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named). Briquettes are cheap, versatile and, best of all, you can use them to build a fun little pyramid, douse it with lighter fluid and ignite a flame they can see from the Interna tional Space Station. For style points, however, never use a charcoal lighter fluid to start natural lump coal. I mean, you can do it — you could set your car on fire with lighter fluid, too — but my parole officer tells me that’s not what it’s made for. Lighter fluid is the exclusive domain of charcoal briquettes in a regular barbecue grill. Lump coal has its own special needs. Rouses sells natural starters that use paraffin wax to get a natural lump coal going, and you can adjust the ventilation of your grill to do the rest. THE HEAT IS ON Regardless of which type of charcoal you use, once you get a good flame going in your grill, ventilation is also how you regulate the temperature before or during cooking. After the coals get good and hot, the first step is to use a metal grill spatula to spread the charcoal in an even layer. If your grill is large enough, it’s a good idea to leave a little spot somewhere in the pit with no charcoal beneath that portion of the grill. That way, if you find you are overcooking a piece of meat, you can move it to a “cool zone.” After your charcoal is evenly spread and smoldering, you’re going to want to track how hot it is. When reading recipes, keep in mind that the surface temperature of a grill is not the same as the internal temperature of your meat. (Again, it seems obvious, but half of you are going to blow yourselves up next Thanksgiving by deep-frying a frozen turkey. I’m trying to save you, reader.) Eventually, you’ll develop an instinctive feel for how hot a grill is based on the ambient and radiating heat and the condition of the coals, but until then, a grill thermometer can take a lot of guesswork out of the equation. Medium heat is about 350◦F. High heat is 450◦F or higher. If you want to get your grill hotter, open the vent at the bottom to increase its ventilation. If you want it cooler, close the vent at the bottom. (One of the advantages of propane grills is the ability to be very precise in your heating. To make a propane grill hotter, turn the knob to “high.” To make it cooler, turn the knob to “low.”) Cook times and temperatures are going to vary based on what you are cooking and how thick it is. According to the U.S.

PHOTO BY ROMNEY CARUSO

The choice of technique depends mostly on howmuch time you have and howmuch beer you plan to drink. Here is a little rhyme to help you remember: Case or two? Smoke or ’cue. Six-pack to kill? Go for the grill.

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