Not Letting Your Grill Heat Up
Knowing how long to heat up a charcoal grill or gas grill before you put anything on it is one of the most important keys to grilling success. High heat is what gives steaks and burgers an awesome sear and gets the ball rolling.
Charcoal grills usually need about 20 minutes to get to the right temperature. Gas grills typically take a little less time, generally between 10 to 15 minutes.
How To Grill The Perfect Steak On A Gas Grill
In the world of backyard grilling, nothing tastes better than a grilled steak. There is a lot of controversy over the best way to grill, i.e., using charcoal, wood pellets, or gas. All three will deliver heat, the pellet and gas maintain a constant temperature, and the charcoal and pellet add smoke. You can also add smoke with a gas grill by making a smoking packet and placing it above the burners or by using a smoke tube. But there are some things that you can do with a gas grill that you cannot do with the pellet grill, and you can do it with a charcoal grill with some tools to move the charcoal.
Is Lighter Fluid Bad For You Yes But Heres What You Can Do
Why You Shouldnt Use Lighter Fluid: Natural Alternatives
Most backyard grillers and chefs have been starting their charcoal grill fires for ages with lighter fluid that jumpstarts the burning process for the charcoal. Of course, gas grills users can avoid the need for lighter fluid altogether, but most gas grills dont burn as hot as charcoal grills do. In recent years, however, it has come to light that lighter fluid has some serious drawbacks.
That means there are several good reasons why you should avoid using it when preparing food outdoors. Keep reading below to discover some new grilling tips, and to find out why lighter fluid is not the best option for starting up your charcoal grill. Youll also learn what your options are for using natural alternatives as a charcoal starter.
Is Charcoal Lighter Fluid Bad for You?
The short answer to this is yes, it is bad for you. The hydrocarbons included in lighter fluids and match light charcoal simply do not break down easily, and that means you are ingesting them right along with your food. While you might build up a tolerance to them over time, its not something you should expose your children to, because they may not be able to tolerate it as well as an adult can.
The Science Behind It
Other reasons why lighter fluid is a bad choice
Save Your Money
Bad for the Environment too
Tips and techniques for alternative fire starting
Doing the Math
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How To Grill Steak
Follow these simple steps for a beautiful thick cut steak, seasoned and grilled to perfection. Grilling steak is easy with Kingsford’s grilled steak recipe.
- How to cook
Lets get grilling
Start by lighting Kingsford® Charcoal, either in a chimney or a free-standing mound of 100 briquets. We recommend Kingsford® Professional
For most thick steaks, youll want to arrange your coals into a two-zone fire. Replace the top grate, allow it to heat up all vents should be fully open then pour cooking oil on a folded paper towel and oil the grates using long-handled tongs.
Remove your steaks from the refrigerator and let them reach room temperature around 30 minutes. Trim excess fat to avoid flare-ups and vertically slash the thin piece of fat around the outside of the steaks to prevent curling. Liberally apply coarse salt and freshly ground pepper. Flip the steaks and repeat the process.
Place your steaks directly above the coals and sear for two to three minutes per side. To ensure perfect grill marks, resist the urge to move the steak while cooking. Close the lid to prevent flare-ups.
Once your steaks are properly seared, move them to the cooler side of the grate. Close the lid and continue to cook until done.
Pull your steaks from the grill, place onto a cutting board, loosely cover with aluminum foil and allow them to rest for five minutes.
Categories
- thick-cut steaks of your choice4
Here Is A Great Fan Favorite Recipe For You To Try Out
New York Strip Steaks with Red-Eye Barbecue Sauce
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions:
1. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the shallot and cook until it begins to brown, about 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the remaining sauce ingredients, bring to a simmer, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer until slightly reduced, about 10 minutes, stirring often. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
2. Brush the steaks on both sides with the oil and then season on both sides with the salt and pepper. Let the steaks stand at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes before grilling.
3. Prepare the grill for direct cooking over high heat .
4. Brush the cooking grates clean. Grill the steaks over direct high heat, with the lid closed, until cooked to your desired doneness, 6 to 8 minutes for medium rare, turning once. Remove the steaks from the grill and let rest for 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Serve the steaks warm with the sauce on the side
Check out this article for more tips of grilling the perfect steak on your charcoal grill.
©2018 Weber-Stephen Products LLC. Tips from Way to Grill by by Jamie Purviance. Recipe from Webers Greatest Hits by Jamie Purviance. Used with permission
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What I Consider Medium Rare
Finally it is important to note that steak doneness is also an important variable. The rule of threes as I discuss is tuned to give you a medium rare steak.
Note that in the above cell phone picture that this ribeye is what I consider medium rare. Red almost pink throughout with no sign of gray.
