And #2 is to dry the surface of the meat, either by not marinating at all, or by patting dry with paper towels.
This makes no sense to me. So, the fire isn’t as precise as the oven. That’s an even better reason to use a thermometer.
If you have a cast iron skillet, you could experiment with this method. I find it fool proof. Leaves the grill clean too.
That’s what you got from my post saying you don’t need thermometer precision on a grilled steak? :dubious:
Like I said before, use a thermometer if it makes you happy. It isn’t a necessary tool to throw into the mix when grilling steaks and it’s crazy that this has even come up as it had nothing to do with solving the flare up problem that was being asked about.
Black and blue steaks aka Pittsburgh rare. Sometimes char crusted or Chicago style. People actually like them like this
Yes. You basically said that thermometers aren’t necessary for a steak because grills aren’t precise anyway.
Well, that isn’t what I meant, though I guess I can see why you read it that way. My point was that, with steak, especially grilled steak, you really don’t need hyper precision. For most people the difference between 120 and 130 is going to be minimal and you can get in that zone fairly easily without needing to get a thermometer involved.
There was a secondary point, that I probably shouldn’t have been bringing up, that a grill is a poor tool for the job if precision is your goal. If you really need your steak to be cooked to 121F get a sous vide or use a slow oven and then flash sear if you are ok with a few degrees off. You can get precise with a grill if you want but, TO ME, it is more trouble than it is worth. But that’s just me being unfocused because I was posting before I had coffee.
I most strenuously object
The difference between 120 and 130 is the difference between perfect and utterly destroyed.
I wouldn’t go quite that far. That temperature chart and pictures look a little low-balled to me. By that I mean I don’t think those temperatures match those pictures (I know temperature definitions of, say, “rare” and “medium rare” vary wildly.) For example, that “medium” at 134 looks way more done than it should be at that temperature. That looks more like meat well on its way to the 140s to me, if not more. The Serious Eats chart looks better to me.
Anyway, to me, 130 or just shy of 130 is the perfect medium rare (pull when meat is at 125F.)
But the larger point, 10 degrees can make a significant difference in terms of enjoyment of a steak, and certainly by 15 degrees.
ETA: You know, scratch that. Ten degrees is enough of a difference where I can see the steak going from “just right” to significantly reducing my enjoyment of said steak.
Would you disagree that if you got your steak cooked to somewhere in the 120s your steak is probably pretty good? That’s all I am saying. It’s not 120 or 130, it’s somewhere in between the two. Again, to me, that’s close enough.
Yeah, 120s is fine. If you err, err on the side of undercooking for me. Like I said, I don’t typically make steak with a thermometer myself (whether I’m cooking inside or outside), but my range is probably from around 120-130. Now, if the 10 degrees were 130-140, it’d be a little more problematic.
Like I said, I don’t think it need be an exact science, but for a beginner, I think it’s easiest to use a meat thermometer (Or just to sacrifice a part of a steak and check into it from time to time). (There is exactly one thing I always use a meat thermometer for: roasts. There’s too much money involved in those and too much variation between roasts to go by time, and “poke” tests don’t work. That is the one thing I find meat thermometers absolutely indispensable for.)
Totally agree. I also use thermometers for chicken and baking bread, but that’s about it.
That’s why I use thermometers even on steaks. The sweet spot is too small, and on thinner supermarket cuts it is so easy to pass it.
I find it pretty much impossible to get a thin steak the way I like it, even if I were to use a thermometer. By the time you get decent browning, you’ve gotten past medium rare, usually. Those types of cuts I’m likely to marinate and hope for the best.
It really depends on how precise you want to be; 10 degrees is an entire half-step off, and 20 is an entire step.
120 = Rare
130 = Med. Rare
140 = Medium
150 = Med. Well
160 = Well Done
So yeah, a lot of people do care about a rare steak vs. a more or less medium steak.
If you really like the idea of grilled steaks, here’s probably the best way to do it that I know of. It’s a variation of the Modernist Cuisine Low-temp Oven Steak, except on the grill.
After marination or spice rubs or whatever, put your steak in the freezer for half an hour or so.
Preheat your oven to the lowest temp it’ll run at- 170 for most.
Fire up your grill and get your coals good and hot.
Sear your steak for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until you get a good crust and grill marks.
Take it in immediately, put on an oven safe plate or cookie sheet, put a oven-safe leave-in probe thermometer in the thickest part, and put the steaks in the oven, and watch your temp until the inside is a few degrees lower than the desired temp from the chart above. Remove from oven, tent with foil, and let rest 15-20 minutes.
The idea is that freezing the outside a little bit will allow you to sear it well without
overcooking the rest of it in the meantime.
Agree. I can sometimes do a passable job if I cook them at around to 800-900 degrees, but I just find it’s easier to make some other dish with a thin steak.
Thanks for all the advice. Look like I’m doing a lot of things wrong. Well, pretty much everything. 
To recap,
- I shouldn’t be marinating ribeye.
- If I marinate sirloin, it should only be for a short period of time.
- The steaks need to be dry before putting them on the grill.
- Cut off external fat.
- I need a “hot zone” (coals) and a “not-so-hot zone” (no coals). Initially sear over the former, then move to the latter.
- Use a thermometer (though I understand some disagree).
Hmmm… I think we need to check out your methods in person. What time do you want us over?
That’s more-or-less right, though I don’t have a problem with long marinades if I’m going to be marinating a steak (which usually means some cheaper cut of steak for me.) There’s nothing wrong with marinating a ribeye, even though I wouldn’t do it myself if it’s a reasonable cut (choice or prime). If it’s select rib eye, I probably would marinate that. My parents buy a lot of select grade steak, so that almost always gets marinated, no matter the cut. With choice cuts, I’ll marinate stuff like sirloin and skirt, but I won’t marinate strip, porterhouse, t-bone, ribeye, or filet, UNLESS I’m serving it for people who like their steaks very done (medium-well to well.)