An American Story

The history of grilling at Kingsford is a classic American story. It all started in 1919 when Edward G. Kingsford helped Henry Ford procure a stretch of timberland to supply wood for his auto plants.

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Kingsford® Preserve the Pit

Kingsford remains committed to celebrating Black barbecue culture by launching the second year of Preserve the Pit and doubling the investment in aspiring barbecue professionals.

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American Pride

An American-made company founded over 100 years ago, Kingsford has a lot to be proud of. Our employees have been continuing the family tradition in backyards across the nation.

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Kingsford®

Professional Briquets

(558 Reviews)

Exclusively at Costco

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  • 100% Natural Ingredients
  • Made in the USA with North American Ingredients
  • High Heat
  • Low Ash

Kingsford® Professional Briquets are made in the USA with North American ingredients, 100% natural and premium wood char to ensure professional-quality results. They provide a hotter burn* that’s perfect for searing flavor into any of your favorite meats. They also feature Kingsford’s lowest ash formula, making them great for ceramic grills and smokers. They’re ready to grill on in about 10 minutes, and deliver high heat and a consistent burn time every time. Available in 2x18-lb. bags.

* Compared to nationally available conventional charcoal
Pairs well with this recipe

ROSEMARY, FENNEL & CHILI FLAKE RUBBED BONE-IN PORK CHOP WITH GRILLED APPLES AND POTATOES

Comfort food never tasted so good — ideal for fall or any time of the year, enjoy this classic pork chop dinner with just the right amount of savory and sweet.

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How to grill with charcoal

Everything you need to know about grilling with classic Kingsford® charcoal and charcoal grills.

