Lump Charcoal
Carbonised wood and nothing else. Lights faster, burns hotter, leaves less ash.
Briquettes
Uniform, predictable and the fuel every low and slow technique was written around.
Hardwood Briquettes
The long, steady burn of a briquette with the clean flavour of pure hardwood.
Binchotan
Japanese white charcoal. Almost no smoke, almost no flame, four hours of even radiant heat.
Coconut Shell Charcoal
Made from coconut shell waste. Very long burning, very low ash, often in briquette form.
Smoking Wood
Chunks, chips and splits. Wood is a seasoning and it is easy to use far too much.
Firelighters and Starters
Chimney starters and natural firelighters. Never lighter fluid.
Gas and Propane
Bottles, regulators and the safety kit for gas cookers.
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What to know before you buy
Fuel is the cheapest meaningful upgrade available to most cooks and the one they think about least. Better charcoal burns hotter, lasts longer, leaves less ash and tastes cleaner, and the price difference across a season is small.
The short version: lump for searing and kamado work, briquettes for anything where you need to hold a temperature for hours, binchotan for konro grilling, and never anything pre-soaked in lighter fluid.