Pan-seared boneless pork loin chop with sauté of mushrooms, spinach, garlic and tomatoes with sauce of reduced balsamic vinegar.

This is the result:

It was tasty and I’m really glad I made it. Today I wanted to translate this idea to the grill and show you what I did in hopes that it will inspire you to comment and give me suggestions as well as take a shot at translating some of your favorite recipes to preparation on the grill.

Here is a pictorial that explains what steps I took to prepare this lean cut of meat for a very tasty meal.

CB’s EZ Seared Boneless Pork Loin Chops with a pan saute of spinach, mushrooms, garlic and chopped tomatoes.

Boneless pork loin chops are lean cuts - especially today with "modern" pork. For best grilling results try to get chops at least 1 inch thick. Remove the chops from packaging and dry off the excess moisture.

After drying off the excess moisture that accumulates on meat in the package I season it with a "just a pinch" of good quality salt that has larger flakes. The salt draws out natural sugars & proteins, reacts and helps to prepare the surface for searing. Just prior to searing I'll sometimes add a twist of fresh ground black pepper and spritz both surfaces with canola oil.

I practice the "Where it hits - it sits" method for producing the attractive and flavorful sear marks. The clean grates are pre-heated to about 550F - 600F degrees and it takes just a minute or so to get these marks.

I turn the chops to sear the second side. When grilling cuts of meat with more fat content "in the tissue" like a rib-eye beef steak, I will flip over once more and rotate 90 degrees to get cross hatch. With lean cuts like this pork loin chop - that much exposure to direct high heat would possibly over cook and dry it out.

That yellow hockey-puck looking thing is one more of many attempts to grill polenta. Guess what? It is a big ol' pain in the neck and I've tried many different methods: Pre-heated polenta, frozen polenta, buttered polenta, etc. etc. Bupkis.

Here's the pork loin chop plated with the 'grilled' polenta and a saute of tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, spring peas and garlic. The photo is not doctored...that's the moisture on the chop. And believe-you-me - it was moist and tender inside!

For this cook I used the Big Easy Smoker, Roaster & Grill.  You can get the same results on your charcoal, gas or infrared cooker.  I used the basic “Sear & Hold” method – adapting it somewhat because the SRG does not have a warming rack or area for indirect heat. I removed the seared chops to a warm cast iron skillet and placed a lid over the top. No extra heat was needed as the chops finished to 145F degrees internal temperature.

For a printable version of this recipe: CLICK HERE

Have a question about how to get the optimum searing temperature on your grill? Leave a comment below in the Comment form, post a question on Just Ask CB or on the Users Forums.

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!

CB's "Local Boy" Grilled Short Ribs

When I purchased these short ribs the butcher said: “Hey you gonna fix those Hawaiian-Style? I gotta great recipe!”  and he forced handed me a 3 x 5 card with the recipe printed on it.  The two main ingredients besides brown sugar were pineapple and teriyaki sauce. I smiled.

Having spent a bit of time over the past 30 years visiting for work and pleasure – I’m not sure that it’s appropriate to call a dish “Hawaiian-style” because it’s made with pineapple and teriyaki sauce; too many recipes and cookbooks I’ve read seem to do that.  Not to say that both of those ingredients don’t show up in a lot of island food – but if you are from Hawai’i or have visited  – then you certainly know that island food is influenced by many cultures and offers more complexity of textures and flavors than just those two ingredients.  I’d say the food I’ve enjoyed in Hawaii has influenced my belief in freshness and local ingredients more than visiting my neighborhood farmer’s markets. Some of the best food I’ve ever eaten has been in island restaurants like Indigo, Roy’s and Sam Choy’s just to name a few.  And absolutely my preferred first stop when I land in Honolulu is to head to Rainbow Drive in for a mixed plate lunch of mahi-mahi, teriyaki beef and chicken with two scoops rice and macaroni salad.

So, for this dish, I tried to use ingredients that provide flavors more respectful of the true “local food” of regular folks and island cuisine I’ve enjoyed. And no grilled pineapple anywhere on the plate!

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling! E ʻai ka-kou  – Let’s eat!

