Things You'll Need:
- Charcoal briquettes
- Lighter fluid
- Long-handled tongs
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Step 1
Place the grill on a level surface outside away from buildings, trees, brush or anything else that may catch fire. Never use a grill inside, because charcoal grills produce carbon-dioxide fumes that are toxic. Make sure that your grill is in a location out of the wind to ensure sparks will not blow on people or flammable objects.
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Step 2
Inspect your grill to ensure that everything fits together snugly and that it is clean. Also, make sure the ash kettle is attached to the grill.
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Step 3
Place the briquettes into a pyramid. Use approximately 30 briquettes for every pound of meat you intend to cook. A five-pound bag of charcoal will hold between 75 to 80 briquettes. Make sure you use enough briquettes so that they will extend about two to three inches beyond the food when placed in a single row.
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Step 4
Apply approximately half a cup of lighter fluid. Wait a few minutes for the fluid to soak into the charcoal. If you don't want to use lighter fluid, you can use crumpled newspaper instead by placing it underneath your briquettes.
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Step 5
Make sure the bottom vent on your grill is open all the way before lighting. Use a long-handled match or lighter and ignite the briquettes.
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Step 1
Wait until the fire dies to rearrange the coals.Wait about ten minutes after lighting the briquettes, until the flame dies.
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Step 2
Rearrange the coals so they are in a single layer in the grill. Make sure that any coals that are not hot are touching the ones that are. You can place the lid on the grill if you choose.
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Step 3
Coals will appear glowing red at night.Check the grill to see if it is ready to use after 20 minutes. When the majority of the coals are covered with a white ash, the grill is ready to use. The briquettes will look ash gray during the day, but will be glowing red at night.
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Step 4
Test the temperature of your grill by holding your hand palm down over the grill at cooking height and counting how many seconds you can hold it there: two seconds means it's high while five seconds means it's low.
