores by me. 40% off MSRP.
Cowboy is always good for me he must live far away from Mexico.
Am I missing something here? It seem's like you're dissatisfied with cowboy but the video show's it burns just as good as b&b which came in "1st". I would be more than happy to buy the already cheaper brand and almost half the price. That's a win /win for me.
@@DeeOne88 you only get to use half the bag for grilling. Too big of pieces
Wow the quarantine taught me that lots off folks are very passionate about some very random things! I mean I can see these dudes actually brawling over which brand off whatever is the best.
I've found pieces of burlap, plastic, smashed soda can and rocks in Cowboy Charcoal......also lots of tiny pieces..........very inconsistent.
I really enjoy the way this entire video was done.
Hey, thanks a ton Kendall! Thanks for watching! #BBQiT
I saw a guy do Kingsford, lump charcoal ash had negligible weight, Kingsford ash weighs 10% of the charcoal, gravel.
Tom Condon aVe did the video your referring to I believe
This is one of my favorite BBQ reference videos. Thanks to this video I've found my lump coal of choice... B&B. I tried royal oak and Lazzari. B&B all the way, for my WSM.
You are too kind!! More tests to come!! Thanks for the sub!
I've found plywood and pieces of kiln in Cowboy. The company has ignored my emails and snail mails.
I found a wire and bottle cap in Cowboy.
I too found plywood in a bag of Cowboy. I had to quit buying it after that, I've been a B&B man ever since.
Haahahha , that's insane!
Thanks for watching MP!!!
Lol I found a half a red brick in my last bag of Cowboy
Ha I found two illegal’s in my bag.
I have seen huge inconsistencies with Cowboy charcoal which is what I have used for years. I purchase it at Costco and always have lot of “gravel”. Your video really makes me think about changing where I purchase mine to see if it is larger size pieces at another retailer.
Just started using B&B a couple of months ago and I'm completely impressed with it.
Traitor. Support American companies or leave. Now.
@@zebunker damn that was fucking agressive lol you own plenty of chinese products. dont start that shit
Been using RO lump for years with good success (minus the occasional small concrete chunks from the kiln). According to their marketing it contains Hickory, Oak, and Maple. Whether or not that’s true? I don’t know, it could be old pine slabs from Lowe’s for all I know haha. I’ve really wanted to try B and B, but it’s really hard to find locally here and Amazon prices are outrageous from vendors. Lowe’s has a newer Cowboy lump called “Southern Style” which says its made with Oak and Hickory. Bag looks different also than the grocery store version you have. I used it a couple times and works good also. Great vid, my search for B and B will continue.
you forgot to talk about whats most important, smoke quality/aroma (knowing aroma and smoke make flavor).
which ones will win out?
non yayet
That’s why I watched lol and nothing
Without cooking food, you can't judge it's flavor. They all smell very similar in the bag, and burning. Most flavor comes from the wood or spices you use. I've don test to see what tasted better, lump or briquettes, no real difference. Thanks for watching! #BBQiT
@@BBQiT I'm a gonna strongly disagree sir!
the smoke and aroma have a huge impact on the flavor of the finished product. I have also been learning that certain lump charcoal does a terrible job of providing smoke and flavor. and yes, the flavor comes from the wood, and spices we use. hence the importance of testing the wood (charcoal is wood) for it's ability to give us the aroma (aroma is part of what equates to flavor, such as does appearance, taste and texture) and tastes it can give us.
burn time is the least of our concern when it comes to quality cooking. (no doubt annoying when we have to feed it nonstop...)
where can i find the little fire starter object that you used int he video? @BBQ iT
I use Royal Oak. I've had no problems with it. The big mistake people make is NOT using enough charcoal. Never skimp because it will ruin your cook every time.
diver165 lol you must not competition cook, Less is better and wins
Texas Owl Can’t see how having your fire go out in the middle of a cook wins competitions. But hey whatever
Especially in the BGE or in my case Primo. Just shut the draft and flue and reuse it later
I used to use BGE lump and got tired of the pallet straps and trash I'd find nearly every bag.
Switched to Jealous Devil and haven't looked back. Great job and thanks for the video!
With all those webers you must be a fellow kettleheadz. Nice video!
TRavis, you know it!!!! Share the love!!
