A problem I encountered when I first started burning bakhoor was that the charcoal only burned for a couple of minutes. After that, it looked like the coal had completely gone out which meant I was only able to scent one room when I wanted to fragrance the entire house.
I also found that when burning bakhoor, there was a weird burning smell, as though the wood chips I used had burned to an absolute crisp and all I was smelling was that.
I used the standard quick light up flat disk charcoal that is typically used to burn bakhoor, and is widely available as they’re also used for shisha. I would follow the instructions, light the charcoal disk then wait till the disk formed a layer of ash on top. Even using this method, I’d only get a few minutes of life out of the charcoal. Very disappointing.
The type of coal you use to burn bakhoor matters
When I looked further into the problem of the coal going out quickly, I found that the type of coal you use actually matters. Picking the right charcoal will help your bakhoor last much longer, resulting in more burn time and give you the opportunity to fragrance the entire home and your clothes (if you’re looking to create a perfume trail, I’d recommend doing this!)
What coal should I use to make bakhoor last longer?
I have found 2 types of charcoal that significantly increase your bakhoor burn time: Coconut charcoal and Bamboo charcoal.
Both of these types of charcoal burn for much longer than the standard quick light charcoal discs, and they’re both readily available too.
I get my coconut charcoal from HERE and bamboo charcoal from HERE.
Hacks to make your bakhoor last longer
Use a mica plate or a coin to act as a buffer between your bakhoor and charcoal
Mica plates can act as a buffer between the searing hot coal and your bakhoor, to stop your bakhoor from burning to an absolute crisp within minutes. It will control the heat and release the fragrance from your bakhoor wood chips at a much slower and even rate. You will also get absolutely no weird burning smell either. And if you can’t get hold of mica plates, a coin will also do the trick!
I buy my mica plates from HERE. And yes, you can reuse them, but eventually they get covered in burnt oils and resins and will need replaced to avoid that weird burning smell.
Sprinkle salt on your charcoal to slow down burn time with your bakhoor
Sprinkling salt on top of the charcoal BEFORE you light it up helps it get up to the required temperature faster, and slows down the burn time once it gets there – it’s like magic, but science! This slowing down of the burn time means you’ll get that fragrant bakhoor smoke for longer.
These tips have helped me make sure my bakhoor lasts longer, I’d love to know of any other hacks people have picked up in the comments.
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