CB’s EZ Local Boy Grilled Short Ribs

First off – here’s an excerpt of what Wikipedia has posted about beef short ribs:

“Beef short ribs are cut from the chuck and plate primals. A full slab of short ribs is typically about 10 inches square, ranges from 3-5 inches thick, and contains three or four ribs, intercostal muscle and tendon, and a layer of boneless meat and fat which is thick on one end of the slab and thins down to almost nothing on the other. There is a variety of ways to butcher short ribs. The ribs can be separated and cut into short lengths (typically about 2 inches long), called an “English cut”, “flanken cut” across the bones (typically about 1/2 inch thick), or cut into boneless steaks (a style recently introduced in the U.S.A. as a cheaper alternative to rib steak).”

I chose the ‘Flanken cut” because it marinates and grills quickly. After preparing the marinade I poured it over the short ribs in a plastic bag, sealed it and left it on the counter for about 1 hour. If I’d wanted to marinade overnight – then it would have gone into the fridge and I would lesson the amounts of acids in that solution because acid in soy sauce, citrus and vinegar (etc.) breaks down the meat and can turn it to mush if left on too long. After an hour I removed the ribs and patted them dry and let them air dry just a bit whilst I pre-heated the grill to HIGH (about 500F degrees at the grate).

Beef short ribs cut in the 'flanken' or thin cross-cut style are placed on a HOT clean grate to sear. Expect some charring as the sugars burn.

The ribs are very thin, already somewhat ‘cooked’ by the acid in the marinade, and have a good dose of brown sugar on them from the marinade – so they will take almost no time to grill. I like just a touch of char to them that comes from the brown sugar and soy sauce burning a bit.

Beef short ribs finished on the grill after about 7 minutes total grilling time for both sides. You can see where the edges are charring just a bit - for my taste that adds to the mouth feel and flavor balance to the sweetness of the marinade.

I served these on a big platter along with some of the marinade I’d reserved and thickened a bit in a small pan over low heat to serve as a sauce.

NOTE: Never use a marinade that has been in contact with raw meat to dress cooked meat unless it has been boiled for more than 2 minutes to reduce the risk of bacterial ingestion. It’s better to set some marinade aside when first made so it never comes in contact with the raw meat.

The meal also include sticky white rice and a cabbage slaw. Sorry – no mac salad!

For a printable version of the recipe with ingredients & steps CLICK HERE.

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!

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Chicken “By the Numbers” on my new Quantum infrared grill.

Hey CB and all: So I had to run my 8 year old daughter to a 2 1/2 hour baseball camp, and while I enjoyed it, I kept thinking about my new and still unused Quantum at home. My daughter must have sensed what I was thinking. At break she came over and said, don’t worry Dad, when we get home I want you to cook lunch on your new grill! Wow what a trooper! When we got home, nobody else was around so I made hamburgers for she and I.  Wow, talk about great burgers! And its amazing how they really don’t shrink as much as on a conventional grill.

The last stages of cooking using the "Grilling by the Numbers" method.

So last night, I got into a big package of chicken pieces and jumped in using CB’s Grilling By The Numbers method. I can really understand the logic to the idea now. There was no thinking or concern about how long certain pieces had been cooking etc. You just keep an eye on the second hand, and each three minutes move everything to the next section. Since I have the 4 burner, I used my last burner as my sauce station. That burner was off, but still around 300F degrees at the grate. Since it was my first time, I also wanted to proceed on the side of caution and wanted to make sure all was cooked properly.

By the time I was done at the last station the chicken had been on for about 24 minutes and went into the hold pan just at about 150F degrees. While I was finishing off my veggies, I took the covered pan and placed it on the last burner (still off and still around 300F degrees) for about three minutes. I checked them and they were right at 165F degrees.

While the chicken is finishing in the holding tray, Jon grills some zucchini. Tasty stuff!

Wow did the family go crazy! The chicken while it had seared marks, did not taste burnt and it was the most juicy chicken we have ever had. I would put it right up there with my buttermilk brine bathed smoked chicken, which of course takes a lot more planning and smoking time. This grill is magnificent!

While eating my wife noticed that the grill was really smoking.

