Fill your grill with charcoal to the line inside (leaving a few inches from where the cooking grid will lay). I used Big Green Egg 100 Percent Organic Lump Charcoal, made entirely out of "carbonized wood." The benefits of using natural lump charcoal are countless. You won't need lighter fluid. You can use less charcoal. It quickly and easily lights up yet lasts longer. Most importantly, it doesn't impart any chemical flavors in the food.
**If you already have charcoal in your grill from a previous cookout, you can use it again. Just be sure to rake out any pieces of ash and clean out the ash door (located at the bottom of the grill). Double check the air holes in the firebox to ensure they aren't clogged with ash as it can limit air flow. Clean them out too. Then, fill the remaining grill with new charcoal.
