Setting up your charcoal on the Huntsman - Getting to Temp

The 5mm carbon steel that makes the Huntsman such an efficient and sturdy cooking machine can take a little getting used to, as it has different heating requirements than your typical kettle grill. Here are some of our best tips & tricks for setting up your charcoal for the perfect cook.

Low & Slow: For low and slow cooks (275 F or less), we recommend starting with a large pile (at least a charcoal chimney full) of unlit coals. If you want to be conservative, light a fire starter or two under your coals, and set your Venom for your desired temp. A faster approach with a higher risk of overshooting your temp is to do something similar to the minion method - topping your unlit coals with a small handful of red-hot charcoal.

Hot & Fast: For temps 275 F or higher, you'll want to get a hot start with plenty of charcoal available to keep the fire going. For high temps, we recommend starting with the same large pile (a chimney full at least) of charcoal, and topping this with a large amount (another chimney) of fully lit, red-hot coals. The lit coals will do the work of heating your 5mm steel all the way through, while the unlit coals keep your temps stable and your fire burning.

Shut Down: When you're done with your cook, turn off your Venom and shut the draft door and top vents on the Huntsman. The heat efficiency of the 5mm steel not only means your charcoal will burn longer, it also means you'll have more usable charcoal left over when you're done with a cook.

Check out the video below to see this set up in action.