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  1. #1
    Registered User hikermiker's Avatar
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    Default Match Ready Charcoal

    Has anyone used this to cook with? Does one produce enough heat to boil two cups of water? I am not intending to start a fire with it. I would use it with some sort of a tuna/cat food can as a stove.

  2. #2
    Registered User Maineiac64's Avatar
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    Why not bring denatured alcohol and save the hassle/mess?

  3. #3

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    I use charcoal all of the time when car or canoe camping. But its not something I'd want to use backpacking. For one thing, a charcoal briquette will burn for about an hour. This is far too long for what you will need it for, so you will be wasting most of your fuel as the only way you're going to put it out is to douse it with water and then its going to be worthless.

    But if you'd like to learn to cook with charcoal, check out these videos:

    Grilled Cheese...literally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apMvLW5OMgQ

    Cast iron skillet in a campground fire ring: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLgBA82aSy8

    Dinner rolls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUwj4i4twWM

    Pizza: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYP9aLBXFXY

    Focaccia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyTDK7MA510

    Baking bread: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gYNHEaqveo

  4. #4
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    Default Match Ready Charcoal

    I used to carry a small tin to gather dry coals from campsites as I go. Small charcoal fires are easy to put out and you can burn them on a flat rock rather than on the ground. I don't think I would carry anything that was presoaked with lighter fluid though. That smell is terrible.
    You can walk in another person's shoes, but only with your feet

  5. #5
    Journeyman Journeyer
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    I think this would work great for dry baking on the trail. Not so much for boiling water.

  6. #6
    Registered User kayak karl's Avatar
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    this is something you can test at home. try it and tell us how it works
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  7. #7
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    It always helps to have good bakeware. Super Ultralight Cast Iron.
    For backpacking, cooked and frozen ready to eat goodies from the supermarket would work. Heat them up the first night or the next morning.
    Good luck.
    Wayne


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  8. #8
    Registered User hikermiker's Avatar
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    Perhaps I did not make myself sufficiently clear. I have many stoves of various types. I do not cook at home or when picnicking with charcoal so I have no experience with Match ready Charcoal. When picnicking I cook on a grill with wood. I am not interested in carrying heavy cooking gear or baking. I would use one briquette per burn. Has anyone actually tried this?

  9. #9
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by hikermiker View Post
    Has anyone used this to cook with?
    The one time I used match ready charcoal in a grill to cook dinner, the food had a bit of a petroleum flavor.

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by hikermiker View Post
    Perhaps I did not make myself sufficiently clear. I have many stoves of various types. I do not cook at home or when picnicking with charcoal so I have no experience with Match ready Charcoal. When picnicking I cook on a grill with wood. I am not interested in carrying heavy cooking gear or baking. I would use one briquette per burn. Has anyone actually tried this?
    Like I said, a briquette will burn for an hour...you need to boil some water in under 5 minutes. Very wasteful of fuel and you will carry 10 times the weight in fuel. I've used charcoal before to boil water for coffee on car camping trips but I only did so because I was car camping and had charcoal on hand. I would never carry it in a backpack.

  11. #11
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    Sounds like a poor choice for backpacking. I have carried a wood stove (Sierra Zip stove) on a couple of long sections, but no more. Too much fuss and bother.

  12. #12

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    As someone already said, the kerosine or petroleum smell is significant. I think they work well if you put four or five briquettes under a pile of non treated briquettes start the pile up and wait 20 minutes or more for the pile to be ready and the smell to be burned off. I think that type of cooking is best suited for a Weber kettle out on the deck at home, not necessarily on the trail.

  13. #13

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    It wouldn't be too practical for a long trip, but for a one or two night trip, might work okay. You'll need something to contain the charcoal and act as a pot stand, a tin can with some holes poked into it would suffice. Charcoal fires are not allowed in some areas, but a one coal fire in a tin can could be an exception. Go ahead and try it at home, let us know how it goes...
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  14. #14
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    Default Match Ready Charcoal

    My experience with tuna can stoves and gathered charcoal is that no matter how many holes you punch in them they are to shallow to draw air in to feed your fire. Without a significant draw charcoal will smoulder and not generate enough heat to boil water. A set up that works is to light your coals on a large flat rock and use 3 or 4 smaller rocks to support your pot. As stated above, this would not be legal in many parks.
    You can walk in another person's shoes, but only with your feet

  15. #15
    Registered User hikermiker's Avatar
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    Thanks for your input. I cannot see buying several dozen briquettes for something that will likely be more of a pita than useful.

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