Run Out of Firelighters or Paper? Use Corn Chips to Light Your Grill
It happens: you get ready to fire up the barbecue and realise you have no firelighters, and there isn’t a scrap of paper in sight. Before you panic, try a simple kitchen hack—corn chips. These salty, oily snacks can act as an effective tinder to get a chimney starter and charcoal lit when other options are unavailable.
Corn chips work because they contain vegetable oil and other fats that ignite more easily than dry wood or paper. You may need more than a single chip to get a steady flame, but used together they can produce reliable heat long enough to ignite charcoal briquettes or lump charcoal in a chimney starter.
How to use corn chips to light charcoal:
- Place a small pile of chips in the bottom of the chimney starter or on top of kindling where the charcoal will catch the rising heat.
- Arrange the chips so air can circulate around them—don’t pack them tightly.
- Light the chips with a match or lighter. The oil content helps them burn hotter and longer than plain dry paper.
- Once the chips are burning well, allow the heat to rise through the chimney and ignite the charcoal. Wait until the coals are covered in a light grey ash before spreading them in the grill.
Tips and safety notes:
- Use several chips rather than a single one for a longer, more consistent flame.
- Always light your grill in a well-ventilated outdoor area and keep a safe distance from flammable materials.
- Do not use alcohol, lighter fluid, or other accelerants together with this method—those can be dangerous and unpredictable.
- Dispose of any leftover burnt chip fragments once they are fully cooled and the fire is out.
I tested this corn chip grill hack to see whether the snacks could actually start a chimney full of charcoal, and the results were convincing: with a small handful of chips and proper airflow, the charcoal ignited reliably. It’s a handy, improvised option when conventional starters aren’t available—but use it responsibly and follow basic fire safety practices.