# The Perfect Steak



## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

I just joined, so I wanted to show what TheFanatic can do on the grill.  TheFanatic is a Grillin Fool....

So here is a massive bone in ribeye.  My celly is there for perspective:







More perspective:






That bad boy is between 24 and 26 glorious ounces.  

All I did was add a little coarse salt and fresh cracked black pepper to this bad boy. To some this is all one needs. Normally I marinade my steaks, even filets. The key is using the right kind of marinade for the right kind of cut. But for this one, and for my first demonstration here I went with a simple, almost pure steak.

The cooking process is this, flame sear that bad boy over the coals on one side of the grill.  Then pull it to the other side where there are no coals and bake it to the desired doneness.  For me that is usually about 3 minutes of baking as I like it no more than medium rare and closer to rare if at all possible.  Then let rest for the juices to settle down before slicing open and enjoying all that cholesterol filled goodness.

And when I say sear, I really mean sear. I don't jerk around with searing. I get the coals flaming hot and then I pour on some sort of veggie oil and flame sear my steaks.






For some perspective, this is a pic from another thread but it gives one some idea of how seriously I take flame searing.  This is me last summer flame searing some steaks at my folks.






And now to the resting process:






Yes that is a standard size dinner plate.  What am I having with my massive steak?  A side of more delicious steak!?!?  Who needs a side dish when you have this much beef!?!?!

Those of you who are not fans of rare or medium rare steaks usually get to this point and assume that the blood and juice is going to leak all over the plate when I slice it open. I will prove you wrong with what I like to call the money shot:






And a nice closeup of that lovely red flavor bonanza:


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## pacanis (Dec 9, 2008)

That steak looks vaguely familiar..... http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f38/steak-on-the-grill-51417.html 

And I know that must be a potent flame extinguisher you are holding in your hand 

Very nice Fan.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

pacanis said:


> That steak looks vaguely familiar..... *"You are only allowed to post URLs once you have at least 20 posts and are an established member in good standing."* *Evidently not only can I not post URL's, but I can't quote posts with URL's!?!?!*
> 
> And I know that must be a potent flame extinguisher you are holding in your hand
> 
> Very nice Fan.



That's what inspired my thread on this.  

No fire extinguisher.  The oil burns out in about 30-60 seconds.  But in the mean time the inner pyro of mine is very happy!?!?!

Thanks for the compliment.  I'm just getting started though.  I have tons of stuff.  My spiral sliced and stuffed pork loin in the smoking forum and this are just the beginning.  

I normally talk about smoking/grilling/BBQing/etc on a couple of other boards but the response in the threads is abysmally low right now because it is cold.  For me, it's a year round thing.  I actually did Chicken Cordon Bleu and Chicken Spedini on the grill on saturday.  

Since I wasn't getting much discussion on those boards I went in search of other boards.  And I found this one.  I love the fact that I can post pics directly in the posts rather than just links.  

Let's just say I am grillin fool.  I will grill anything from Angus Beef to Zucchini.  Stuffed Tomatoes, Onions, Bell Peppers.  Fatties.  Crostinis.  Portabellas and white caps.  Shrimps, scallops, clams, muscles, oysters.  Burgers and Brats.  Meatloaf.  Asparagus.  Corn on the cob.  Ribs.  Brisket.  Lamb (LOVE LAMB - gonna post that next), whole chickens, whole turkeys, Salmon, Tuna Steaks, and on and on....

And I love experimenting with different rubs, marinades, smoke woods and combinations of the three.  And of course the proper beverage to go with all of the above whether beer or wine.  

My wife, family, friends, and neighbors all think I'm nuts out there grilling when it is 25 degrees and taking pictures of the meat on the grill.  Or when the first snowfall hits and I am out there next to the grill with tongs in one hand and a beer in the other!?!?!


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## GB (Dec 9, 2008)

Man that is a great looking steak. If it tasted even half as good as it looks then I am sure you were in steak heaven! 

You will find there are plenty of people here who take grilling/smoking/BBQing as seriously as you do. I, for one, have been known to get out my shovel during a blizzard to get to my Weber. The fire from the grill and the beer while you wait are enough to keep you warm


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## pacanis (Dec 9, 2008)

"*"You are only allowed to post URLs once you have at least 20 posts and are an established member in good standing."* "

Just do what the one-time poster do, post the url in your signature 
Were you here this morning for the link to a middle aged Victoria's Secret type site?  And she very well may be a legitimate newbie. I'm not saying she wasn't.

