Charbon de bois

Dripping fat hits the coals and comes back up as aroma. That is yakitori.

The lacquer needs radiant heat with no flame, or the sugar burns black.

Charcoal runs hotter than gas, so the crust forms before the middle goes.

Thirty seconds a side over coals. Anything slower turns it to elastic.

Whole in the embers until it collapses. The skin becomes the seasoning.

Sugars in the soy caramelise on radiant heat without ever catching flame.

Both grey-black and faintly bitter. The colour story writes itself.

Citrus peel and chilli over char. The blend was built for grilled food.

Powdered into the dough for black buns. Adds colour and a dry finish.

Charcoal ice cream: fat carries the ash note and stops it tasting like dust.

Sharp acid against pure dry bitterness. Nothing else is happening in between.

Black on white, sweet on ash. It is a visual joke that tastes deliberate.