She asked me if there was something wrong.

I said: “No, I’m just cleaning it!” ~ JON

Bacon & asparagus - by Dr. Biggles

Read the post that started it all:

First sign of spring – grilled asparagus!

Happy Grilling!

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Pulled Pork Pockets |Guest Cheff John “Patio Daddio” Dawson

Hey CB – Here is easy finger food that would be great for entertaining. ~ JD

What could be simpler than canned flaky biscuit dough rolled out to six-inch rounds, filled with pork then brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with a little chili powder?

Don't those look tasty?

There really isn’t a recipe for this cook – just combine the ingredients for the filling and prepare according to the package direction on the biscuits!

A guest chef contributor to Sizzle on the Grill for whom I have great respect and admiration is Larry Gaian. The guy is just as funny as they come and a creative cook.  He’s undertaken a challenge this year to dedicate one day a week, Monday, to eat meatless. While that may be a challenge for many Americans – we do love meat at meal times – consider that this fella is one heck-of-a-barbeque master who has probably dropped and forgotten more briskets and pork shoulders than most of us will ever prepare!  This recent recipe he shared sounds so darn good – I’m gonna give it a try!

Happy Grilling!

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Meatless Monday – Grilled Vegetable Lasagna
adapted by Larry Gain from a recipe by Gordon Ramsey

One of the “Meatless Monday” challenges I face is coming up with meals that actually appeal to me.  When my copy of the Gordon Ramsey cookbook,  Cooking for Friends, arrived I was glad to find a veggie dish that both sounded good and could be done outdoors on the grill. So here’s my take on Gordon Ramsey’s Grilled Vegetable Lasagna.  The main different between the recipe below and what I did was the vegetables were all cooked on my Weber kettle.  The original recipe also uses the oven, as I did, but it could be done in the smoker or indirect on your gas or charcoal grill.

The original recipe calls for using the broiler to char the bell peppers - I used my charcoal grill.

I also cut the zucchini into long 1/2 inch thick strips instead of rounds so they were easier to grill. (This photo shows both a round - top - and a strip.)

Topped with a little basil. Added some french bread and a salad for a complete meal.

Topped with a little basil. Added some french bread and a salad for a complete meal.

For a printed version of this adaptation by Larry Gaian of the original recipe by Gordon Ramsey – CLICK HERE.

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!

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Comfort Food – Beef Chuck Roast! | The Grillin Fools

Hiya CB – thought you’d like to see a cook we did recently on our “OLD” Char-Broil 940x that was inspired by some cooks you’ve done in the past.

The marinated and smoked chuck roast in a roasting pan on the grates.

It is looking good and the flavors are melding!

Tender, smoky and flavorful comfort food!

Years ago I prepared just the roast on the grill at the urging of my dear departed father-in-law Russ.  He created a whiskey marinate that gave me heartburn for a couple of days so I needed a different, yet simple, approach for this method.

One day prior to grilling the roasts were placed into a plastic container with the Italian Dressing, Red Wine, Salt, and Pepper added.

The roasts were returned to the icebox (I love that term!) to marinate overnight. Halfway into the marinating time the container was flipped over to insure both sides of the roasts are coated evenly with the mixture.

The next afternoon the veggies were washed and prepared along with the rest of the ingredients.

The old Char-Broil was set up for indirect grilling employing the flank method. I rearranged a few coals to be underneath the pan to get this mixture bubbling quickly with a special arrangement.

~Notice how there are a few unlit coals placed around the ones that are ashed over?  Adding some extra unlit coals will keep the temps up for a longer period of time and save you one lid opening to add more coals.  The lid is already open right now as the grill is being prepped.  This is particularly important with cold weather grilling as each and every time you open the lid all the heat is wicked away and it takes that much longer to grill because it takes longer for the heat to build back up in the chamber.***

Smoking wood chosen was apple but I also tossed in my last couple of chunks of pecan.

The roasts were removed from the icebox and allowed to come to room temperature before grilling. Here’s a pic after soaking in the marinade overnight.

Once the coals are ready and properly spread the cooking grate will be left high to first sear the roast to seal the juices inside.

