Food & Recipes

Steak Grilling 101

Monday, July 29, 2013

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food & recipes

July 29, 2013 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- If you've tried to get that perfectly grilled steak at your cookouts this summer, but have failed time and time again, then you might be making a number of mistakes that can be easily corrected.

Gibsons Restaurant Group executive Chef, Randy Waidner shares his trade secrets to grill the perfect steak.

http://www.gibsonssteakhouse.com/

What to Look for:

When choosing a steak for the grill you want to look for a few key things:

1. Marbling: this is the amount of internal fat. When the steak starts to cook, this marbling will melt creating a juicy, flavorful steak that will be very tender.

2. Thickness: choose a steak that is at least 1-2" thick. This will allow the steak to cook to desired temperature with a great crust while maintaining a juicy interior.

3. Color: The steak should be bright red while the fat should be bright white and firm.

There are many different cuts to choose from such as the Filet, WR Chicago Cut (bone in rib eye) New York Strip: boneless and bone in; Porterhouse .

How to Grill:

Grilling: Preheat your grill for at least 15 minutes. This will help develop a great crust with great flavor. Season your steak with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper. If you have a seasoning you enjoy use that. Everyone has their own secret recipe. Either way the seasoning should enhance the flavor of the beef.
Sear over direct heat then move to indirect to finish cooking. You can move the steak away from the heat source or just turn one of the burners off. The residual heat will continue to sear the other side.
Don't mess with the steak, let the grill do the work. The steak will tell you when it is ready to be turned, as in the meat will release from the grill. If it is still stuck, give it a few more minutes.
Using an instant read thermometer until you get the feel is a great way to check for doneness.