Ribeye and burgers


 

JWorden

TVWBB Fan
Grilled some burgers for my wife and daughter. Ribeye for myself as they won't eat steak. About 4 minutes on one side and 3.5 on the other. I wanted medium rare but turned out medium but it was juicey and not at all tough.
 

Attachments

  • 20220903_180703.jpg
    20220903_180703.jpg
    160.8 KB · Views: 24
Last edited:
I used to overshoot temperature fairly often but those issues went away when I stopped closing the lid between flips.
 
That looks awesome. I went to a steak house chain last night with a couple family members and ordered one to medium doneness. That sucker was well done edge-to-edge. I chose to eat it as-if it was perfect; I spent the majority of my life being unwilling to touch a steak that wasn't well-done, so I figured I'd reflect on how I used to demand my steak, lol.
 
That looks awesome. I went to a steak house chain last night with a couple family members and ordered one to medium doneness. That sucker was well done edge-to-edge. I chose to eat it as-if it was perfect; I spent the majority of my life being unwilling to touch a steak that wasn't well-done, so I figured I'd reflect on how I used to demand my steak, lol.
Steak is the one meal I never order at a restaurant.
 
That's an interesting idea.

It read about 135 when I took it off.
Rule of thumb on grilling steaks - sear with the lid open, and if you're still not at target temp, then move to indirect and close the lid and check temp every couple of minutes. Pull em' off a few degrees below target temp, and the temp will rise a few degrees during the rest period.

Also, you can reverse sear using your WSM by running it at 250 or so, with your steaks in there until they hit about 90 to 95F, and then searing on your gas grill. For this method, you really need something like or similar to a Thermoworks Smoke when reverse searing during the first, low temp phase. Again, very important not to close the lid between flips in the sear phase.

There is debate about which of these two methods is best (direct sear, then indirect) or reverse sear (indirect, then sear). Both ways work for me and I generally reverse sear when I've got to cook more than two big steaks (T-bones, or Ribeyes). I did 4 porterhouses this weekend using my WSM as described above and seared off on my Weber Kamado.... Turned out very nice.

1662340238781.png
 
Ribeye actually is better done a little more to the "done" side. Because it's more like chuck. More connective tissue and fat. So they benefit from a slower cook, to a slightly higher temp. While I will typically not take a strip over 125 (usually 120), I will do a ribeye more to 135 or slightly above. I find better taste and texture like that. As for cooking lid open. On a Weber gas grill they really don't have the power to accomplish that easily. They're designed to be used lid down. Work best that way. I can get away with lid up cooking on my Wolf, but not the Weber
 
I cooked this on my performer with a mix of briquettes and lump. I cooked the burgers first so I could concentrate on the steak separately and I knew it would be a short cook. The lid thermometer was almost 600F with the probe directly over the coals.

It only cost about $8 at the store. I thought that was a good price.
 
That's an interesting idea.

It read about 135 when I took it off.

Depending on how hot you are grilling, the meat will continue to cook toward the center of the piece of meat. So you have to remove it from the fire well ahead of your target temperature in the center.

For an extreme example, I tend to grill steaks over a lump charcoal fire, with the fire within a couple inches of the grate. Usually, I leave it on for between 1 and 2 minutes per side, flip and repeat until each side has hit the fire twice and the sear is per my liking. This is done by eye, not time. Then if it needs more cooking, I move it away from the fire where it will get indirect heat when the cooker is closed. Since the temperatures I cook at are very high, I routinely remove the steaks from the fire when the core is in the 100F range. A 15 minute rest will let the steak continue to cook toward the center and arrive at my medium rare (130-135F) target temperature. If you shorten the rest or reduce the cooking temperature, the temperature at which you need to remove the steak from the grill must be higher. Likewise, if you cover with foil and a kitchen towel during the rest, it will cook much more than open. I've started just finding a "quiet" place to put the steak, uncovered, like an ambient oven or microwave. I've heard some say remove it 10F before the target or 5 or 15F. There is no rule. There are too many variables when cooking on charcoal to nail it down that close. It comes down to educated guesswork. If you want that level of precision where you can time it, cook on a gas or electric flat top.
 
Depending on how hot you are grilling, the meat will continue to cook toward the center of the piece of meat. So you have to remove it from the fire well ahead of your target temperature in the center.

For an extreme example, I tend to grill steaks over a lump charcoal fire, with the fire within a couple inches of the grate. Usually, I leave it on for between 1 and 2 minutes per side, flip and repeat until each side has hit the fire twice and the sear is per my liking. This is done by eye, not time. Then if it needs more cooking, I move it away from the fire where it will get indirect heat when the cooker is closed. Since the temperatures I cook at are very high, I routinely remove the steaks from the fire when the core is in the 100F range. A 15 minute rest will let the steak continue to cook toward the center and arrive at my medium rare (130-135F) target temperature. If you shorten the rest or reduce the cooking temperature, the temperature at which you need to remove the steak from the grill must be higher. Likewise, if you cover with foil and a kitchen towel during the rest, it will cook much more than open. I've started just finding a "quiet" place to put the steak, uncovered, like an ambient oven or microwave. I've heard some say remove it 10F before the target or 5 or 15F. There is no rule. There are too many variables when cooking on charcoal to nail it down that close. It comes down to educated guesswork. If you want that level of precision where you can time it, cook on a gas or electric flat top.
Thanks for the post.

I based it off my experience using my spirit gas grill. Since I was using a mix of lump and briquettes I'm sure the temperature was much hotter than my gas grill. Next time I'll remove it a little earlier. I'm not too picky and it was still enjoyable.
 
Steak is the one meal I never order at a restaurant.
When we were both working, we ate out almost every meal. I've had some pretty good steaks out there. Some of the best steaks I've had were usually at places that specialize in them. Some of those places are pricey, some are just good down home places that have pride in what they serve. But good meat costs a lot and you can't make a mediocre piece of meat into a great steak. But, I'm following what you're hinting at....the best steakhouse is my house... or your house ;)
 

 

Back
Top