Anyway, I grill year round, too. I just grilled my first zucc this year though. I really need to experiment with more variety. I'm an LP griller and probably have gone through a dozen bottles this year. My grill "normally" gets fired up half a dozen times a week, even if it's only hot dogs for lunch.

And my neighbors already know I'm nuts, but my buddy to the south likes when I turn the grill on


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## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

pacanis said:


> "*"You are only allowed to post URLs once you have at least 20 posts and are an established member in good standing."* "
> 
> Just do what the one-time poster do, post the url in your signature
> Were you here this morning for the link to a middle aged Victoria's Secret type site?  And she very well may be a legitimate newbie. I'm not saying she wasn't.
> ...



LP griller?  What is that?


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## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

GB said:


> Man that is a great looking steak. If it tasted even half as good as it looks then I am sure you were in steak heaven!
> 
> You will find there are plenty of people here who take grilling/smoking/BBQing as seriously as you do. *I, for one, have been known to get out my shovel during a blizzard to get to my Weber. The fire from the grill and the beer while you wait are enough to keep you warm *



Amen Brother, Amen!?!?!


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## pacanis (Dec 9, 2008)

Liquid Propane.
I'm a gasser and I admit it.


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## PanchoHambre (Dec 9, 2008)

I try to grill year round as well whenever it warms up just enough.... this year I have a firepit that I was gifted by my neighbor... and a nice Weber courtesy of a lazy propane-using friend so major upgrade over the Walmart special I was using I am excited to get a nice big wood fire going in there on cold winter nights and grill... I love grilling maybe my favorite way to cook

your steak pics were lovely....made me hungry havent had a good steak in awhile... shopping list has been amended.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

pacanis said:


> Liquid Propane.
> I'm a gasser and I admit it.



Got it.  I am not a fan myself.  Never owned one, but I will say this, if you are doing steaks, a gas grill is as good as a charcoal grill.  Do the two zone thing.  Turn on the burners on one side and leave them off on the other.  One side, super high heat.  One side none.  Same principles apply.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 9, 2008)

PanchoHambre said:


> I try to grill year round as well whenever it warms up just enough.... this year I have a firepit that I was gifted by my neighbor... and a nice Weber courtesy of a lazy propane-using friend so major upgrade over the Walmart special I was using I am excited to get a nice big wood fire going in there on cold winter nights and grill... I love grilling maybe my favorite way to cook
> 
> your steak pics were lovely....made me hungry havent had a good steak in awhile... shopping list has been amended.



I have a firepit as well.  I LOVE it.  One catch with me.  My backdoor opens out to a deck that is about 5 feet off the ground.  Stairs lead down to a concrete patio that has my outdoor bar, firepit and my two webers (the smoker is in the shed when not in use).

I have to walk about 30 feet to get to my grills and firepit which includes some stairs.  So when it is really cold I bring one of my webers up onto the deck right outside the back door.  No need to have access to the table on the deck when it is 20 degrees.  

If it's say, anywhere above 35-40 degrees I go down to the concrete patio, load up the firepit about 3 hours before I plan on grilling.  Get the fire going and feed it for a couple of hours so when I am there to cook there is a nice bed of red hot coals to keep me warm.  I stand between the grill and the firepit so the firepit keeps my butt warm and the grill keeps my....well....it keeps the front warm...


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## PanchoHambre (Dec 9, 2008)

TheFanatic said:


> .  One catch with me.
> I have to walk about 30 feet to get to my grills and firepit



LOL! My catch is quite the opposite.... I live in a 130yr old rowhouse... it's only 13' wide.... when I use my firepit I am afraid I am going to set the whole block on fire... I keep in in the front yard becuase I enjoy creating a spectacle with it but I am sure its illegal in the city...


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## pacanis (Dec 9, 2008)

PanchoHambre said:


> LOL! My catch is quite the opposite.... I live in a 130yr old rowhouse... it's only 13' wide.... *when I use my firepit I am afraid I am going to set the whole block on fire...* I keep in in the front yard becuase I enjoy creating a spectacle with it but I am sure its illegal in the city...


 
Ahh, what the heck...
It didn't bother Philly's former mayor, why should it bother you.



