Different Types of Grills Produce Different Results: Info from a Company Providing Wood Stoves in Wausau, WI

Long gone are the days where dried hardwood was the only fuel source used for barbecue and grilling. Today there are all kinds of grills available, including pellet stoves and grills, charcoal grills, gas grills and electric grills, with charcoal and gas being far and away the most common.

None of these methods is objectively better than the other—it all comes down to personal preference, and what you value most in your grilling processes. However, you’ll definitely see some differences in the results that come with using these various types of grills. Let’s take a closer look at a few of these grilling options that are available to you.

Charcoal

Charcoal is almost pure carbon. Some people mistakenly believe charcoal is coal because of its name, but that’s not the case. It’s actually made from wood that was preburned in an oven that did not have much oxygen exposure. Think of the coals that get left behind in a fireplace or fire pit, not the coal that comes from mines.

When you burn charcoal in a smoker or grill, it gets hotter than wood and produces some combustion byproducts, though fewer of them than you’d get when burning wood. Different types of charcoal or wood can also produce different flavors, but in general people who use charcoal do it because they enjoy the smoky flavors that come with using charcoal grills.

Natural gas and propane

Gas grills have what’s called a “venture,” a special type of valve that blends oxygen and gas, similar to how a carburetor works in a vehicle. If there’s not enough oxygen, some of the fuel will get unburned and sooty, and that soot glows with an orange hue. If the fuel is properly blended, however, all the fuel will be burned and the flame will be almost blue.

The propane used for these grills comes in tanks, which you can have refilled nearly anywhere you purchase them. The benefit is that you have more control over temperature and can get the cooking done faster, but you don’t get the same flavor benefits you get from charcoal.

Electricity

Electric grills aren’t nearly as popular as charcoal and gas grills, but are still effective options for grilling foods. They’re popularly used indoors, as there is no flame but one can still use them to grill.

These cookers use a metal coil as a heat source. There’s no combustion gases and no flame. In some cases you can put wood chips on the electric coil, but the smoke is very much different, and will result in different tastes. Many grilling aficionados believe the taste of food grilled on an electric grill is inferior to that of gas or charcoal grills, because it is not as complex as the flavors that result from combustion.

For more information about the various types of grills and the effects they have on the foods you prepare, contact us today about our wood stoves in Wausau, WI.

Categorised in: Wood Stoves

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