Steak on 22.5 OTG

[ligrill]

I have a question about grilling steaks on my Weber. 

I generally cook steaks that are under 1".  My questions are:

1) Do I leave the lid off?

2) Do I just sear the steaks for about 4 minutes per side with a half a chimney worth of coals/lump?

3) What are nailed potatoes?

4) Thanks!

[1buckie]

I'll leave the steak answers to others who are more adept......

Here's some good pics & info from BBQMiller about potato nails.....aluminium nails about 4 inches long, stick in the potato so it cooks from the inside also:

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/grilling-bbqing/nothing-like-opening-up-a-new-bag-of-lump!/msg97922/#msg97922

[addicted-to-smoke]

No steak expert here, either, but ligrill even with thin steaks, a 4 min sear "and that's it" (if I understand you correctly) sounds rare-ish, med rare if that's your goal?

If you cook more than one at a time ... you can experiment and arrive at a desired result by offsetting the coals to one side, creating direct and indirect areas. Cook one as you say, quick sear and another indirect for longer and see what you like better. In either case I'd be in the habit---nearly always---with leaving the lid ON.

As for the taters, I'm not a fan of putting aluminum to food but I'm sure there are stainless steel potato nails. Weber sells some that are probably like that? On the other hand, for other, longer cooks where you're doing meats/veggies here and there for like an hour, just put the potatoes right on the grill and let them cook for that hour, turning, moving closer/farther.

I like them "near" the coals. Too far away is too far, right over the coals turns the skin black if not watched ... and being able to leave the lid on while meats get their magic is part of Weber's magic, you dig? So midway between a direct and indirect cook for potatoes that'll be left on for about an hour while the rest is happening.

That said, potatoes down in the basement (i.e. with coals, on charcoal grate) works fine, too, and gives you room up top for veggies. They tend to be fairly forgiving. Remember, heat rises, so down with the coals isn't necessarily hotter. And if you wrap them in foil, that retains heat if you need a faster cook. Lots of options! I prefer simple, no foil, and that does nice things to the skin for flavor.

[addicted-to-smoke]

kinda what I mean on the potatoes; they are near the coals, which are grouped together on one side with charcoal holders



Since I had to go into it a couple times, once to turn chicken, once to remove grate and add beans below chicken, I'd gently pick them up with tongs. That gentle squeeze can tell you if they're getting soft or you can stick something in them of course ... towards the end, I used that "hot" area for potatoes and finally the chicken, as each didn't seem to be done enough on their on, but it was only for a few minutes.

Be aware, and this is serious, meat directly over high heat, where the animal fat drips down, ignites or big smoke results, puts cancer deposits on the meat--no joke.

[OoPEZoO]

1.  Lid on.....almost always.  The only time I might leave it off is if I am just finishing up a steak that only has another couple degrees internal temp to reach what I want.  The rest of the time, lid on, vents open

2.  For thin NY strips (maybe 0.5lbs each), I tend to sear them for 3 mins on each side at most.  Then I pull them.  You need a scorching hot fire to get good marks and crust.  I like to use lump piled up in the charcoal baskets so it gets the coals closer to the cooking grate.  By that time, they have usually hit med-rare to med already.  I live and die by my Thermapen here.  Next to my grill, its the best thing I ever added to my arsenal.  Mine was a gift from my wife, and I thank her for it almost every time I get something perfect.

3.  You stick a nail through a potato with the thought that the nail conducts heat from the head towards the center of the potato.  Essentially cooking it from the inside as well as from the outside.  It does speed up the internal cooking of the potato, but I like the skin crunchy and you can't speed that up.  I never bothered with buying "potato nails".  What I did do was I stuck two potatoes on a skewer to get the same result.  It works.....maybe shaves 10-15 min off the cooking time of a baked potato, but its that extra 10-15 min that end up crisping the skin.

4.  Your welcome.  I hope some of that helps......and always, Your mileage may vary 

[bwb]

I like the whole and on the grill.
But for fun Cut the potatos like this

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rosemary-roasted-potatoes-recipe2.html

Steak - Be sure to let it come to room temp before cooking.
A cold steak will cook a lot slower than a room temp steak.

Sear it on direct heat for color and then off to the sides to get to the desired doneness ...
4 min each side gets you to rare/med rare
Then put them off on the side to keep cooking.
My wife likes hers more done than I do so I usually cook hers first and then sear mine.
Found this chart on line..
these are total cooking times. Divide in half for each side. Times are approximate and will vary depending on the type of grill, fuel, weather conditions, etc..

Thickness   Rare   Medium   Well   Heat
1"   6-8   8-10   10-14   High
1 1/2"   8-10   10-12   12-16   High
2"   12-16   16-20   20-24   Medium

[mirkwood]

ligrill, this is the magic of a Weber charcoal grill, almost anyway you can cook on a kettle will work to some extent.
I do almost the exact opposite of bwb, well after letting the steaks come to room temp, I cook my steaks indirectly
till they are close to the temp I want (105 degrees minimum for rare).

Then I move them over the coals for a really nice sear on both side and then pull to rest at 110 ~ 115 and temp will rise to
115 ~ 120 for rare ~ med rare.  You will have a beautifully red/pink color edge to edge with a nicely seared exterior.

One of the best tools you can get yourself, after the Weber kettle, is a good quality instant read type thermometer like
a Thermapen and or one for longer cooks, yeah you'll want to do that soon trust me, like this Maverick 733, cooking to time
will get you close but cooking to temp will get you perfection, unless you are 1buckie and then pretty much everything coming
off the cooker(s) will be perfect.
I should qualify that statement about time, Time will work better for some cooks like ribs and burgers, stuff that is really
thin or has bones close together like ribs, time is best. Roasts, whole chickens, large cuts, those things are better suited by
cooking to temp.

[Craig]

I do mine direct and sear them first then flip them based on how thick they are. 2" thick, I sear 3 minutes a side then move them to indirect to finish them off..


For potatoes, I stick them with the potato nails and put them downstairs with the coals. Called the "basement method". I think I got the idea for that from Buckie..

[toddmog]

1.  Lid on.....almost always.  The only time I might leave it off is if I am just finishing up a steak that only has another couple degrees internal temp to reach what I want.  The rest of the time, lid on, vents open

2.  For thin NY strips (maybe 0.5lbs each), I tend to sear them for 3 mins on each side at most.  Then I pull them.  You need a scorching hot fire to get good marks and crust.  I like to use lump piled up in the charcoal baskets so it gets the coals closer to the cooking grate.  By that time, they have usually hit med-rare to med already.  I live and die by my Thermapen here.  Next to my grill, its the best thing I ever added to my arsenal.  Mine was a gift from my wife, and I thank her for it almost every time I get something perfect.

This is basically what I do as well.  I did two KC strips Thursday night.  I loaded up a full chimney of lump...once it was screaming hot, dumped it into the charcoal baskets and dropped in the sear grate.  The grate was practically sitting on the lump.  Dome therm read 550+ when I dropped the steaks on.  About 2.5 mins a side before moving to indirect.  Only a couple of mins more to hit medium.  I also use a Thermopop since I don't have a Thermapen yet.

[1buckie]

Man, I'm glad some people who know what they're doing checked in......Lance (Mirkwood) is giving me way too much credit on stuff.......I'm a high heat grilling dodo........

This is me aiming at getting a steak just right:



Miss the mouth, hit the forehead with the ice cream cone.......

These are real good ideas on how to get this right, or at least very close to the way you want it.....