I spent YEARS, I mean YEARS, having my partner do all of the grilling. I was extremely self-conscious about my ability to grill a piece of meat, and to be honest, it may have been because every time I tried I would cook it into oblivion. I'd make the rounds before, asking my friends and family how they wanted their steak cooked (like I could really differentiate or control the outcome), and then I'd bring the tray back full of well-done steak. On the bright side, there's always that one weird friend that wants well-done steak, so at least I made one person happy. Everyone else spent the rest of the night flossing their teeth and washing away all of the barbeque sauce they lathered on to make it edible.
After so long quite frankly sucking at grilling, I finally decided to address my shortcomings on the grill. I vowed to spend one summer learning how to grill steak. I'm not proud of how much steak I ate, or how much of it I over (or under) cooked, but I kept at it....
...I grilled filet, top sirloin (let's be real, most were top sirloins $), and ribeyes most days of the week
...I sous vide steak at different temperatures to understand the look and feel of different levels of doneness
...I watched Youtube videos and read articles that all conflicted with one another
...I read cookbooks specifically on grilling meats that also conflicted with one another
...I read about how it wasn't healthy for me to be eating that much steak 😂
..I reflected on how stupid it was to feel self-conscious about something so minute
And then I accomplished my goal... I can grill a damn good steak any day of the week.
I'd like to share what I've learned and what has worked well for me...
Thickness of steak matters
I used to just go into the store and pick up whatever steaks they had sitting in a case, regardless of whether or not they were as thin as a sheet of paper. It is incredibly difficult to grill thin steaks to the perfect level of doneness, so I usually steer clear of any steaks with a thickness of <1 inch - unless using for tacos, philly cheese steaks, etc. You can usually purchase thicker cut steaks at the meat counter (or directly from a butcher) than what they put out in the case.
Exploring different cuts
When I used to think steak, what came to mind was the New York, Ribeye, T-Bone (New York + Filet), and Filet Mignon. What I've realized is there are many other amazing cuts of meat out there for grilling, and they are all more reasonably priced. My go-to steak now is the Coulotte aka Top Sirloin Cap aka Picanha. It is a flavorful, tender cut that can be found for a reasonable price compared to the better known Filet Mignon and Ribeye. Look at these beautiful American Wagyu Top Sirloin Cap Steaks I bought at Costco last week for $14.99/lb 😍😻💖 Expanding beyond the typical steak cuts will give you so much more bang for your buck without compromising on the flavor.
Bringing steak to room temperature before grilling
This is a moment for a change my mind sign meme. I've read so many conflicting articles on this topic specifically, and I'm definitely in the camp that this helps with even cooking, but more importantly, even distribution of the salt or seasoning in less time.
Salting your steak before grilling
Do you know why steak always tastes so good at a steakhouse? Because they salt their steak, and you need to do it too. Salt is a flavor enhancer, and is an important ingredient to basically any good food.
I usually take my steak out of the fridge around 2 hours before grilling and season the steak with salt and let sit on a baking rack. During this time the salt will be absorbed into the meat and have time distribute. You can also do this in the fridge, and I would recommend leaving uncovered in the fridge for 3-6 hours prior to grilling. So do what you want, but I've found this to be an important part of grilling exceptional steak.
How much salt should you use? This is really a question only you can answer, as everyone's palate is different.
Indirect heat is your friend
Maybe a more experienced chef than me can perfectly cook a steak over the flames, but mine usually end up scorched with a blue center or worse, a brown, well-done center. Therefore, I always start the steaks over indirect heat. Right before I place them on the grill I turn off one of the burners and place the steaks above that. I then let them cook for 4-5 minutes on each side before transferring them to direct heat. I then rotate them every 30-ish seconds, 2x on each side, or until they are my preferred level of doneness. I recommend getting 4-6 similar size steaks and testing out different lengths of time and direct/indirect exposure to see what works best for you and your grill.
Let your steak rest
I can't emphasize this one enough, it is really important to let your steak rest after removing from the grill. You want to give a chance for those juices to evenly distribute after removing from the direct heat. I also recommend topping each with a little butter (no need to go full Paula Deen here) for an extra kick of deliciousness. Then loosely cover the meat with aluminum foil for ~10 minutes before serving. I usually cut the steak into thick slices (like in the image below) and top with a tiny amount of flaky sea salt.
Final thoughts...
I know how intimidating it can be to get comfortable grilling, and you will overcook (and undercook) quite a few things, but it will get so much easier. Soon you will be grilling like a boss lady 💃💃💃💃💃
When does the Evergreen and Tomato Steakhouse open up 🤤