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Reviews
4.6
558 Reviews
Rated 5 out of 5 by from This is awesome charcoal that is long burning and stays hot. This is easier to start the fire burning than the original Kingdord. If you purchase at Costco it is good deal in double packs.
Date published: 2020-10-02
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Great charcoal for green egg I've tested many brands of charcoal in my Green Egg, and Kingsford Professional gets it hot far quicker than any other I've tried, and the heat lasts for hours as well. I was grilling at full temperature within half an hour the first time instead of the normal hour to 90 minutes! Overkill for a tailgate but great for a serious ceramic griller. I just wish it was more widely available because it's hard to find.
Date published: 2020-10-02
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Kingsford Professional I bought Kingsford Professional Charcoal and I did not like it at all. I only use kingsford but never again will I purchase that professional. It burt my food had to take first batch off and start a second one. meat is expensive enough. It lit up my whole back yard that's how high the flames were
Date published: 2020-09-25
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Briquettes for PitMasters ONLY! These briquettes are HIGH-OCTANE FUEL that’s build for the Big Boys that know how manage their fire! These are PERFECT for an offset smoker IF you know oxygenation, airflow and basic fire management. Kingsford, please ignore everyone that complain about them being “too hot.” Because these are the people that put high-octane gas in their V8 engine and then blame the car and the fuel caused them to lose control, crash and burn. There’s no such thing as “too hot charcoal” unless you’re a Burger King grill boy added “too much fuel” couldn’t manage their fire. These Big Boys are a masterpiece and have officially set the standard in my Kingsford 36 in. Ranchers XL Charcoal Smoker. Salute.
Date published: 2020-09-18
Rated 2 out of 5 by from They Burn Too Fast and Hot My experience has been the same as others have noted. I only cook with Kingsford, have used the blue and white bag for years. I bought these new professional ones, a double bagger, at Costco. They just burn way too fast and hot. My burgers got torched. I've tried using fewer coals, spreading them out, all of the usual tricks, but they just don't burn properly. I'm switching back to the original. Not sure what the idea was for this product but it doesn't work for me.
Date published: 2020-08-19
Rated 2 out of 5 by from Burn too hot we have a large smoker and grill for srveral hours with the regular charcoal. Kingsford being the only brand we use, bought the 2 large bags at Costco and we were quite disappointed. Burned too hot scorching the food. We had to add extra wood to keep the fire going and didn't last nowhere near as long as the regular. Not going to buy this one again.
Date published: 2020-08-02
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Who is ready for the grill? I live using these brand when we have cook outs! It leaves a nice smoky taste to the food and is affordable! Now I want to grill .
Date published: 2020-07-25
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Poor metallic or chemical taste I have used Kingsford original charcoal for over forty years with great results. I recently bought and used Kingsford professional and was totally disappointed that it left a chemical or metallic taste on the food,making it inedible.. unfortunately I have four bags to dispose of. I will to use Kingsford original but I would like a response to this problem.
Date published: 2020-07-24
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Burns too fast Purchased a 2 pack of "Pro" briquettes at Costco. Usually one chimney fills the Weber Performer and keeps it hot enough to cook a round of burgers. 12-15 1/4 pound patties. These briquettes went too cold before I was done cooking. I had to heat up another chimney to finish my burgers. Having to pull the cooking grate fully loaded was a pain in the butt. I won't be buying the "Pro" briquettes again.
Date published: 2020-07-13
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Extremely disappointing I've been a proud Kingsford briquette user for twenty years. The regular and slow burn charcoal is wonder; the so-called professional briquettes are garbage. I bought a two bag pack at BJ's hoping to maximize my results. Instead, grilling on my Weber uses 1.5 times the amount of professional charcoal compared to their regular briquettes because it turns to ash so quickly and the temp drops. Forget about adding wood chips on top. I've had to finish grill sessions in the oven. On the Smoky Mountain, I had to reload TWO full chimneys of professional briquettes over a 16 hour burn, which is unheard of with regular Kingsford. Not worth the $23 I spent for the to pack!
Date published: 2020-07-03
Rated 3 out of 5 by from it's ok for the price my first impression on these is the massive amount of smoke when ignited they also shrunk quite a bit after a few minutes compared to the competition they did not burn as hot and took aproximately a bit over 30 mins for them to be ready for my steaks, not the best but a decent price at costco @ 20 for 2 16lbs bags, i'll stick to b&b for serious business and use these for casual grillin'
Date published: 2020-06-17
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Burns hotter and longer versus their regular briqu I started buying the Professional Briquets a few years ago for cooking in a Weber Kettle. Costco sells the 2 pack for a great price. I have been very pleased with the results. It burns for hours and I can control the temperature a lot better.
Date published: 2020-05-30
Rated 3 out of 5 by from Where did the heat go? Once my charcoal turned ash color I put steaks on the grill and the charcoal almost immediately just died. Had to take steaks off and put on more charcoal. Meanwhile my company just had to wait. I have used Kingsford forever and have only had this happen a couple of times. Bad batch maybe???
Date published: 2020-05-25
Rated 3 out of 5 by from Professional briquettes Professional briquettes what happened to the competition Briquettes are these going to be the same
Date published: 2020-05-19
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Really red hot coals This charcoal really holds the red hot heat needed to char a really thick steak or slow cook a brisket or shoulder .
Date published: 2020-05-03
Rated 5 out of 5 by from I've switched to these from now on. My wife brought home a 2 18 pound bag pack from a local big box store. I was kind of bummed because I only use Royal Oak lump in my BGE. Have for years. Well, I tried these and was amazed. Great and even heat, which holds for a long time. Easy to light, uniform in shape, and food comes out great. Sold!
Date published: 2020-04-19