The roasts hit the grate with the excess marinade wiped off but the residual kicks up a bit of smoke.

Here they are turned after 5 minutes on one side.

Now a close up—are we really going after grill marks on a Chuck Roast??

The roasts are seared and it’s time to place the rest of the ingredients into the pan and get them going.

First, 2 cans of Beef Broth and a cup of water followed by the Carrots...

Onion, Celery, Garlic, and ...

...finally the Potatoes.

For the first half of the cooking time a roast rack (flipped over it’s a great rib rack too!) is employed to elevate the beef to absorb more of the smoke flavor and permit the juices to drip into the mixture below.

A third can of Beef Broth is added (I bought 4 just in case) plus another cup of water and I now feel comfortable with the fluid mixture.

A couple large chunks of Apple wood are added adjacent to the coals, the thermometer placed (heaven forbid I forget that gizmo!), and the lid closed once the grate containing the coals is dropped to its lowest point. The rack is place back into the pan, charcoal added, and a couple more chunks of wood applied. Mother Nature is interfering with the process a bit now.  The wind has kicked up and I’ve been the recipient of a few sprinkles of rain:

I’m hoping the wind doesn’t affect the drafty old grill very much. The fire has been stoked and I really need to see the liquid around the veggies bubbling but it hasn’t happened yet.

I may have added too much liquid but time and taste will tell the story.  This is my first attempt at this recipe and the family that will be arriving for dinner soon will be victims of this experiment.  The GrillinFools will show you our first effort as well as a perfected last effort.  No practice runs to show you success always, just the same thing you would encounter when trying something new on your grill.

I took another peek after another 20 minutes and the broth is bubbling and progress is being made.  I’m debating whether to drop the roasts into the pan for the last half of my estimated cooking time.

After consulting with Mimi the decision is made and the roasts are dropped into the pan mixture after 1.5 hours into the process.

The broth was bubbling gently but kicked up a bit when wood caught fire and shot flames under the pan—a couple of squirts of water cooled the wood down and I think we’re back to normal grilling.  I took the opportunity to give the veggies another stir as some of the potatoes were browning on the edges from the heat and smoke.

Here’s an observation.  I walked around to the front of the house and the aroma of Apple wood smoke seemed to follow.  I’m filling the neighborhood with this wonderful fragrance!  Given the inclement weather I must be the only one grilling today.  I probably should canvass the neighborhood and hand out some GrillinFools biz-cards.

Here’s a pic of a small flock of geese that have wandered in. I wonder if they were attracted by the aroma. If it were legal I’d like to have one of them on my grill.

Now it’s drizzling a bit harder so it is a good thing this event requires the lid to the firebox to be closed.  My notepad is now dappled with rain drops.  A GrillinFool is not daunted by this situation.

It has been 45 minutes since the roasts were dropped into the mix and I’m going to turn them over and give the veggies another stir. The liquid is cooking down so another can of broth is added.

I’m hopeful this effort will be complete in another 45 minutes but perhaps a taste of the veggies is in order.  Scott, The Original Grillin Fool is due to arrive soon so I’ll wait for that moment to taste test.

The roasts are flipped once again and I tasted the potatoes and carrots—I didn’t wait for the OGF—they were just super and full of flavor.  I’m a little concerned about the beef so will allow it to continue to simmer.

The thermometer is only showing 250 but the liquid is bubbling nicely.

Here’s a pic at 2 hours 45 minutes and the beef roasts appear to be done. Taste test coming up!

Here is the first roast sliced.

The juices and broth mixture is reserved to pour over the beef and vegetables.  The roast is done, tender, and very flavorful.  The great part of this effort is that the veggies picked up that sweet apple wood smoke flavor.  The consensus of the dining guests, including the OGF Scott, was that this effort was a “home run” and worthy of a repeat performance.  What a great dinner!  Grilled comfort food all in one pan with fantastic flavor!  Don’t let Old Man Winter get you down—give this a try and you’ll be rewarded with a tasty meal.  Many grocers feature Chuck Roast in their ads this time of year so you can have an economical meal as well.  Oh, and it goes great with a spicy glass of red!

