If you're like me, When you crank up that Bbq grill for the season it's all about cooking excellent steak. I love all kinds of foods cooked on an exterior bbq grill, but none says summer quite like that sweet smell of steak on the grill. For me, the results are always predictable and always pretty close to perfect. This is because I use the same process every time and I start with the end result in mind. So that's my first tip: cooking excellent steak starts with identifying what that means to you and then learning about the basic cooking recipe so that you can navigate to that desired point. You'll have to decide on the definition of perfection for yourself - that's the fun part. But the next few paragraphs should help with the second part - learning the process and the basic cooking recipe that helps get you to your perfection.
It All Starts Before Cooking Tenderloin!
Barbeque Grill
For most carnivores, the beginning of the process towards steak nirvana is when you positively start cooking tenderloin. Unfortunately, this coming leaves out one of my best secrets for cooking excellent steak: start with the whole tenderloin. There are so many advantages to buying a whole tenderloin and breaking it down yourself. You can undoubtedly save some money learning how to do this, and it is a lot easier than you think. When you buy the whole tenderloin, the first thing you have to do before cooking tenderloin is to remove the "chain". The chain is the side muscle; it contains a lot of the fat and is great for use later in stews, chilis or even my beloved treat: Tenderloin Philly cheese steak. But that's a whole other way for cooking tenderloin and beyond the scope of this article! Once you've removed the chain, you must remove the thick top end of the tenderloin - "the head". This, too can be set aside and used later. What you are left with is a long tenderloin from which to cut your steaks. The most important thing to remember is to try to cut the steaks of consistent size by weight. Consistent size equals consistent cooking, which equals reliable cooking! Use a scale and aim for a consistent size somewhere between 3 and 5 oz per steak, depending on who you're cooking for.
Do you positively Know How to Grill Beef?
If you believe most people, grilling takes no skill at all. It's so much easier than cooking and anyone can do this with microscopic strengthen planning or coarse knowledge. Right? This is positively one of my beloved cooking myths! Knowing correctly how to grill beef (or anyone else) is important to outdoor cooking success. Grilling is direct source conductive heat. Cooking is to grilling as driving is to flying a rocket ship. all happens quickly and intensely with grilling and that includes mistakes. So, let's begin with the simple process:
First, get the grill as hot as possible. Keep the lid down while heating the grill, but open when cooking. This is another coarse grilling mistake. If you close the lid while cooking, the recipe you are applying is similar to that of oven cooking. Why bother doing it exterior on the grill? Brush the steak with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. You can use any other kind of seasoning or rub here, but I find that the true steak flavor comes from a good cut of meat and you don't need anyone else. You might have a dissimilar understanding so season as you see fit. Place the steak on the hot grill "show side" down - meaning the side you'd want to display on the plate goes down on the grill first. Now contemplate for signs of done-ness. When the steak is 75% done on one side, flip it over and cook the rest of the way.
Knowing how to grill beef is a simple process, but most people still go into it blindly. By following the steps, you will always be working towards cooking the excellent steak, rather than just cooking a steak until it has reached a safe to eat temperature and texture. The fine line of variation between proper and perfection make all of the difference, and with perfection so reliably reachable, why not aim high?
How Long Should the Meat Cook? Until It's Done!
So, here we are. We always arrive at the same question. In travel, it's: are we there yet?; and in cooking, it's: how long should the meat cook?. Well, I have one answer to all of the how long questions: until it's done. Yes, it positively is that simple. Let the meat cook until it's done. And now we get into the more absorbing question: how do I know when it's done? I often say that cooking is a journey - so you are a tourist, an observer on that journey. As you contemplate what happens to the steak while the cooking process, you will observation some predictable things happen. First, at 165 degrees, proteins coagulate. What you will see when this happens is that the steak will stiffen and shrink. You will see the sides of the tenderloin start to get brownish gray. At 320 degrees, the sugars caramelize. If you lift a side of the steak up slightly and look underneath, you will see the formation of grill marks to indicate this is happening. You will also begin to smell that nice, sweet, smell - telling you that you are cooking excellent steak and all is happening as it should. When the steak is 50-75% cooked on one side, it reaches what is termed in French culinary as "a point". You will contemplate the juices start to bubble up to the red top. This indicates it is time to flip the steak, allowing it to cease its cooking on the other side. The last observation you will make to decide done-ness is the most quantitative because you will use a thermometer. Don't cut open your steak to peer into the middle! Don't stab at it with a fork! Both of these activities will publish all of the juiciness you just worked so hard to achieve! 125-135 degrees is rare; 145-150 is medium and 160-165 is well done. So pick your temperature and remove the steak from the grill. But before serving it, let it rest for 5-10 minutes so that the juices can redistribute and run off onto the non-serving plate.
Just by comprehension these simple facts about grilling, cooking excellent steak is almost a guaranteed result. Go ahead and get your own whole tenderloin today and get ready for some great outdoor eating!
Three Steps to Cooking excellent Steak on Your Outdoor Bbq Grill