Sorry, couldn't resist


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## TheFanatic (Dec 10, 2008)

pacanis said:


> "*"You are only allowed to post URLs once you have at least 20 posts and are an established member in good standing."* "
> 
> Just do what the one-time poster do, post the url in your signature



Actually I have a web site where I post all of this stuff, but it's really just for friends and family and there is by no means enough traffic on the site to generate any real discussion so I come to places like this, throw out some stuff I have done on the grill and get some dialogue going.  I could post the link, but I'm not trying to sell anything.  It's just a blog with a regular web address.  Sort of a repository for all the crazy crap I've done on the grill in the last few years that I have photographed.  

It's hard to find people that want to talk about grilling this time of the year.  Not everyone is a GrillinFool like me who was outside on Saturday night in 30 degree temp (23 degrees with the windchill with 30 MPH winds) experimenting with Chicken Cordon Bleu and Chicken Spedini on the grill.  Yeah, that was me freezing my rear end off for an experiment and all the while snapping pictures!?!?!  And what should've been a 30-40 minute cooking process turned into about double that because it was hard to keep the heat up with the weather.  I had to open the grill at one point and just let the charcoal get some serious air which halted the cooking process on my chicken because I was indirecting them and with the lid off they got no heat.  That was a rough one.

And I was a biscuit away from grilling last night because it was supposed to sleet and then snow.  Glad I didn't because it was just sleet.  Love grilling in the snow.  Sleet not so much.  And the freezing rain I grilled in last year was a nightmare.  They said it would snow.  Instead it poured down rain that froze once it hit the ground.  Talk about miserable.  I was soaked to the bone....


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## GB (Dec 10, 2008)

Don't worry, you will be able to post links in no time. You are two posts away now.

I have not fired up my grill in a while, but seeing your pictures and reading your posts have gotten me excited to do it again. I think I will have to do that this weekend!


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## TheFanatic (Dec 10, 2008)

GB said:


> Don't worry, you will be able to post links in no time. You are two posts away now.
> 
> I have not fired up my grill in a while, but seeing your pictures and reading your posts have gotten me excited to do it again. I think I will have to do that this weekend!



This post will do the trick.  I just posted in the thread about problems with a gas grill and was going to post a link to a digital remote thermometer on Amazon for the guy but was under the post requirement...

BTW, how can you be the site admin for the grillin forums and not grilled in a while!?!?!  BOOOO!!!!


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## GB (Dec 10, 2008)

LOL I am an Admin for the entire site, not just grilling, but I really should get out there more!


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## TheFanatic (Dec 10, 2008)

gb said:


> lol i am an admin for the entire site, not just grilling, but i really should get out there more!




slacker!!!


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## PanchoHambre (Dec 10, 2008)

pacanis said:


> Ahh, what the heck...
> It didn't bother Philly's former mayor, why should it bother you.
> 
> 
> ...



LOL!... it does not bother me in the least... the neighborhood of Philly are pretty lax on enforcement if I lived in one of the classier sections of town I would have neighbors complaining left and right about me... barking dogs, roaring fires, beer cans in the yard...all sorts of work on my house with no permits....where I am the cops just drive by and my neighbors think i'm rich becase I have a 2 cars and a full time job.... and the next block down sort of looks like Beirut anyway! 

After years in NYC apartments though it is nice to be able to grill outdoors again... trying to grill a steak inside on a cast iron grill pan in a NY apartment with no cross ventilation is qute a challenge when you have to explain to your vegetarian roomate why the whole place smells like beef eveytime she comes back from vacation.

Fanatic... I dont think posting your url would make anyone think you were trying to sell anything..  I will say I have my limits with the weather.... you are hard core dude


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## GB (Dec 10, 2008)

TheFanatic said:


> slacker!!!


You sound like my wife


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## TheFanatic (Dec 10, 2008)

PanchoHambre said:


> Fanatic... I dont think posting your url would make anyone think you were trying to sell anything..  I will say I have my limits with the weather.... you are hard core dude



Maybe I'll add the URL at some point.  The discussion is more important than people seeing my quasi neurotic grilling obsessed web site!?!?!

And I have limits with the weather too.  The first time I did lamb, I did it inside.  Dad and I do Guy Night every now and again.  Guy night is usually steaks bigger than your foot, a really good bottle of red wine (some beer after that is gone) and a guy flick.  You know, not a ton of plot but plenty of gun battles, car chases and explosions and possibly some gratuitous nudity.  