~The Grillin Fools!

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For a printable recipe and ingredient list of this cook – CLICK HERE.

Sorry.

It’s the early season variety that’s kinda thin but so-so-so very tasty. Especially when it has a little grilling char on it: DEE-LISH-US!

I did the basic cooking method:

1. Snap or cut off the woody ends, rinse under water, dry with a paper towel and spread out on a large sheet pan to air dry thoroughly.

2. Drizzle with pomace olive oil and season with freshly ground sea salt and black pepper then toss and mix by hand.

Asparagus prepped with pomace olive oil, salt and pepper.

3. Use tongs to place ‘cross-wise’ to the direction of the grates (I was using the Big Easy Smoker-Roaster-Grill and the grate system prevents most everything like small bits of meat, veggies and even scallops and shrimp from falling through.) Continue to move about as needed to ensure even cooking.

A single layer of asparagus lined up cross ways to the direction of the grates.

4. When the individual spear begin to char and get just a little limp it’s time remove, one-by-one as they are ready.

Asparagus spears charring on the grill.

Serve and drizzle with a bit of fresh lemon juice or grated lemon rind. Oh man – eat these with your fingers cause they are guh-ood.

What are the first vegetables and fruits to show in your area and have you tried preparing them on the grill??? Leave a comment or send me an email with a picture so I can post them to share with everyone.

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!

Because there are so many questions about how to do this I thought it might be helpful to show the technique on several different grills over the course of the spring and summer in hopes that I’ll inspire you to try it and, if you like it, adapt it to suit your own style of cooking. Each grill design has specific features that require you to understand as the head chef at your house. This month I’ve been using the Big Easy Smoker-Roaster-Grill for various cooks and for this post it’s set up for grilling.

Trim away the excessive fat from the lip. It's not needed for flavor "in" the meat and it will only add to smoke & fat fire flare-ups. Note the RED cutting board? Color code for raw meat.

If you happen to read the post from February 16th called “Some tips on grilling great steaks.” – one of the first steps I recommend is to trim away excess fat from the individual steaks as it only adds to the fat dripping into your fire and doesn’t add to flavor in the meat. Yes, of course you can eat the cooked fat with bites of meat – but I’m trying to be more conscientious in my eating habits these days!  Cutting away excess fat will reduce the amount of smoke when searing steak at the high heat range of 450F – 650F degrees and your doctor will appreciate the effort as well.

The next step of preparing steaks for grilling is to dry off the meat with a paper towel to remove the excess ‘wet’ that’s accumulated while in the packaging. For seasoning I prefer to keep it simple and use the basics of good salt and freshly ground black pepper  – but you are the chef at your house so season as you wish.  By-the-way, I checked the amount of salt I apply and it’s less than 1/4 tsp of freshly ground sea salt for one steak on both sides. That’s not a heck-of-a-lot especially when you consider the salt flakes are rather large and not compact like fine ground table salt, so the 1/4 tsp is more likely between 1/8 and 1/4.  Good salt goes a long way to enhance the flavor by drawing out natural sugars and proteins to the surface where they will brown when exposed to the high searing heat. When you use good salt – less is more.

The picture on the right demonstrates taking the temperature of the steak prior to cooking.  I insert an instant read thermometer into the side of the steak until it is about centered to get a reading. When it comes to grilling over direct heat and especially when using your version of the Sear & Hold style – “hot & fast” is the phrase best used to describe it. Sear the outside over direct heat and remove from the high direct grilling heat to let the meat come up to the desired internal temperature and doneness.  If you’ve been cooking for a while you may have a pretty good understanding for the desired internal temperature you want the meat at the end of the cook – but have you thought about the starting temperature of the meat before placing it on the grill? From my own experiences of too many poorly cooked meals I’ve begun checking the temp of chops, steaks, chicken pieces and especially whole roasts prior to placing on the grill or in the smoker, cooker, roaster.  By checking the temperature the meat at the starting point of the cook you will have a better understanding of what needs to happen inside the meat as it cooks. For larger pieces of meat, like turkeys and beef roasts, I will periodically check the temp at several locations of the meat during the cook.  Checking the temperature during the cook mostly applies to roasts, whole poultry and chicken parts more than it applies to cooking individual steaks or chops. But you get my point – right?

