By Carolyn Owen
To get the most out of your Solo Stove fire pit, grill, or camping stove, you need to use the right fuel for the job. Our fire pits and camping stoves are known for burning wood, while the Solo Stove Grill is our hero of the charcoal grilling game. But there’s one type of fuel they all burn in common: chunk wood. Read on to learn more about the best ways to use chunk wood in your Solo Stove.
Using Chunk Wood in a Solo Stove
Cooking
Whether it’s over your Grill or using your Fire Pit Cooking System, chunk wood can be your go-to when you’re looking for smoky flavors. After chunk wood is reduced to embers, it delivers rich smoky flavors, and stays lit as long as you feed the fire. Use a combination of charcoal and chunk wood to turn up the smoke in your Grill, and impress everyone next time you want to add smoky flavors to your food.
Gathering
To fill your Fire Pit with chunk wood would require a whole shopping cart of the stuff. That being said, sometimes you just want to sit around your fire for another 20 minutes instead of another hour or two. A layer of chunk wood over a bed of coals is a great way to get just a little more fire out of your night.
Camping
Smaller pieces of chunk wood are the perfect and easiest fuel to gather for your camping stove. If you’re planning a day hike, a few chunks could be all you need at the top of a trail when you’re ready to break out your campground coffee setup. If wood chunks aren’t your style, wood chips are an even more compact option that store easily and deliver the same fire power.
Types of Chunk Wood
When selecting a type of chunk wood, make sure you’re getting a hardwood. Softwoods, or woods with lots of sap, have a hard time reaching high temperatures. If you’re cooking or just trying to feel some warmth, hardwoods are the way to go. No matter what, it’s a good rule of thumb to get one more bag than you think you’ll need. Never hurts to be prepared! Here’s what to expect from some of the most beloved chunk wood varieties:
Apple
Apple wood has a very mild, subtly sweet flavor. It’s great for any meat, but goes particularly well with beef, chicken, and seafood.
Cherry
Cherry wood produces a gentle smoke with tangy, fruity flavors. It’s perfect for lighter meats like chicken, seafood, and vegetables.
Hickory
Hickory smoke is a bit thicker than fruit flavored woods, and yields an unmistakable rustic flavor that pairs well with any meat, beef and pork especially.
Maple
Maple wood should be your go-to for a strictly sweet smoke flavor. This mild smoking wood goes best with poultry and small game birds.
Mesquite
A nice even smoke from a piece of mesquite is the key to getting a western flavor cooked into your chow. It’s very partial to beef and chicken.
Peach
Peach wood is a lighter weight than other hardwoods, creating mild smoke. Expect a slightly sweet and fruity flavor that pairs well with chicken, seafood, and veggies.
Pecan
Pecan wood produces similar flavors to hickory, but has a more mild smoke. Use this classic wood to add flavor to any meat you’d like!
Oak
Oak is the perfect wood to mix in for some extra smoke, no matter what you’ve got going on. It’s a do-it-all type of chunk wood with a moderate smoke that’s perfect for novices and pros alike.
We’d love to see your Solo Stove in action using chunk wood! To share photos of your memories with us, enter our monthly photo contest here.