I've been without a grill for about 2 years and finally got around to getting this little Weber (Spirit E-210 ... LP ... I got a deal on it from a buddy).   I am sorry in advance its not a hardwood lump charcoal grill - but my wife and kids are impatient when it comes to eating dinner and I'm a busy guy  Maybe one day ...

My old crappy grill I would just fake my way through my grilling and I did ok ... but I had no training.  I was putting out B- stuff.  Now that I have a nice grill (albeit a little on the small side) ... I want to learn the right way to do this.

What I have:
- Black Pepper (in grinder)
- Sea Salt (in grinder)
- Ribeye or Filet when I get to the store later
- A grill that gets to 550+ and has cast iron grates
- A timer

What I need - How to cook a few steaks and knock it out of the park (Med-Rare):
- What Temp / How long on each side?  500 degrees, 2 min each side?


Pic of my critics I need to wow.  As you could see I could be frozen, mauled or force choked if I fail to deliver.

I just get my charcoal grill nice and hot, throw the steak on, flip after a few minutes then cook for a few more minutes, always comes out good.  

if cooking at a lower heat 6-7 minutes per side seems to consistently give med rare, but I have no idea on temp, I just hold my hand over it and guess.

You've got everything you need, maybe pick up a good meat thermometer (i use a good Weber one) and go from there.

I just put cracked pepper and sale on mine, cook until i know they're where I want them and EAT!

(awesome looking fam by the way)

Pepper burns easily, I usually add it after cooking, or halfway.

ETA

5 minutes per side is usually MORE than enough. Keep that as a rough guide. Depending on thickness, 2 minutes per side could be enough.

I just used to poke it ... I had to take it back to the grill a few times after the wife cut into it

Toss the timer, its done when its done.

Whatever you do, use a stopwatch and cook it for the same amount of time on each side. 2 and 2, add 1 and 1 if needed. JMO.

Hot grill

Salt+Pepper+olive old

4 minutes each side.

Cast iron skillet + Oven = Fuck yo grill

minimize handling, flipping, poking, etc.
A pat of butter on top while grilling will enhance the flavor.
Better under done than over done.
Learn how to determine doneness by feel, ie. squishy, spongy, rubbery.
A timer will help initially until you get the knack.  2-3 minutes each side.

Thermapen. Get one.

Disable the door locker, set the oven to Auto Clean, High.

Best steak ever.

You will probably have to experiment a few times to get it right.
Here's what I would try first.


Get a digital thermometer.

Make sure the steaks are room temp before cooking.

Pat the steaks dry (moisture prevents browning).

Apply a very light coat of cooking oil to both sides of the steaks (oil promotes browning).

Sprinkle fresh ground pepper and Kosher salt on both sides of the steaks.


Make sure both burners on the grill are cranked wide open and get the grill as hot as it will go (15 -20 min).

Put the steaks on the grates right over one of the burners and let them sear 1 minute then flip and sear the other side for 1 minute.

Turn off the rear burner and move the steaks over the turned off burner for indirect heat.

Let the steaks cook until the internal temp measures 130 - 135 degrees depending on how med-rare you want.

Take the steaks off the grill put them on a plate, cover with aluminum foil and let rest for 4 - 5 min.


Note for real good flavor wrap the edges of the steaks with bacon and pin with toothpicks, like this:



But beware of flare-ups...

 
To each there own..


IMO - that makes the worst steak ever (and I've tried it just to make sure I wasn't talking out my ass)...


 

I've had great results if I've let the skillet get re-entry hot and lubed the shit out of the steak.

I have a Weber Spirit E210 and that little grill kicks ass.


Just turn it on and get it hot.

Throw you steaks on it and flip them a couple times.

Your done.

Thermapen, will help with any meat you cook (made Christmas and Thanksgiving a whole lot easier).

I salt both sides of my steaks, cook the first side (roughly 2 minutes a side) when I flip I add pepper to the cooked side, then when I remove I pepper the other side add butter and rest the steak. I will cook the steak to 120-125 on my egg and they'll rise to 130-135 on the rest.

It may take a few times to get to know your cooker, so just keep an eye on your heat/time/temp and you should be gtg.