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Performs As Claimed I use lump charcoal for the most part. However, I do use briquets on occasion. I have tried a couple of bags of this new to me Professional Briquet. My experience has been that they burn a little hotter and cleaner than Kingsford regular blue. They definitely leave less ash behind. A nice thing as I dislike having to remove ash from my Weber kettle. I am good at working the kettle sweep and removing the ash bucket but it makes a mess not matter how careful you are. Also, I think the smoke aroma is a little cleaner than most briquets. They cost more than the blue bag stuff, but I don't mind paying more for a superior product.
Date published: 2020-01-06
Rated 5 out of 5 by from This is the Greatest ever invented I was shocked and proud of using this product for the first time this is the only brand and kind I will use from now on I love this product and forever will cherish the kingford brand in my home thank you
Date published: 2019-12-11
Rated 5 out of 5 by from A Beautiful Burn! If you use another (it's not King) smell@mybackyard
Date published: 2019-11-08
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Best briquets ever The best and the only briquets I will ever use! Love Kingsford pro charcoal
Date published: 2019-10-22
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Outstanding I’ve used lump charcoal and Kingsford original. First time I used the professional I was amazed at the quality of the steady burn and the amount of powdered ash at the end. Burns so clean it crazy.
Date published: 2019-09-14
Rated 5 out of 5 by from It's Awesome! My Husband swears by it. If there's any complaint, it's not the Charcoal, it's the operator. My husband cooked a briscut for 15 hours with the Professional Charcoal. I think he used 3 Rows , like 144 briquets. He made a horseshoe shape in the Webber. Its was So Delicious...
Date published: 2019-09-09
Rated 4 out of 5 by from Holy God in heaven they're hot Dude.... These coals work great, but Jesus Christ they're hot. I burnt my ever loving nipples off trying to cook some burgers. I'm sure it works great for melting steel beams, but for the average burger or chicken breast it's a bit over kill. Still love you guys. Let's find some middle ground: Ryan.
Date published: 2019-09-02
Rated 2 out of 5 by from Unburned Wood? Not chancing it with low & slow I bought a 2-pack at Costco for about $20. Great price. My goal was to do a brisket low and slow on a Weber Kettle. Original Kingsford in a snake was not quite hot enough, lat time so I though these would be perfect after reading a good review on the original “competition” briquets. Upon opening, I discovered that they have small unburned wood incorporated, similar to Kingsford’s Hickory, Mesquite, etc. briquets. Problem is I don’t know what the wood is. Packaging has no information on it, and I have not found any on the web. Packaging only states that it contains North American Hardwood char. I do not think Kingsford is trying to be deceptive, but some of the combustible material is clearly not char. I did a test burn and noticed that although they are hotter than Kingsford original (a little), they a put off a lot of smoke. Wish I knew what flavor it would impart, but I can take a chance on a 20lb brisket. I’ve read other reviews that suggest that the smokiness goes way down after the burn “matures” a bit. Low and slow cooking usually means new briquets are being ignited throughout the cook. These briquets may be fine for very hot direct cooking but they will not suit my needs without more information. That brings into question the whole “professional” and “competition” nomenclature. If Kingsford had done a little bit better communicating the contents, it would have saved me significant trouble. Luckily I had some originals that I could use. I’ll still need to haul them back and stand in the infamous return line. I may just give them away.
Date published: 2019-08-25
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Great product. I Have been getting rave reviews on my BBQ and these briquets are part of the reason. They burn very hot, which is what you want, and provide a mouth watering taste. Yes, the smoke is a bit acrid while you're cooking, and they are consumed somewhat faster than regular briquets, but it is very easy to exactly titrate and gauge the heat you want. In other word, I get a great sense of control of the fire using these. Also, the amount of smoke produced is less. Highly recommended. I just started adding large pieces of Kamado lump charcoal mixed in with these to extend the fire, and it works just fine. Have fun, that's what it is all about.
Date published: 2019-08-25
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Not good for smoking or long cooks. I used to use Kingsford "Competition", which I was only able to find at Cosco. Now they only carry the Pro brand and it is not as good. Used it for the first time and am not pleased at all, this product is not the same, and not nearly as good as the "Competition" brand. I use the Minion method, and these are not good for that at all. When you use in a smoker, not all the coals are burning at once, however, this brand has an acrid foul tasting and smelling smoke as it lights up. They are ok once fully lit, but this is not a product good for smoking at all since you are always adding that foul smoke. I will use this up on my grill for burgers and the I will need to find a different product for my smoker. I miss the competition recipe.
Date published: 2019-07-31
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Terrible performance Calling these briquettes pro grade is a misnomer. What pro would use them is a mystery. Touted as burning hotter, longer is misleading. Poor heat and no staying power. Burned out too fast. Have always had long steady cooks with the original with better heat control and longer lasting burn. Drop this product or create one that stands up to the marketing.
Date published: 2019-07-25
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Horrible Wet Product I bought two bas of your charcoal from Wal Mart today. Tried to light it four times it was so wet that it put our the lighter. Your product is junk I threw the bags away and will never never buy this junk again. I will by foreign made charcoal before I buy a Kingsford product again. Junk, Junk Junk
Date published: 2019-07-22
Rated 2 out of 5 by from Smokey, expensive and not for Kamados Bought it to try in a Kamado Grill inasmuch as this so labeled "professional" charcoal is advertised as working in ceramic grills. It is also touted as being low ash. I was amazed at how much smoke these briquets produced versus lump charcoal. Not good. These briquets took a while to get going, and after a while they cooked fine. Not low ash at all! Purchased it online; and it is extremely expensive for what you get ($2.37 per pound). If you did want to purchase it locally it is not readily available in the North Georgia metro area. Tried Home Depot and Lowes. Not there. Emailed Kingsford who said I could buy it at CVS or Target. None there either. Not recommended by this buyer. Lump is still the king for Kamado grills.
Date published: 2019-07-18
Rated 4 out of 5 by from Not bad , does burn hot It does burn hot, but not sure I would not have grabbed the original, but grat sale price at Costco.
Date published: 2019-07-04
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