Fire Starters

Lighter Fluid. Made with liquid butane, lighter fluid ignites easily and speeds the combustion of charcoal. Some charcoal is impregnated with a form of lighter fluid so that you don’t have to squirt it on. We prefer not to use lighter fluid or impregnated charcoal because petroleum products can lend an off flavor to foods. But the truth is that if you use lighter fluid carefully, squirting it only onto your fuel source, the petroleum will burn off by the time the coals are ready. We resort to lighter fluid only for large mounds of coals in big grills. If you use it, be careful not to squirt any on the sides of your grill because petroleum fumes will burn off more slowly there and may give your food a distasteful aroma.