Basic Recipe --
The basic recipe for a great grilled steak is simple:
Rub steak with a light covering of oil and sprinkle with salt.
Get the grill up to at least 600 degrees, place steak on grill,
flip after 3 minutes, remove after 3 more minutes. Plate and eat
within 2-3 minutes of removing from the grill. Simple.
This will generally provide you with a steak that's between rare
and medium-rare (in my opinion the best way to eat a steak) with
a moderately charred exterior.
Detailed Recipe --
To cook a good steak on the grill requires a good cut of steak
and high heat on the grill (not high flames).
I suggest Rib-eye or Sirloin as the choice cuts. These have the
right mixture of fat-to-lean to grill properly and yet will cook
up tender but with a firm texture. The steaks should be about an
inch thick for a rare or medium-rare result. Have the steaks cut
thinner if you desire a more well-done steak. Most commonly the
steaks that are pre-cut are closer to 1/2 inch think, so ask the
butcher to cut the steaks for you.
High heat is the key to locking in the flavor and juices of the
steak. Quality gas grills and charcoal/wood grills can usually reach
600-700 degrees. If you have an under-powered grill (hibachi or
1-2 gas burners) then forget grilling a good steak and go to a restaurant.
Remember, it's the HEAT, not the FLAME that cooks the steak properly.
So preheating the grill to the highest temperature you can reach
is the key.
Lightly rub oil all over the steak and let it sit in the fridge
for about 30 minutes. Then remove it from the fridge and let it
reach room temperature. Sprinkle the salt on both sides of the steak
and place on the grill.
With a multi-burner gas grill, turn the flame down on the burners
directly under the steak, turn all the other burners on high and
close the lid to retain the heat. Avoid opening the lid for at least
2 minutes (but make sure there's not a flare-up...we want heat to
cook the meat, not fire.)
After 2 minutes, if the grills were clean and the steak rubbed
with oil, with a pair of tongs you should be able to twist the steak
90 degree around and to a fresh spot on the grates to get that nice
cross-hatched grill marks on the steak. Let it sit for about a minute
and then turn the steak over. The top of the steak should be dark
brown where the grill left its mark and light-medium brown between
the marks. The cooking process will repeat here...2 minutes, twist,
1 more minute.
But now, how to know if it's ready? If you have a 1-inch steak,
it will probably be rare on the inside at this time. You can safely
cook it for 1 more minute if you're trying to reach medium-rare.
Press on the steak with the tongs (see photo). A rare steak will
be mostly soft and will not "spring back" quickly. A medium
steak will be springy and will resist the tongs. You can take a
knife and cut into the steak to check its doneness. From the edge
of the steak where there is no bone and minimal fat, cut all the
way through from top to bottom about 1 inch in from the side of
the steak. Although I don't advocate cutting the steak while on
the grill (you lose juices and flavor), it will help you compare
the tong-press with doneness so you won't have to do it once you've
become more practiced.
Some cooks advocate letting the steak "rest" on a plate
or on a cool part of the grill to let the juices "redistribute"
through the steak. But be aware...the steak continues cooking for
several minutes after it has been removed from the heat! So unless
you want it to cool and continue cooking, the prompt plating and
eating of the steak within just a few minutes of taking it off the
grill is suggested.
Note: To get a steak that's more "done", don't lower
the heat or cook significantly longer as it just dries out the meat.
Instead, start with a steak that's cut a little thinner and follow
the same directions.
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