So lets put all these variables together and learn how to modify them as we need to. How does this apply to cooking a really thick steak?
Well the best example I can think of is a thick filet mignon medallion. These steaks are normally 2-3 inches thick. Will the rule of threes work? The answer is YES! But it is a modified rule of threes.
The one rule that I think should not be altered with the rule of threes is the three minutes of direct heat on each side of the steak.
When I cook over a high heat any more than 3 minutes on each side looks too burnt to me. Three minutes is just right for nice grill marks and a good char.
If the direct heat variables are locked this means that only the indirect times can be extended.
For a 2-3 inch steak the rule of threes will be modified to 3-3-4-4 or maybe even 3-3-5-5.
The extended indirect grilling time cooks the inside of the steak while not burning the surface of the steak.
How To Grill Steak Perfectly Every Time
Learn how to grill steak perfectly every single time with this easy to follow recipe where steak is seared on a hot grill and cooked to perfection. Grilling steak doesn’t have to be complicated! Grades of Steak There are three…
Learn how to grill steak perfectly every single time with this easy to follow recipe where steak is seared on a hot grill and cooked to perfection. Grilling steak doesnt have to be complicated!
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How Hot Should The Grill Be For Steak
Raichlen recommends establishing two cooking zones in your charcoal grill: one thats very hot for searing the steak, and one thats medium for finishing the steak and cooking it through.
On a gas grill, heat the grill to 450°F with two burners going, which should only take about 10 minutes, then turn one of the burners down to medium to create two cooking zones.
Not sure if the grill is hot enough? Raichlen’s tip is to hold your hand 3 inches above the grill grate and count “1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi…” If you can only hold it there for a second or two, the grill is hot and you’re ready to cook.
I followed Raichlens advice, and started my steak in the hot zone, then moved it to the medium zone to finish cooking. It worked like a charm.
How Long Should I Cook Steak On Each Side
Bake a piece of steak 2 cm thick for 2-3 minutes on each side for undercooking, 4 minutes on each side for medium and 5-6 minutes on each side for baking. Turn the steak only once, otherwise it will dry out. Always use pliers to handle the steak as it will not pierce the meat and allow the juice to escape.
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Apply Seasoning To The Steak
Yes, you should start by applying seasoning on the steak. The best home-made seasoning will be a combination of salt, garlic, and pepper as these are classic ingredients of a seasoning and goes great every time. Simply pour or sprinkle on the steak, and you are good to go.
You should leave the steak aside to dry brine for 30-minutes. It will give enough time to the steak to soak all the seasonings and infuse the taste.
Note: In dry brine process, the salt and other spices are poured on the steak, and it draws the moisture out of meat and then dissolve in the salt. Finally, it gets reabsorbed in the meat. This way the steak becomes juicier and flavorful.
How To Start A Charcoal Grill
Whether you love the taste of roasted vegetables or the seared flavor of steak, there’s no denying that grilling is one of the best ways to prepare summer staples. Knowing how to use a charcoal grill is an essential summer skill. Charcoal grills are arguably the perfect way to get that classic “grilled” flavor, but if you’ve never used one before, you’re probably wondering how to start a charcoal grill.
Thankfully, it’s not that hardand once you’ve mastered the process, you’ll be one step closer to that perfect hamburger. And even better, you’ll be able to show off at the next backyard barbecue.
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Are Steaks Better On Charcoal Or Gas Grill
Butchers can use these reactions to transform their meats flavor. With careful grilling, the surface will be evenly browned a slightly crusty outer layer indicates a balanced grilling process. As more direct infrared heat appears after cooking, chargrilled surfaces are typically less searing than gas grills.
Failing To Keep The Charcoal Lit
Knowing how to keep a charcoal grill hot is important if you dont want your meat to turn into a crispy hockey puck. The key to good grilling is getting a nice sear and allowing the internal meat to get to temperature as efficiently as possible without drying out. A BBQ only burning half its charcoal wont do the trick.
Once you see your charcoal turning gray on its edges, move it around with a poker. Youll need to do this every few minutes, or as you see the fire start to dim.
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Is Steak Good On Charcoal Grill
When grilling steaks on the charcoal grill, be sure it is heated to the utmost. A hotter place would be ideal at 550-650 degrees F. For direct heat, you want the coals to be direct on the side of the grill where all of the heat is indirect while the other side doesnt have coals. Allow the great to heat up by replacing the metal grate on your top.
How To Tell When A Steak Is Perfectly Done: Meat Thermometers And The Hand Test
Experts agree that using a good meat thermometer is always the right thing to do when it comes to checking for steak doneness levels.
