A good barbecue and caravanning go hand in hand, so when Jealous Devil offered to send me a kit of its latest products, I was keen to see what the fuss was about. Jealous Devil’s range of firelighters, wood blocks and charcoal is imported from the USA, where barbecuing is embraced with religious fervour if any of their cooking shows are an indication.
While not a charcoal cooking master by any stretch, I enjoy food on a fire and like the natural flavours from this cooking style on a small portable unit with a grid that we carry in the van. My first effort with the Jealous Devil was a limited success. I was using the Whiskey Barrel Smoke Wood Blocks, and the smoky flavour imparted to the T-bone saved the meal, but it cooked slowly, and I realised the coals weren’t hot enough. The infused wood blocks come in three styles of natural hardwood, including Hickory and Cherry, which should add a distinctive flavour to your meal. The blocks we used were aged Tennessee Whiskey barrels and come in 3.6kg packs priced at $35 AU.
After a bit of research, my solution to the slow action of the charcoal was to make a suitable charcoal starter or charcoal chimney from some stainless-steel tube and wire mesh from the recycler. I noticed you can buy one at camping shops for as low as $7, but I liked the rugged backwoods idea of making it from scratch. Half-filling the new furnace with MAX XL Charcoal Briquettes (made of all natural ingredients including pure quebracho hardwood) and lighting it up with a Boom! Firestarter gave a generous amount of glowing charcoal in about 15 minutes. These Jealous Devil Boom! Firestarters (RRP $17.95 AU) are odourless, smokeless and water-resistant, and one fire starter can burn for more than 20 minutes without any petroleum-based smells to spoil the flavour. They aren’t cheap, but they are designed to light in damp conditions, so they will be handy to keep for special times, and I was impressed with how long they burned.
Once transferred into the fire pit from the starter, the briquettes kept burning for a controllable high heat, and the steaks were soon cooked to perfection. I added some zucchini from the garden for a charcoal grill treat and completed the meal with a light red — restaurant quality cuisine on the road.
One of the things I like about Jealous Devil’s products is their convenience. The durable packaging makes them easy to transport, and as we always carry our fire pit, we found a perfect spot in the front boot of the van to include a couple of boxes of Jealous Devil charcoal and the new starter.
All Jealous Devil products are available on Amazon and at your Mitre 10 local store nationwide.
Some other highly rated products include the Jealous Devil lump charcoal (made with quebracho blanco wood) and Jealous Devil onyx binchotan charcoal.
For additional information, please visit the Jealous Devil website.
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