The primal scent of meat cooking over a wood fire cannot be matched on gas or charcoal
grills. The wood smoke adds its own irresistible flavor to the food, and the dry heat imparts a crisp crust and sears in the natural juices.
That's why, for many chefs, it's still the best way to grill. Charcoal may be lighter to transport, and gas easier to use, but neither gives the flavor that wood does.
But as much as wood grilling is used in restaurants, most people are intimidated at trying it on an outdoor grill. In fact, it's not hard to do. New products like instant-light
bags of wood chunks are intended to make it easy, but a regular chimney starter does the trick, too.
When Tom Colicchio was planning Gramercy Tavern, he wanted a wood-burning grill as a
focal point. "The hearth is the very heart and soul of a tavern," Mr. Colicchio said, so he had a massive J&R grill (made, appropriately, in Mesquite, Tex.) installed in the
passageway between the casual tavern and the formal dining rooms, where most customers walk past it. Mr. Colicchio, an owner of the restaurant and its chef, said the
Pennsylvania oak used to fire the grill costs $2,700 a month —— almost as much as the $3,000 for gas to fuel all the other stoves.
"Wood does something to food you just don't get from any other cooking medium," he said. Part of it is the scent and taste of the smoke, but another factor is the way the
high, dry heat of a wood fire sears in natural flavor and moistness.
The wood-grilled fare at Gramercy Tavern includes dishes like baby octopus salad; quail
stuffed with fennel, raisins and foie gras; and filets mignons with balsamic onion relish. Gramercy's staff seasons the food with salt and pepper, but deliberately eschews rubs
or marinades. "We want you to taste the natural flavors of the fish or meat and wood smoke," Mr. Colicchio said.
Frank DeCarlo, the chef and an owner of Peasant in SoHo, is another champion of wood grilling. "Most chefs try to go in a new direction," Mr. DeCarlo said. He took his
inspiration for Peasant from kitchens in Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia and Henry VIII's palace, Hampton Court. "I want to recapture the tastes of the past," he said. He burns
only hardwood and charcoal, using them in the grill, the rotisserie, the oven and even the sautéé burners.
I often add wood chips or chunks to a charcoal fire to impart a smoke flavor. But I had
always assumed that true wood grilling —— the sort using wood as the actual fuel, not just the smoking medium —— required the kind of industrial-strength grill found only in a restaurant.
Then I met Jerry Lawson. Mr. Lawson is the chief executive of WW Wood Inc., which calls itself the largest producer of cooking wood in the United States. His steaks, grilled
over fragrant mesquite, have more than just a charcoaled flavor —— you can taste the pungent tang of the wood smoke.
A few weeks later, I bought a bag of hickory chunks at my local hardware store. I lighted them in a chimney starter, exactly as I would charcoal, and in 20 minutes had a
bed of embers. The veal chops and asparagus I served that night were some of the best that had ever come off my grill. The wood imparted a smoke flavor and seemed to
give the chops a darker, more robust, richer-tasting crust.
When grilling for one or two people, a single chimney starter full of chunks will be enough. For larger crowds, use several starters.
Wood is a cleaner, purer fuel than charcoal. "Wood leaves less than 2 percent residual ash when burned," Mr. Lawson said. "Charcoal leaves 18 to 28 percent ash." Even the
casual observer will see that wood ash is lighter and fluffier than charcoal ash.
Ken Rogers, a wood technologist for the State Forestry Department in Texas, said wood
contains flavor-producing compounds called volatile extractives. They literally go up in smoke when the wood is burned, depositing color and flavor on the food. As befits a
Texan, Mr. Rogers likes mesquite best for wood grilling.
The Barbecue Industry Association says mesquite is the most popular grilling wood in
the United States, followed closely by hickory. Mesquite is certainly the fuel of choice in Texas, elsewhere in the Southwest and in Hawaii (where it is called kiawe). Hickory is
preferred in the South and the Midwest. Mesquite burns the hottest and has the most pronounced flavor. It also has a tendency to pop and shoot sparks, which can be
disconcerting to a new user. Almost all wood produces leaping flames when lighted, so be sure there are no overhanging plants, trees, umbrellas or canopies. Never light a grill under a carport.
For the moment, wood grilling is only a tiny part of the American barbecue experience. (Last year, grill owners bought nearly a million tons of charcoal and only 18,000 tons of
wood.) But its popularity is growing.
Those who try wood are likely to become converts. Once you've tasted food grilled over wood, it's hard to go back to charcoal.