BBQ iT 1st
I used to love Royal Oak. However, my last 3 bags (44lbs), have all been small pieces (smaller than wood chips) that burn up in 5 minutes. The top of my chimney will still be untouched, while the bottom is dead.
I've only ever bought cowboy twice... both times I got what looked like wall/floor trim pieces. Never have I gotten a bag what you just showed
I also got a bag of "Cowboy" and it was all old hardwood flooring... I used it because I had no choice at the time. I have never got another one. I now go to a commercial restaurant supplier that sells firewood and charcoal. I get stuff there. And when I think that I want to try and cook like a competition BBQ team I will get all different types of fruit woods.... Cherry, Apple and others, their selection is amazing...
I bought cowboy twice because I couldn't find Royal Oak where I was. Both times I pulled out what I swear was a piece of plywood sheathing that had been charred up. It sparked and popped like crazy both times and I felt like the flavor was off. I'd use briquettes next time if I couldn't find any other lump.
I'm through with lump, tired of little pieces of charcoal all over the yard and worrying about an ember sparking into my eye. I'm back to briquets and I often put a few B&B char logs in to increase the temperature.
That's all good my man!! I love briquettes more!
Royal Oak and BGE should be identical. RO produces lump for BGE. BGE just labels it. Exact same lump.
Yep
Here I thought I was the only one who got excited pouring a bag of charcoal. Great video bro.
Seems to me the clear winner was royal oak with its low price and available even at 2am at walmart
So much small shit in my Royal oak bags. Have to get the XL cut if I want anything good it seems
@@sawtoothscream1521 Its Def. hit or miss last bag i got had tree limbs, one before it looked like briquettes.
@@Lichor2369 I have a huge bin filled with the small stuff. Idk maybe Walmart bests the hell out of the bags
@@sawtoothscream1521 Got this last bag at a mom and pop super market, so you maybe on to something there. buy them at less popular shops.
I'm down with Royal Oak. I seem to have better luck then some because my bags are always consistent, not much gravel at the bottom. Price is also good and it burns consistent for long periods. I have tried Cowboy once, it worked but lots of gravel in my bag.
After watching your video, we picked up a bag of B&B and excited to try it out tonight!! Great video, just subscribed!
I'm in N Center of Arkansas and one that I've found to be best around here is OZARK CHARCOAL from Missouri. And and I get to cheat a bit on my char griller. I put the whole 20 bag inside my box the pile on about 10 to 15 pounds of PECAN TREE LIMBS...
And Yes my neighbors come around wanting to know what's on the grill.
I can cook about 30 Whole Fryers at 1time or 4 whole Boston Butts or I can put about 25 to 30 lbs of beef on at one smoking.😁
Insane!!! Send a photo!!!
I used kingsford for years but recently started using royal oak lump. Less ashy. Dont have to empty the ash tray alot. Burns long and hot. And gives the food a good flavor
Nice work! And only 1.9k subscribers? You deserve more.
I'm trying!! Thank you soo much thought!
2.6k now.
Pretty good for 2 days.
And I'll add one more.
I know right? It's starting to pick up!! So thank you so much for being a part of it.We may hit 3k in the next hr!
Love the vid! Btw what sheet material did you use under the chimneys when you lit them--that could handle the heat? Thx
The bad news is that I live in Connecticut. The good news is that Walmart puts Royal Oak and other BBQ items on sale and clearance before winter.
The Walmart near me put the Weber kettles on clearance along with all grills and accessories. Picked up a $170 kettle for $100.
Yep I got me a bronco for $184. 😆
I got 7 starters for 5 each, spring price was 1995. Florida
Rockwood or The Good-One is the best when it comes to consistency and clean cooking. No weird stuff in the bags. Cowboy definitely has had flooring planks, rocks, concrete, wire, burlap, etc in it at times.
Royal oak in 2021 nothing but small pieces.
This is some good info. For the most part I've just used whatever what cheap at whichever store I'm at at the time.
I never get a bag of royal oak that looks like that one. Always a bunch of little pieces.
Glad I'm not the only one. It was all the store had when I went. So I grabbed it. I wasn't impressed at all
Thanks for doing this. I wonder about Kingsport?? I put alder in my smoker.... So good.