First reverse-sear steaks

[M635_Guy]

Thoughts:
- Tried the cold-grate thing - seemed to work

- This finished a LOT faster than I thought it would, and was pretty easy overall.

- Did some briquettes for the indirect phase, then chimneyed some lump while I prepped the steaks to sear (pat dry, etc.)

- One steak finished more than the other (one was Med-rare, other was closer to medium). 

- Both were nicely juicy and tasty though - no complaints from the wife and spawn

[kettlebb]

Awesome, do you have a picture of any slices?  What are your thoughts on reverse sear vs the other methods?


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[HoosierKettle]

Perfect looking sear. Nice work.


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[M635_Guy]

Awesome, do you have a picture of any slices?  What are your thoughts on reverse sear vs the other methods?

I didn't think about pix of slices before we'd all torn into it - I was starving before I even started cooking!   

I actually thought reverse-sear was fantastic.  It's pretty clear that it optimizes for a moist piece of steak.  I've tried the Alton Brown method where you sear the heck of it the steak for 60 seconds on each side and then pop into a 500° oven for a couple minutes on each side.  That turns out really good also, but (A) it's hard to do for more than a couple steaks and (B) it makes an absolute freaking mess.  Of course, it also lacks the flavor added by the charcoal.

I'm 50, have made a ton of steaks over the years, tried a variety of things and those were easily as good as the best steaks I've ever made, and they were just basic thin(-ish) Angus rib-eyes  from Aldi.  It certainly makes me want to get some really good Prime steaks and have a go, which brings me to another thought.

I've never done the 2"-thick steak thing because I always felt like the thickness exponentially increased the chance of the steak winding up overcooked or under-cooked (I've never had a remote leave-in thermometer setup until I got my Weber last month).  Even as a guy who leans to the Rare side of Med-Rare, I didn't generally love the thick steaks coming off my grill.  Cooking indirect first makes that a relative non-issue, and the process I used where the steaks come off the grill to be patted-dry and seasoned with pepper before searing (as seen in a couple videos) makes me think the ability to finish to varying temps (Rare, med-rare, etc.) would be easier. 

FWIW, here's the process I used:

• Started a half-chimney of (Weber) briquettes and dumped them in the Slow & Sear when hot (it was a little windy, so they were pretty hot).  I had the vents pretty tight so things didn't get too hot and let them "settle" a bit.
• Temps seemed to stabilize pretty close to 300F, which seemed fine, so the steaks went on.  (I'd probably go low/slow for thicker steaks, and frankly I was planning to run lower than that here, but temp stability and hunger made the call in this case)
• I flipped them when temps hit 90F or so.  At that point, I also started a little bit (a bit more than 1/3 chimney) of (Fogo black) lump.
• I got a little busy in the house, and temps went to almost 120F before I got back outside and grabbed the steaks.
• I patted them dry with a couple paper towels.  I was surprised how little was coming off them TBH, but this step apparently helps the sear since you don't have to boil off the water on the surface of the steak.  Makes sense I suppose, and this is where the opportunity lies to pull-early/leave-longer to a particular done-ness.
• I removed the whole grate dumped the lump in the S&S, spread them out and blew on them a bit to get things really hot.  I replaced the grate with the spinning one (from the S&S kit I got) to try the "cold-grate" thing (more on that in a sec).
• I waited a minute, and rotated the grate, flipped the steaks while moving them back over the coals.  I did that a couple more times, though I was sweating over-doing it so they weren't a full minute.  Then I pulled the steaks and took the pic in my original post.

All of that flowed pretty well.  The one rough patch was that the grates want to foul a bit on the bolt heads from the lid-holder on my Performer when inserting/removing grates.  That's a bit annoying/stressful when things are hot and you're got a hot grate, a cold grate, hot coals, a hot chimney/etc.  to deal with.  If there's a hack to minimize the profile of those things I'm interested to hear it.  I assume I'll get the hang of that and it will be a minor detail over time, but it's the one thing I kinda hate about the Weber Kettle right now.

Anyway, I'll probably be doing a salmon before I get back to steaks, but that was a great example of the grill being easy and fast.  That was a concern of mine when I "switched" to charcoal (my 20+ year-old Weber gas grill is still sitting next to the Performer, but has been unused since the arrival of the kettle), but (as y'all know very well) it's just an order-of-operations thing - start the coals before prepping food, etc.

[jhagestad]

You've got all the details handled well! I agree with you on the Performer bolt heads interfering with the grill grate removal/switch, etc. It's the one reason I've been modifying my old 22" kettle and not simply buying another.

Anyhoo, I'm a guy who loves grilling thick fillets (14-16oz) or ribeyes (16-20oz).  I've done it so much now, that I really don't have to think about it much unless I'm cooking different things in different zones or if the weather is extreme (hot or cold).  With that said, I haven't tried the cold grate sear thing since it sounds like a lot of hassle for a not-so-huge return.  I also don't do reverse sear.  I set up my grill for indirect with 1/2-3/4 chimney of coals on one side.  If my wife wants me to cook chicken kabobs at the same time as a steak, it's the same but I do a full chimney and throw 1/4 of the coals opposite of the searing side.  The steak goes on the hot side first (5-6 minutes a side for a 3" thick fillet; 3 minutes a side for a 2" thick ribeye) - after that's done, I move the steak to the indirect side and go a little longer (8 minutes all on one side for the fillet or 4 minutes all on one side for the ribeye).  When I take it off, I add some garlic butter on top, wrap it loosely in foil and let it rest for about 5 minutes to get everything settled.  Never been disappointed!