Well, I decided to do lamb one night for this rather than a steak.  It was all of about 8 degrees out that night.  F that.  My dad, a smoker, didn't even go outside for a smoke that night and he was at my place for about 3 hours.  Cooked them on my Grill pan inside and baked them in the oven the rest of the way.  

The next guy night is probably early Jan and I'm thinking Lamb again.  This time it will be outside...


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## Kingdaddy (Dec 10, 2008)

You might want to consider searing without direct flame.
 
Over cooking or burning is not as pleasant a flavor to most as a simple good sear, plus the burning is a *carcinogen* and very bad for your health.  The idea behind searing is just to change the chemical composition of the surface and bring out the flavor and give a juxtaposition of texture between the soft chewy inner and slightly crusty outer.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 10, 2008)

Kingdaddy said:


> You might want to consider searing without direct flame.
> 
> Over cooking or burning is not as pleasant a flavor to most as a simple good sear, plus the burning is a *carcinogen* and very bad for your health.  The idea behind searing is just to change the chemical composition of the surface and bring out the flavor and give a juxtaposition of texture between the soft chewy inner and slightly crusty outer.



Oh, I don't oversear.  The flame lasts for 30-60 seconds and then it's just the high heat from the coals.  It's my inner pyro that goes with the flame searing....I realize the picture isn't the greatest of the steak resting (I was shielding the light and didn't use a flash) but you can see in the initial post that the steak is not overly seared...

This is a better picture of a different steak.  Looks over seared, but the only part that overly done is the fat along the edge of this NY Strip steak.  The rest is just a nice sear:


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## pacanis (Dec 10, 2008)

PanchoHambre said:


> ... trying to grill a steak inside on a cast iron grill pan in a NY apartment with no cross ventilation is qute a challenge when you have to explain to your vegetarian roomate why the whole place smells like beef eveytime she comes back from vacation.


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## west coast smoker (Dec 10, 2008)

*I have the solution to year round grilling*

Hey Fanatic -  I too grill year round, even in the rain if it holds off long enough to get the coals going.   Any way the solution is to move to sunny Southern California.  It may be expensive but I do not think it is to high a price to be able to grill all year long.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

west coast smoker said:


> Hey Fanatic -  I too grill year round, even in the rain if it holds off long enough to get the coals going.   Any way the solution is to move to sunny Southern California.  It may be expensive but I do not think it is to high a price to be able to grill all year long.



I can grill all year long too here in St. Louis.  But some times for me it's a bit painful!?!?!


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## 70chevelle (Dec 12, 2008)

Hey fanatic - you're really into your grilling! I've been a year round griller myself for years. I have a nice stainless JennAir natural gas right outside my kitchen. Beside that I have a Big Green Egg that I bought this past spring. It's an incredible smoker, grill and oven.  I've been smoking Boston Butts & Chuck Roasts all summer, as well as grilling steaks, and roasting rib roasts and whole filets.  On the patio below I built a fireplace with a wood fired oven on top to make pizza, bread, roasts, chicken, potatoes, jerky, etc. I baked 15# of bread before Thanksgiving in the rain. Kept warm with a fire in the fireplace below, and dry with an umbrella. The stereo system keeps me occupied also! I know what you mean about your 'inner pyro'. When I split 4-5 logs, stack them inside the oven which is 32"x36"x16" high and get it going, it's amazing. Temps get well over 1000*. The oven is ready for pizza when it turns white. (It's actually hot enough to burn the soot off the firebricks) 

Back OT - I do my steaks & roasts the same way. I have a portable Ultra Sear Grill (I stores nicely in my JennAir) that I fire up. It has a ceramic sear burner that gets extremely hot, quickly. I throw the steaks/roasts on for a good sear and then I put them in the Egg at around 400*, indirect, until the internal gets to 125*.  Or, if I fire up the WFO, I'll do the final bake in there.  Let 'em rest and serve 'em up! 

Here are some pics of my cooking gear. What are you cooking on?

I build the fire right in the oven on top. When baking bread, I shovel the ash to the fireplace and have a blazing fire in no time.


