It’s important you understand the difference between Direct and Indirect Grilling methods. It’s really pretty straightforward, Direct Grilling means you place the meat directly over the heat source be it hot coals, or low/med/high gas burners. Indirect Grilling means you build up coals on only one side of a charcoal grill, or heat only certain portions of a gas grill (left/ right, or front/middle/back), then place the meat over the “off” side or that side lacking direct heat. Typically you use Direct Grilling on its own, or in combination with Indirect Grilling to create best results.
GRILLING BEEF: The first step in grilling beef is choosing the right cuts for the right reasons. Obviously you count on Joe’s to help you make the right choices for different occasions. There is really no substitute for the years of experience our staff brings to the table in helping you make best choices given your occasion and parameters. For in depth analysis of each cut and pictures click here: (insert link).
Beef Steak
There are six simple steps to grilling a great steak. You can use this method on just about every steak with equal success.
- Season your meat well – Using your cutting board as a base, apply a bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) to your steak. Rub the oil all around the steak and its edges, a little goes a long way. Season your meat with your favorite steak rub, or simply rub in an ample amount of kosher salt and freshly ground cracked black pepper. If you are in a hurry a light sprinkle of garlic powder adds additional flavor but we prefer using a micro-grater to apply some fresh grated garlic or shallot to each side. Place your steak on a plate and cover with film wrap.
- Let your steak come to room temperature – Take your covered steak plate and set it on the counter for a few hours. Don’t worry, the seasoning won’t allow enough bacteria to grow quickly enough to make you sick. Bringing you steak to room temperature is essential as cooking a cold steak poses “heat potential” problems that causes your steak to be pink on the inside and well done on the outside instead of a solid doneness throughout.
- Sear your steak using Direct Grilling – For cuts equal to or less than 1 ½ inches thick sear each side for 1 minute each on high direct heat, cuts greater than 1 ½ inches thick sear for 1 ½ minutes per side on high direct heat.
- Move to Indirect Grilling – Move your steak to the “off” side of the grill and turn your temperature down to medium on the “on” side of your grill, if using charcoal move your steak to the side without coals and change your vents to decrease the heat from your coals.
- Pull your steak using internal temperature – Turning only twice, continue grilling the steak on using Indirect Grilling. Using your instant read thermometer to judge, grill until the internal temperature of the your steak is:125° F – medium rare
130° F – medium
135° F – medium/well
140° F – well - Let your steak rest for 5 minutes – Pull your steak from the grill and place it on a plate to rest for 5 minutes. Allowing the steak to rest returns to the center of the steak, the juices that were expanded and pushed to the edges of steak during cooking. The resulting end internal temperature will be 5° F higher than the “pull” temperature listed above.
Beef Roast
The same six steps used for great steak grilling can be used for superior roasts as well, with some minor modifications.
- Season your meat well – Using your cutting board as a base, apply a bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) to your roast. Rub the oil all around the roast and its edges, a little goes a long way. Season your roast with your favorite roast rub, or simply rub in an ample amount of kosher salt and freshly ground cracked black pepper. Using a sharp knife cut multiple slits into the meat side of the roast (not the fat cap) about ½ inch long and ½ in deep. Thinly slice peeled fresh garlic and insert the thin slices into the slits on the roast. Place your roast on a plate and cover with film wrap.
- Let your roast come to room temperature – Even more important for a roast than a steak (see above). Depending on the roasts size this may take several hours.
- Sear your roast using Direct Grilling – Sear the roast 1 ½ minutes per side on high direct heat (it may take three turns to completely cover the roast) then sear the roasts ends for 1 minute each on high direct heat.
- Move to Indirect Grilling – Move your roast to the “off” side of the grill and turn your temperature down to medium/low on the “on” side of your grill, if using charcoal move your roast to the side without coals and change your vents to decrease the heat from your coals.
- Pull your roast using internal temperature – Leaving the fat cap up, continue grilling the roast using Indirect Grilling, you do not need to turn the roast. Insert your probe thermometer through the fat cap and half way into the roast. Set the temperature alert to desire doneness listed below or continue to grill until an instant read thermometer reads the following for the roasts internal to temperature:
125° F – medium rare
130° F – medium
135° F – medium/well
140° F – well
6. Let your steak rest for 5 minutes – Pull your steak from the grill and place it on a plate to rest for 5 minutes. Allowing the steak to rest returns to the center of the steak, the juices that were expanded and pushed to the edges of steak during cooking. The resulting end internal temperature will be 5° F higher than the “pull” temperature listed above.