Richard J Kinch wrote:
Warren writes:

The whole point of grilling is to get the flavor that you can
only get with charcoal.

There is no flavor from a charcoal fire. It is nearly pure carbon
emitting
hot CO2 and H20, heated air, and radiation. Just like gas.

The flavor is from the heat intensity and distribution, the
ventilation of
fresh air instead of trapping various vapors, the volatilization of
drippings, the lack of old cooking residues, etc.. A charcoal fire
happens
to produce favorable versions of all these factors, but the charcoal
itself
is a tasteless fuel, as is gas. Gas can approach charcoal in these
regards, but it is hard to maintain that quality as crud builds up and
weather/heat-cycling corrodes.


Okay Mr. Science. But the flavor isn't from the heat. It's from the
smoke produced by the incomplete combustion of the wood in the
charcoal -- something you don't have with gas which is more fully
combusted.

If all I want is to heat the meat, I can use any source. But I like the
flavor of charcoal smoke in my steak. You can't get that with gas. The
best you can hope for is the flavor of the smoke from burning fat
drippings, which I prefer to avoid no matter what the heat source.

--
Warren H.

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