Understanding temperature is the fundamental knowledge to master for all outdoor cooking. What you desire to have happen with the meat or other food you cook is a direct result of your understanding the temperature capacity of your cooker (direct, indirect, high, low, etc. – and that means getting to know the cooker you are using) and what the temperature needs are for the food to turn out the way you want it.  For instance a pork shoulder cooked several hours at 200F degrees using indirect heat  will slowly rise in temperature and eventually render all of the collagen into flavoring of the meat to become pull-apart tender. But the same pork shoulder cooked at 350F or higher will become more like a pork roast and is more likely to be enjoyed sliced and served with a sauce or gravy. For more information on temperature – check out this post: It’s all about Heat!

The grates need to be hot – in the range of 450F – 650F degrees. If you don’t have a good feel for the grate temps on your cooker, or experience has demonstrated the grate on your cooker doesn’t produce those higher temperatures there are a couple of tricks to help ‘boost’ the performance of your grill to get the sear marks.  Here are two:

• Trick 1. Use a double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil and lay it over the section of the grates where you will be searing the steaks, chops, etc. during the warm-up period.  Don’t worry about oiling the grates, you’ll spritz the meat with some canola oil prior to grilling and that will work just fine.  After the grill has heated to the highest temperature the grates under the foil will be extra hot – use tongs in both hands and lift the foil with one while using the other to grab a seasoned and lightly oiled steak to place on the super heated section of the grates. You should hear a distinct sizzle on the grill and see a bit of smoke.  CAUTION: don’t over do the use of foil on grates because some grills are just not made to handle the higher heat. Perform this technique only if you have confidence in both the grate quality and your ability to do it with some swift movements and then – please use it with self restraint!

• Trick 2. If you have a smaller grill with wire racks and don’t feel confident in using the foil to super heat the grates – first of all I applaud your good sense and self awareness. Use butter. Good ol’butter has a low smoke point and spreading a thin coat of butter on a steak prior to grilling will conduct the heat from the grates to the meat very well and it will also brown quickly and that, we know, will add flavor to your steak.  Use it sparingly to prevent flare-ups and practice a bit before jumping into the technique.

When the clean grates are heated to searing temperature range of between 450F – 650F degrees – and the steaks have warmed a bit, the salt has pulled some natural sugars to the surface and you’ve lightly spritzed the surface of the meat with a high temp cooking oil like canola, pomace olive oil, safflower or peanut oil – it’s time to place the steaks on the grates. AND PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO WHAT THEY ARE DOING. As you get to know your grill and your experience and confidence level grows you will come to understand that paying attention to what is happening on the cooking surface translates into a tasty steak on the plate.  Grilling steaks is not a lassez faire experience.

Keep an eye on the edges of the steaks where the meat and the grate surfaces are touching. You will start to see the edge brown just a bit and that’s gonna be the time to flip it. You can check it by lifting a corner of the steak with your tongs or, as I do in the picture, just quickly lift an edge to get a view of the process. If they aren’t quite ready (indicated by the browning) be mindful that you lay that edge back down on the same grates so the marks are consistent and even.

Flip the steaks. If you are cooking on an infrared or ultra-high BTU conventional gas burner or using cast iron grates over charcoal – you can pretty much flip the steaks in place. If your grates are stainless steel rods or porcelain coated wire – you may be better off moving the steaks to a new “fresh” section of the grates with each turn. Cast iron does an excellent job of retaining heat – while stainless steel rods and wire racks don’t – so creating sear marks and enjoying the flavor they produce is more difficult on these two grate materials.

If steaks are your thing and you aren’t getting the sear marks you want from the grates on your grill – it may be time to look into either a replacement grate like the Universal Fit Porcelain Coated Cast Iron Grates or place a cast iron grate on top of the existing wire grate system.