OK, with your super-thin steaks, fine, you get a pass, but with everything else, a good meat thermometer is the only reliable way to ensure perfect and saferesults every time.
Click here to read why it is so important to use a meat thermometer if you dont already know.
You can also get an instant-read, albeit an inexact one, from the hand test.
Heres how it works: When you think youre close to show-time, prod the steak gently with a clean finger and compare to the feel of your own hand as follows:
| If the steak feels like the soft pad below your thumb when: | |
|---|---|
| Your pinky finger and thumb are touching | It’s well done |
Now obviously you can also cut into a steak, and see with your own eyes whether its done. But you want to minimize how many times you do this as youll be letting precious juices escape with every cut.
In the end, after Ive gone through all my sensory tests , I still turn to my thermometer for the final confirmation of readiness!
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How To Evaluate Grill Temperature
Temperature of the grill is the next important variable to evaluate. I find it essential to be able to use your hand to evaluate the temperature of your grill.
I use the method where you hold you hand 1 inch over the grate and start counting. The amount of seconds that pass before you need to remove your hand is the value youll use to assess your grill temperature.
For example if you can hold your hand 1 inch over the grate for 2-3 seconds you have a perfect high heat for grilling a steak.
If you can only hold your hand there for 1 second or less you have a way too hot high heat and I advise not cooking just yet.
Holding your hand for 3-4 seconds is about a medium heat and 4-5 seconds is a medium low-low heat.
This method works for Great for charcoal but this Method also can be used for the Best Natural Gas Grills as well. Just use the same tips and time considerations for gas or charcoal.
These are all estimates but the key here is that once you get a feel for your own grill setup you will be able to know how long YOUR hand can stay over top of YOUR heat source to grill a perfect steak.
Essentially youll be calibrating your own temperature measurement system. The numbers that I give above are relative to MY hand over top of MY heat source.
How To Prep The Grill
Just like you spend time preparing your meat with marinades and rubs, take the time to get the grill ready. If your grates are dirty from the last cookout, its more likely that your food will stick and have off flavors. The best way to prep your grill before cooking is to clean it really well after cooking or just before cooking, when the grates are hot. If you grill regularly, give it a good scrub with those long handled brushes and some elbow grease before it has a chance to cool down. Not grilling that often? Give it a good scrub once the grill has fully preheated and remnants from the last grill session should scrape right off.
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Tips For Grilling The Perfect Steak
- Season, then chill: I apply the same technique I use for getting crispy chicken and turkey skin to grilling this steak: season, then let it chill in the fridge uncovered for up to 48 hours. This essentially dry brines the steak while also letting it air-dry. This approach allows the surface moisture to evaporate while the seasoning has time to penetrate the meat resulting in deeply flavored steak that sears beautifully and develops a nice crust on the grill.
- Start with clean grates: Just like you use a clean skillet with a little oil to cook dinner on the stovetop, you want to start with clean and oiled grill grates.
- To flip or not to flip? Flip your steak to your hearts content. Harold McGee, food science writer and author of On Food and Cooking, discovered that frequent flipping creates a steak that cooks more evenly and quickly than those flipped only once.
- Grilling directly on coals: Raichlen seemingly knows an infinite number of ways to grill meat, and theres one in his new book, Project Fire , that I particularly like: he cooks steak directly on hot coalsno grill grates necessary. I love the idea, and its on my list of things to try in the near future.
How To Cook Ribeye Steak On The Grill
- Be sure your steak is completely thawed.
- Bring the meat to room temperature. Remove your steak from the refrigerator 30-40 minutes before cooking.
- Season steaks as desired we recommend Kansas City Steak Original Steak Seasoning.
- To cook on a charcoal grill, place steaks over the hottest part of the grill, and sear both sides for 1-2 minutes. Then move to medium, ash-covered coals and continue to grill for the times listed in the chart below. Turn about 1 minute prior to the halfway point.
- To cook on a gas grill, preheat on high. Sear both sides for 1-2 minutes, then reduce to medium heat and continue to grill for the times listed in the chart below. Turn about 1 minute prior to the halfway point.
- For the perfect medium-rare ribeye steak, grill for 9-12 minutes for a 1-inch steak, and 12-15 minutes for a 1½ inch steak, turning about 1 minute before the halfway point. A meat thermometer should read 130°F.
- Rest your steaks for 5 minutes before serving, covering lightly with foil. The temperature of the meat will continue to rise about 5°F during this time . The final temperature will read 135°F.
- Resting steak is also important because the heat of cooking pulls the juices in the meat toward the surface if you slice into it immediately after cooking, those flavorful juices will end up on your plate, not in your steak. Allowing your steak to rest will give the juices time to sink back in and throughout the meat, keeping it moist and flavorful.
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