Braai Tips: How to Become a Braai Master — Fire, Wood and Timing

Nobody becomes a braai master by buying a bigger braai. It comes down to four things: the wood you use, how
you build the fire, whether you can read your coals, and whether you have the patience to wait for them.

1. Start with the right wood

Everything downstream depends on this. Dense, dry hardwood gives you heat you can control; damp or soft
wood gives you a fire that flares, dies, and smokes your food in the meantime. If you take one thing from this
page, take that.

Not sure which to buy? Sekelbos is the forgiving all-rounder, and
Swarthaak is the one you want when the cooking is going to take hours.

2. Build the fire so air can move

Fire needs airflow. Stack your wood so air can get in underneath and between the pieces — a loose pyramid
or a criss-cross works. A pile of wood dumped on top of a firelighter smothers itself and you end up relighting
it three times while everyone pretends not to notice.

Use proper firelighters and a handful of
kindling. Light it in two or three places, then leave it alone. Poking a young
fire is the most common way to kill one.

3. Wait for coals, not flames

This is where most braais go wrong. Flames char the outside and leave the inside raw. What you want is wood
burnt down to coals glowing red-orange under a light grey ash — usually 30 to 45 minutes after
lighting, longer with denser wood or in wind.

The hand test, for want of a thermometer: hold your hand about 12 cm above the grid. If you can keep it
there for two seconds, that is high heat — steak and wors. Four to five seconds is medium — chicken pieces and
chops. Six or more is low — the gentle end, for finishing thick cuts.

4. Use both sides of the fire

Bank most of your coals to one side and spread a thinner layer on the other. Sear over the hot side, then
move across to finish. That one habit fixes burnt-outside-raw-inside more reliably than any gadget.

5. Salt early, sauce late

Salt well before the meat goes on. Anything with sugar in it — most bastings and sticky marinades — goes on
in the last few minutes, or it burns. See our marinade guide for the detail.

6. Rest the meat

Take it off, cover it loosely, leave it five to ten minutes. The juices settle back through the meat instead
of running onto the board. It costs you nothing and improves everything.

7. Have more wood than you need

Fires last longer than plans do. A second bag in the storeroom is cheap insurance against the braai ending
before the evening does.

Bag sizes and what they cost

Everything below is sold by weight, not by a vague “bag” that shrinks when nobody is looking.

Going bigger? Bulk pieces run from R1 699 for 500 pieces (around 300 kg) up to
R4 620 for 1 000 pieces of Swarthaak (around 840 kg). The full range is on the
bulk pieces page.

Ready to stock up?

Browse the full firewood range, grab charcoal and
firelighters while you are there, and get it delivered before the weekend rather
than after it.