The searing process on a well-heated quality grate does not take long. My personal style is to flip the steaks and sear both sides before getting fancy with cross hatch markings. I like to cook evenly on both sides and sometimes that means only one side – often called “The presentation side” – gets cross hatch sear marks. When the proteins in the steaks are ready they “release” and the steak is easily turned.  Searing occurs at high temperatures – most of which exceed the smoke point of standard cooking oils. If you attempt to use a paper towel that’s been soaked in cooking oil to rub on the grates – most likely the oil will smoke instantly and burn away or the paper towel will catch fire.  The food requires only a minimum amount of high-temp or high-smoke point cooking oil to evenly conduct heat from the grates to the meat.  Don’t over do it and less chance of flare-ups on your conventional gas or charcoal grills. For more about cooking oils – or at least my opinion (for what that’s worth!) check out this post: “The oils I use for grilling and why.”

These two steaks have seared on one side and flipped to the other side to sear. Depending upon the thickness of the steak and the desired doneness, I may flip once more and turn at about a 90 degree angle to give the cross-hatch marks, or not.

Look closely at the edges of the steak - see how the sear marks are only just that - not embedded into the steak. That's the way I enjoy my steaks but your tastes rule!

How do you know when the steak is done? Take it's temperature is one way. Sorry for the glare int he photo - the instant read thermometer displays 127.6F degrees - right smack dab on RARE. If I remove the steaks to a plate to rest now they will continue to cook a bit, but not too much. Or I can move them to a holding tray off of direct heat but still in the grill cooking chamber where they will continue to rise in temp to the desired temperature. I like my steaks RARE - but cooked, not RAW.

The desired outcome is a steak cooked the way you like it.  The USDA guidelines are a good starting point – but you and your guests may have your own ideas as to what qualifies as Rare and what is Medium.  I present these only as a starting point from which you should determine your own temperature standards.

USDA Recommended Internal Cooking Temperatures

Rare: 130F degrees
Medium Rare: 145F degrees
Medium: 160F degrees
Well: 170F degrees

One fact worth noting is that individual steaks will vary according to muscle fiber, moisture content, and grade of beef and type of cut. For instance a grass fed Choice ribeye will cook differently than a corn-fed Choice ribeye and you need to get to know your grill and the type of meat you are cooking to deliver consistently great results on the plate!

So what is the result of this cook?  A perfectly seared surface that has a bit of crust and provides a good, what I call “tooth feel” with each bite. An interior that is uniformly cooked – with no layers of different doneness, you’ve seen steaks that look like sedimentary rock. Dark on the outside then brown gradually becoming gray and boody raw/rare in the center.  If that’s the way you like your steak – great. I like mine this way:

My idea of perfectly grilled steak is seared on the surface to produce attractive tasty sear marks with a slightly salty crust; evenly cooked RARE interior that has no indication of layers of doneness. What's yours?

Once the steak is seared over direct heat and on hot grates – you can remove it to a holding tray and allow it to slowly come to the desired internal temperature you most enjoy.  By repeated preparing steaks this way you will develop what I call a “mental muscle memory” that will enable you to host a party for dozens of folks and deliver a tasty steak grilled to perfection for each guest as they have requested.

Have questions or comments? Want more information or help with your grill? Post a comment below or sign up for the Users Forums and share your question with the hundreds of members – many of which may have similar experiences and equipment and who will have some tips and tricks to share.

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!

]]> http://www.sizzleonthegrill.com/blog/2010/02/23/more-tips-on-grilling-great-steaks/feed/ 10 http://www.sizzleonthegrill.com/blog/2010/02/23/more-tips-on-grilling-great-steaks/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sizzleonthegrill/AAou/~3/jacmmyS7w-k/ http://www.sizzleonthegrill.com/blog/2010/02/16/rack-of-lamb-prepared-on-the-big-easy-smoker-roaster-grill/#comments Wed, 17 Feb 2010 01:40:33 +0000 CB http://www.sizzleonthegrill.com/blog/?p=11458 I truly enjoy the flavor of slow cooked pork ribs, grilled whole pork tenderloin sliced into medallions, pork loin roasted and smoked a bit, a smokey pulled pork  sandwich with lotsa ‘bark’ on the surface to kinda chew on and taste the smoke. When it comes to beef – well gimmie a sirloin, a ribeye beef steak, porterhouse, tenderloin, standing rib, flat iron, hanger steak, slow cooked brisket (Texas style if you please) and just about anything else grilled, slow cooked or roasted and barbequed with some smoke. And do I even have to mention chicken, turkey, duck, pheasant, quail, goat, wild boar, veal and a couple other sublime tasty meats that are oh-so-DEE-LISH-US when grilled, roasted, smoked or barbequed?.