[M635_Guy]

I'll probably get used to the grate, but it's a thing. 

[jhagestad]

Just tried the reverse sear last night and it wasn't that cumbersome (much to my surprise).  Got to use my thermo-probes for the indirect portion, and it worked out perfect for monday night football. I just need to move them to the sear sooner next time (a little over-cooked for my taste last night). That's the best part about grilling - there's always a next time!

[Cellar2ful]

Reverse sear method is the only way I cook tomahawk steaks, rib cap steaks and tri-tips now.  After the internal temp reaches 110 degrees cooked indirect, I pull the meat off the grill and let it rest for 10 minutes, covered with foil.  After 10 minutes, I put the meat back on, spin the grate and sear for 30-45 seconds each side for steaks, 1 minute per side for tri-tips.

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/index.php?topic=40770.msg405189#msg405189

[jhagestad]

Thanks @Cellar2ful - I appreciate the internal temp advice! I'll know better for this weekend!

[jhagestad]

Gave it another go with a ribeye -- except this time I suspect my temp was too low to get a good cook using indirect (took a while for the temp to come up and carryover) and then on the sear.  I used only one char basket, which I suspect wasn't giving me enough juice.  I'm going to keep trying 'til I get this right.  Practice makes perfect, right?

[M635_Guy]

Reverse sear method is the only way I cook tomahawk steaks, rib cap steaks and tri-tips now.  After the internal temp reaches 110 degrees cooked indirect, I pull the meat off the grill and let it rest for 10 minutes, covered with foil.  After 10 minutes, I put the meat back on, spin the grate and sear for 30-45 seconds each side for steaks, 1 minute per side for tri-tips.

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/index.php?topic=40770.msg405189#msg405189

The idea of really letting them rest in-between is very interesting.  Will try that for sure!

[Cellar2ful]

@jhagestad - Were you using Kingsford Original briquettes?  If so, next time try using lump, Weber briquettes or Kingsford Professional. I find they burn much hotter and make for a better sear.  You can also try using the Kingsford Original briquettes but use two baskets filled to overflowing.  The photo below was using Weber briquettes.



@M635_Guy -  Got to give credit to @inkaddictedchef1 for inspiring me to rest the meat between indirect cooking and searing.  I had read that was the correct way to do a reverse sear but never actually took the extra time for that step.  After seeing and tasting the results when Matt cooked the twin tomahawk steaks at the West Coast WKC picnic, I have since incorporated that step into all my steak and tri tip cooks. What's nice is you don't have to rest the steak after searing.  That step is already done prior to the sear.  This is one of Matt's tomahawks sliced for service. 

[JEBIV]

@jhagestad - Were you using Kingsford Original briquettes?  If so, next time try using lump, Weber briquettes or Kingsford Professional. I find they burn much hotter and make for a better sear.  You can also try using the Kingsford Original briquettes but use two baskets filled to overflowing.  The photo below was using Weber briquettes.



@M635_Guy -  Got to give credit to @inkaddictedchef1 for inspiring me to rest the meat between indirect cooking and searing.  I had read that was the correct way to do a reverse sear but never actually took the extra time for that step.  After seeing and tasting the results when Matt cooked the twin tomahawk steaks at the West Coast WKC picnic, I have since incorporated that step into all my steak and tri tip cooks. What's nice is you don't have to rest the steak after searing.  That step is already done prior to the sear.  This is one of Matt's tomahawks sliced for service. 

And that steak was amazing, resting than searing is the only way to fly

[jhagestad]

Thanks @Cellar2ful -- I used original Kingsford and only one basket.  Definitely needed to get that heat up!  I'll use two baskets next time -- I'm getting there (oh I guess I'll have steak again!). Those steaks in the pics above look insane!

[HoosierKettle]

@jhagestad - Were you using Kingsford Original briquettes?  If so, next time try using lump, Weber briquettes or Kingsford Professional. I find they burn much hotter and make for a better sear.  You can also try using the Kingsford Original briquettes but use two baskets filled to overflowing.  The photo below was using Weber briquettes.



@M635_Guy -  Got to give credit to @inkaddictedchef1 for inspiring me to rest the meat between indirect cooking and searing.  I had read that was the correct way to do a reverse sear but never actually took the extra time for that step.  After seeing and tasting the results when Matt cooked the twin tomahawk steaks at the West Coast WKC picnic, I have since incorporated that step into all my steak and tri tip cooks. What's nice is you don't have to rest the steak after searing.  That step is already done prior to the sear.  This is one of Matt's tomahawks sliced for service. 

Admittedly, I haven't rested between but I will definitely be doing that next time.  That looks incredible.

When I don't rest I start searing between 95-105. That will prevent overcooking but I have a feeling the rest between will be even better.


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