Charcoal...a question for Fuzz

[El Presidente]

Sorry, no (Cuban) cigar. Just charcoal. Marabu charcoal.

http://www.pri.org/stories/2017-01-06/marabu-charcoal-first-cuban-export-us-50-years

 

There you go, the first legal export from Cuba to the USA in 50 years 

Now some of you may not know that mod Chris (Fuzz) is the Australian king of Charcoal running a highly successful charcoal import and distribution business. 

I am a charcoal nong but for my Feb birthday will be getting a charcoal cooker for home. 

So Fuzz....what can you tell us of this "marabu" charcoal?  How does it compare to the best available? What is the best available?

For other charcoal aficionado's .....what do you use?

 

PRI's The World

[Fuzz]

Seen it a lot, not just from Cuba, but also from South America, India, Africa, etc (also known as Chinese Lantern Tree or Kalahari Christmas Tree). Had a few people trying to sell me Cuban marabu charcoal only a few months ago. Marabu is actually an invasive species brought to Cuba in the 19th century. Apparently, there are places in Cuba that have become overrun with marabu.

I don't usually rate South American/Caribbean charcoal very highly, to be honest. Test burns I've done have shown it to burn hot (not the hottest, mind you), but for a short amount of time, compared to other charcoal available in Australia. We do not get any US charcoal in Australia for comparison. It is a fairly inexpensive charcoal, if you don't take into account shipping.

[jay8354]

I think for Australia, we usually use Lump Charcoal. Fuzz sells a large variety of Charcoal (Sawdust Compressed, Coconut, Mangrove, Binchotan).

Most BBQ application, Fuzz will advise on using Mangrove Lump.

There are also local charcoal from our local hardwood, so depends on what is your personal preference and usage.

Open Disclosure - I am biased since Fuzz is my best mate so you know who I am going to support.

[jay8354]

Rob - Are you getting a Texas Smoker (like Frank)? Or a Webber?

[El Presidente]

I have a cookshack 260  already so no need to get something too complicated. 

More for those 2-6 hr jobs

[Fuzz]

38 minutes ago, jay8354 said:

I think for Australia, we usually use Lump Charcoal. Fuzz sells a large variety of Charcoal (Sawdust Compressed, Coconut, Mangrove, Binchotan).

Most BBQ application, Fuzz will advise on using Mangrove Lump.

There are also local charcoal from our local hardwood, so depends on what is your personal preference and usage.

Open Disclosure - I am biased since Fuzz is my best mate so you know who I am going to support.

For most bbq applications (in Aus, that is), I'd recommend lump over briquettes (whether they be Heat Beads, Kingsford Briquettes, or sawdust/coconut briquettes). For people who have smokers, some do like to use charcoal, whereas others don't want charcoal to impact the smoke wood flavour. In those cases, I recommend sawdust/coconut briquettes, as they have a neutral aroma. Plus, they burn longer at a lower temp than lump, and don't have any chemical additives.

[PapaDisco]

What kind of flavors come from Mangrove charcoal?

Over here I use principally mesquite (for turkeys/chicken) and oak for the rest.  Nothing too adventurous. 

[Ryan]

I had heard about the problem of Marabu in Cuba before. Charcoal making is a great use of an invasive plant. I hope it works out well for them.

I'm not too sure about the working conditions for the producers, Nino has posted before about them, he has visited them often. Still, it's a job.

[Jeremy Festa]

Far canal mate! This is an eye opener! I get Tosa and Kishu Binchotan for my Konro. Way too often. For the average price of a black market human kidney. What is the best long and clean burning you have? What say you?


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[CaptainQuintero]

1 hour ago, Jeremy Festa said:

Far canal mate! This is an eye opener! I get Tosa and Kishu Binchotan for my Konro. Way too often. For the average price of a black market human kidney. What is the best long and clean burning you have? What say you?


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I thought you were still working your way through the skulls of your vanquished enemies? They not giving an even burn?

[Nino]

13 hours ago, Ryan said:

I had heard about the problem of Marabu in Cuba before. Charcoal making is a great use of an invasive plant. I hope it works out well for them.

I'm not too sure about the working conditions for the producers, Nino has posted before about them, he has visited them often. Still, it's a job.

The charcoal people in the Zapata swamps do not use Marabu for their coal. They use mangrove trees. See my pictures.

http://flyingcigar.de/travel-cigars/201204-cuba-caleta-buena-and-swamp-charcoal/

I re-visited twice last year and nothing has changed, they still get paid 2 Cuban pesos or 10 cents$ for a bag of charcoal.

[jay8354]

12 hours ago, Jeremy Festa said:

Far canal mate! This is an eye opener! I get Tosa and Kishu Binchotan for my Konro. Way too often. For the average price of a black market human kidney. What is the best long and clean burning you have? What say you?


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I believe that @Fuzz would recommend his compressed Sawdust for heat and long burn.

When I do a long cook in my Akorn, I generally do a 50/50 of either compressed Sawdust or Coconut logs, with the rest being lump.

[Fuzz]

15 hours ago, PapaDisco said:

What kind of flavors come from Mangrove charcoal?

Over here I use principally mesquite (for turkeys/chicken) and oak for the rest.  Nothing too adventurous. 

Mangrove charcoal has a slight sweet, peppery aroma. If you've been to Sth East Asia and had bbq from street vendors, that's what they are using. Mangrove goes well with pear and apple smoking woods.

13 hours ago, Jeremy Festa said:

Far canal mate! This is an eye opener! I get Tosa and Kishu Binchotan for my Konro. Way too often. For the average price of a black market human kidney. What is the best long and clean burning you have? What say you?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm currently out of stock of binchotan (stock is on backorder for another customer in Sydney). I used to buy mine from Thailand, made from a Thai eucalpyt, as it is impossible for me to get any Japanese binchotan in a reasonable commercial quantity. The art is dying out in Japan, the material is becoming more scarce, and binchotan is now used in other products (toothbrushes, water filters, cosmetics, etc. Some people are even using it as decorative air purifiers.

I have a customer up in Qld trying to get a few Japanese restaurants to test my new samples.

48 minutes ago, jay8354 said:

I believe that @Fuzz would recommend his compressed Sawdust for heat and long burn.

When I do a long cook in my Akorn, I generally do a 50/50 of either compressed Sawdust or Coconut logs, with the rest being lump.

Depends, really. Some people like to pay extra for binchotan, as it is has some qualities that make it better than briquettes. Namely, no flame or sparks and extremely low ash residue. On the other hand, you are paying $70+ for just 2kg of Japanese binchotan, compared to $18-$20 for 10kg of briquettes. I was selling my Thai binchotan for $50 for 10kg.