All I do to my steaks is apply a bit of olive oil and kosher salt and let them sit an hour before cooking. None of that virgin oil crap. They go onto a tiny weber grill and come out when my poking determines they are done. They sit 5 minutes. They get eaten.

I don't think grilling steaks can be reduced to science. No formula works for all steak.

Get a two channel remote digital thermometer, one probe goes in the meat, the other probe measures the grill temperature.
It's much easier than going out to check every few minutes.

Kharn

Let's steaks warm up to room temp.
Sprinkle course grain sea salt on both sides.
Let it sit until you see the salt stop pulling moisture out.
Scrape off the bulk of the salt and pat then down with paper towl.
Sprinkle cracked black pepper on and massage it in.

Drop on small amount of Spanish olive oil and use back of spoon on to even it out across both sides.

Toss on hot grill. Cook 2 or 3 mins first side then flip.
Take a 1/8" thick square of butter and drop into center of steak.
Cook 2 mins and spoon the butter evenly across steak.
Flip, add another 1/8" slice of butter. It should melt almost instantly. Spoon it around and let cook for one min.


Pull off grill and stuff face as soon as it's temp is to you liking.

If you want to add seasoning, no.
Add it when you sprinkle on the pepper.doesnt take much.
Be sure to also wipe down the grill surface with the olive oil once it's hot.
Fold a paper towl into a 4"x4" pad and soak one side.
Wipe the grill down tp untill it's nice and shiny.
Then toss steaks on.

Best way to cook a steak, imho.

Even with my very modest skills in the kitchen, I can cook a steak this way that is as good or better than any steak I have had in a pricey steakhouse.

Just throwing on the grill without a good 800 deg. sear will never turn out as good.

No. No. No.






OP you can't just use time... you must feel it, let force move through you.  Become one with the steak, just know when it's done

what is with you pussies and thermapens and meat thermometers?

you can tell how done a steak is by poking it. compare this to squeezing the meaty part of your thumb where it joins your hand.

with your thumb relaxed this is rare
thumb touching index finger medium rare
thumb touching middle finger is medium
thumb touchinging ring finger medium well
thumb touching pinky fucking ruined.

I find about 3 minutes per side over a high heat yields a nice medium well.

I was going to be like "Hell yeah, THIS!"

But a fuckin oven???

Ummm maybe if you have a gas oven, and can flame broil it... Otherwise, just on the stovetop with a cast iron skillet!

4.5 minutes on med. high, with a Tbs. or 2 of vegetable oil and a chunk of butter... Heat oil to smoking point (small light wisps), add butter to it resulting in a quick browning...

Then add the steak... ~4-4.5 minutes per side for a 1 inch steak, let rest, then devour!!!

This is interesting, although (maybe mistakenly) I never once considered temperature. (except when the house is full of smoke from the sear. I sort of thought about it then). And yes I do use a high heat oil, but the whole process still did generate a ton of smoke.

After learning how to do it at the Culinary Institute (or maybe it was a Youtube video ..... I can't remember), I just didn't think about the actual temperature.

I just followed the steps and it turned out absolutely perfect every time. Maybe I got lucky the first time, but I just duplicate the process every time for the perfect steak.

Getting hungry here ......

I use my Weber thusly:

get it as hot as possible, all burners on high until it's maxed out. Let it go for 15 mins to get the cast iron grates heat soaked.  

coat steak in olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and ground black pepper.

drop on grill and sear for minute or so, then flip to sear the other side.

drop the temp down a bit in the 400 range and one more turn with a few minutes on each side to get that nice X pattern on the meat and cook to desired doneness.  

I make my filets this way (medium rare) and it never fails to impress.

A visual for the TL;DR crowd.

 







 

So much BS!




 

You going to feed those kids raw bloody meat?

Cooking it means there is NO blood running out of it.

Common mistake, that's not blood.

What ever you say but I'm going to cook what I eat

All these posts saying '3 minutes per side' or '5 minutes per side' are fucked up.



It depends on the temperature of the grill ......and how thick the steak is.