Yep – I love it all!

But maybe, just maybe. At least for today maybe – a lightly seasoned and grilled-roasted rack of lamb is one of my top favorite meats to enjoy. Tonight I prepared a smallish 1 lb rack of New Zealand lamb on the Big Easy Smoker-Roaster-Grill as part of my shake-down experience with this new product from Char-Broil.  I gotta tell you I  just couldn’t be happier with the result.

Individual chops sliced from a rack of lamb grilled-roasted to RARE please! Lightly seasoned to compliment the natural flavor of the meat.

The methods to prepare many different cuts of meat on the grill are nearly identical. Once you get the method or technique mastered – you can feel confident approaching the variety of meat available to you and expand your meal time enjoyment.

Inspect and tidy up the meat prior to cooking.

First things first. Inspect the meat and trim away excess fat and any miscellaneous stuff that doesn’t add to flavor and should be removed prior to cooking.

The lamb I purchased came already ‘Frenched’ with the meat between the ribs cut away and the bones were fairly clean. But I noticed there was some silver skin on the meat and some of the trims needed a touch up. I used a sharpened paring knife to trim away excess fat off the meat as well as some excessive fat that wouldn’t add to flavor.

I dried the moisture from the lamb and then lightly seasoned with sea salt, black pepper, ground cumin and curry powder. Some folks like this combo and some don’t. I enjoy a light touch of seasoning on grilled meat – nothing too over powering and always to add a layer of flavor that is complimentary to the flavor of the meat.  But that’s my taste you are the head chef at your house – season meat to please yourself and your guests!

I enjoy just a light touch of seasoning... to compliment the meat, not over power it.

If the word “curry” keeps you away – just read the label for the ingredient list and you will think you are using a Southern-style rub from a BBQ master!  Some folks prefer to use a mustard paste at this stage to help form the crust.  It’s all up to your taste buds!

The lamb rested for about an hour so the flavors could be absorbed into the surface of the meat – as the salt helped to draw up some natural sugars and proteins. combining with the seasonings to begin the first step in a flavorful crust that will form on the meat when grilled using high heat.

I spritzed the meat with some canola oil and placed the lamb meat side down on the HOT (450F – 650F degree) grates that were brush cleaned prior to starting the grill.

I started the cook with the meat side down on the hot grates.

I wanted to sear mark the meat and get the crust started so that when I turned (about 4 minutes) it would show.

The initial sear gave some nice brown marks to the meat and started to form the crust - that 'brown' will be full of flavor and enhance the 'mouth feel.'

Using tongs I moved the racks around just a bit to ensure they were cooking evening – checking the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer several times to get an idea of how the inside was cooking. When the internal temperature hit 120F degrees it was about the same time the surface of the meat looked browned and seared – glistening with some of the rendered fat and seasonings.  I removed it to a pan and left it on the grill with the heat off to finish.  I checked it in a few minutes and the internal temperature was 135F degrees. That’s RARE according to the USDA and I like it that way.

Lightly seasoned rack of lamb - Tasty on a plate!

The racks rested in the kitchen while I prepared the other parts of the meal and just prior to service trimmed the chops to show on the plate. Does that look DEE-LISH-US to you? It was.

Here are a few recipes for lamb that may inspire you this weekend:

CB’s EZ Grilled Lamb Loin Chops

CB’s Classic Rotisserie Roasted Leg of Lamb

Chef Chris Koetke ROSEMARY LAMB CHOPS

Chef Chris Koetke LAMB AND PORTABELLO SKEWERS WITH CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

Chef Erik’s Lamb & Veggie Kabobs with Mint Pesto

CB’S EZ “Souvlaki-Style” Grilled Lamb Skewers

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!