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## TheFanatic (Dec 14, 2008)

70chevelle said:


> Hey fanatic - you're really into your grilling! I've been a year round griller myself for years. I have a nice stainless JennAir natural gas right outside my kitchen. Beside that I have a Big Green Egg that I bought this past spring. It's an incredible smoker, grill and oven.  I've been smoking Boston Butts & Chuck Roasts all summer, as well as grilling steaks, and roasting rib roasts and whole filets.  On the patio below I built a fireplace with a wood fired oven on top to make pizza, bread, roasts, chicken, potatoes, jerky, etc. I baked 15# of bread before Thanksgiving in the rain. Kept warm with a fire in the fireplace below, and dry with an umbrella. The stereo system keeps me occupied also! I know what you mean about your 'inner pyro'. When I split 4-5 logs, stack them inside the oven which is 32"x36"x16" high and get it going, it's amazing. Temps get well over 1000*. The oven is ready for pizza when it turns white. (It's actually hot enough to burn the soot off the firebricks)
> 
> Back OT - I do my steaks & roasts the same way. I have a portable Ultra Sear Grill (I stores nicely in my JennAir) that I fire up. It has a ceramic sear burner that gets extremely hot, quickly. I throw the steaks/roasts on for a good sear and then I put them in the Egg at around 400*, indirect, until the internal gets to 125*.  Or, if I fire up the WFO, I'll do the final bake in there.  Let 'em rest and serve 'em up!
> 
> ...



HOLY CRAP!!!!  You have my dream backyard!?!?!  LOVE THAT FIREPIT!!!!  What a view!!!

I do my grillin on 3 grills.  1 horizontal offset smoker that also has a rotisserie attachment.  And two 22 inch Weber kettles.  One is about 25 years old.  The other is a brand new One Touch Gold that my 2 month old son bought me for father's day.  Not sure what he does to earn an allowance to afford one of those, but I love it.  First thing I put on that grill?  How bout a little shrimp on the Barbie?!?!


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## love2"Q" (Dec 14, 2008)

looks great .. thats a nice hunk of meat ..


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## LadyCook61 (Dec 21, 2008)

sure looks inviting to eat.


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## Bacardi (Dec 22, 2008)

Everything looks great, steaks and back yard setups!

To piggyback off of what three of you said...Kingdaddy's anit-direct flame, Panchohambre cast iron skillet and 70chevelle's ultrasear grill comments...

My favorite way of cooking steak is with a cast iron fajita pan over the IR ultrasear grill!  This method yields a great crust like many steakhouses.  There is zero charring or flame taste, which I'm ok with, but understand some crave it.  I throw on a course-salt-heavy spice rub on the steak, wrap the steak in foil and let it sit out for an hour or two.  Rub some oil onto the cast iron pan, fire up the ultra sear grill and it gets the pan up to temp in about 5mins.  Put the steak on approx 1-2mins a side depending on size and thickness...It's usually done unless it's small and very thick, then it needs to be finished indirectly...


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## PanchoHambre (Feb 5, 2009)

TheFanatic said:


> I just joined, so I wanted to show what TheFanatic can do on the grill.  TheFanatic is a Grillin Fool....
> 
> So here is a massive bone in ribeye.  My celly is there for perspective:
> 
> ...



beautiful steak man thanks for sharing


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## sketch182 (Feb 13, 2009)

PanchoHambre said:


> beautiful steak man thanks for sharing


I looked at the photos and my mouth was watering!  I'm doing steak tonight and I hope they look like yours does.


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## Palomino_Sun (Feb 22, 2009)

*Extreme Grilling*

The talk about grilling year round brings back memories to an experience I had about 8 years ago.  It was my wife's 40th birthday.  We decide to have a big a## party.  If you are going to have a party it might as well be big a##.  We purchased 40 strip steaks, a huge tent, and invite 50 people under the premise, you bring the wine, and we’ll supply the steak  [FONT=&quot] and baked potatoes[/FONT].  

The day arrives and a hurricane is off the coast of NC blowing in tropical rains and wind.  I have 40+ people at my house, 40 steaks to grill, sheets of rain coming down, and a big catering tent in my back yard.  What the heck lets party.  

I covered the grids with aluminum foil, on this long rented grill, to get the charcoal started.  Once started, pulled off the foil, and threw all the steaks on.  Sheets of rain still coming down.  Once the fat started flowing, the steaks came out great.  

The big gag at the party was, if you a little too close to the edge of the tent, someone would push up the puddle of water collected in the edge of the tent to give you a shower.  With friends like that, one only needs more drinks.


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