The Key To Grilling A Great Steak Is To Buy High Quality Meat
Unless you buy the wrong cuts of beef for grilling, you can forget marinating or tenderizing. The key to a good steak is to buy quality meats, and the right cuts for grilling. Cooking on a grill is a “hot and fast” cooking method, as opposed to “low and slow” cooking used to “barbecue” meats like brisket.
My favorite is cut of meat is the rib eye. New York Strips are a good second choice. In my opinion, if you want lean meat, use tenderloin. Sirloin is cheaper and always on sale, but it is usually a bit tough, and sometimes downright shoe-leather.
Certified Natural Angus Beef (NCAB) is available in most good stores, is probably grass fed in pastures, as opposed to corn fed in feed lots (requiring antibiotics). Grass fed beef tastes better and is a little healthier too.
Look for well marbled steaks. Not big chunks of fat, but lots of small veins of fat. Those veins of fat cook down, keeping the meat moist and tender, and adding flavor to the steak.
Cook on a very hot grill, and get a nice sear on the meat. Do NOT puncture the meat when it is hot!!! Use tongs or a spatula to turn the meat, not a fork.
It takes practice to get good at telling doneness, but the softer the meat feels, the less done it is. The firmer the meat feels, the more done it is. Just press it with your finger in the middle. Clench a fist, and press on your inside forearm muscle — that is approximately what medium will feel like.
Let the meat rest for a few minutes after you take it off the grill, so all the juices won’t run out when you cut the steak.
If your meat is undercooked, zap it for about 30 seconds in the microwave. If it is overcooked, it should still taste good, and you’ll know more the next time you grill steak.
Bottom line: Buy the right cut of meat, buy quality meat, and you won’t need to marinate or tenderize your steaks.
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