You can tell the doneness of a steak by touching it if you learn how. It's how chefs can keep track of 20+ steaks on the broiler.



http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/meat/activity-fingertest.html

That "idea" may work for you, but I'm not taking a chance on $40 worth of rib eye or my 25lb turkey or $150 standing rib roast.

Do you determine your driving speed by how the road reacts to your ass in the seat? I'll stick with my overly expensive thermometer and you can cook by the seat of your pants.

Get the steak out at least 30 mins (if not an hour) before grilling. I do this before I light my charcoal. I sprinkle a little Kosher salt on each side.
While I'm lighting the charcoal in the chimney and letting it catch, the steak is sitting on a cookie rack warming up to room temp. This makes grilling it much easier (as opposed to throwing a cold steak on a hot grill and having to burn the outside to get the inside warm).









Then I move it over the heat for 1-2 mins each side to really sear it.




 

Sear it after you cook it?

Like I said above, I'm over my head in the kitchen but this is the first time I have heard this.

I've been learning how to grill better by watching Primal Grill with Steven Raichlen.

I have to say i have been getting better at it. Some of the stuff he makes looks amazing  

I'm with you!!!

 
Screw that poking and pinching crap!

Yes, it's called the reverse sear technique.

 

I also use the reverse sear technique as I think it yields a better finished product.

I put my steaks in my smoker and cook them until the internal temp is just under 130 then I toss 'em on my gas grill that is cranked to over 700 degrees and sear each side for about a minute.

I use the first section of this article for salting.
http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/03/the-food-lab-more-tips-for-perfect-steaks.html

Setup the grill for indirectcooking. I use charcoal and let the salt work at the same time as getting the coals ashed over, but propane will work.

Med temp on the grill and set the steaks off to the side and then use a ThermaPento make sure I pull them off between 110-115*. I'm looking for the steak to slowly breakdown not a quick cook. Probably 15-20 minutes. Haven't timed how long it takes to get up to 110-115*.

Steaks then rests for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile I use a chimney starter and get a new batch of coals completely ashed over for the afterburnermethod of searing. In your case you want the grill as hot as it can go. Once up to temp throw the steaks on and watch them carefully so they don't get overcooked. I use a Thermapen and pull them at 140-145*.
Rest for 5-8 minutes or so and then eat.

Best steaks I've ever had.

More info

I drizzle some olive oil on my steak, then salt it. Leave it out at room temp for 20-30 minutes. Cold steaks don't cook as evenly.

Pepper the steak just before putting it on the grill. I usually cook my steaks (especially if they're prime) to rare, rare plus, or med-rare.

It is important to let your steak sit for 8-10 minutes after it is finished. This will keep the juices in.

**If you wrap it in foil to keep it warm, remember to cook your steak justt under your desired temperature. The steak will continue to cook a bit in the foil.



Had to insert food porn. The steak above was cooked on cast iron because I had just moved into a new apartment at the time.

Hmm, add a little red pepper and garlic to that seasoning mix and you would be golden. But fresh salt and pepper makes a pretty good steak

I don't cook by times. Cook it slow and until it has the characteristics of the fleshy part between you thumb and pointer, maybe a little firmer. Then pull them. Medium rare to medium every time. I go more medium because Crohns does not like anything less cooked in my case.


 


Almost forgot to add heat a cast iron skillet up as hot as your stove will go and sear each side before it goes on the grill. You will thank me

Just download the Omaha Steaks app. It's free and it has a perfect timer with alarms and all sorts of such to make your steaks absolutely perfectly cooked to temp. I've used it for years. Once you get a few uses under your belt, you don't need the timer anymore and can just do it from memory. It works great.

Fuck you smoke detectors, too.  Amirite?  I know I am.

Fixed it for you.

What he said was 100% correct.

2" thick bone in Ribeye, cooked at high heat, flipped every 2 mins. keep flipping until desired doneness is reached

This



This



this



Equals this



Get a decent thermometer too.

I have never seen a professional chef use a meat thermometer on a steak. The only time I have ever seen a real chef use a meat thermometer was on roasts. yes everyones hands are different as is the firmness of different steaks, it does take a little experience to gauge doneness by feel but that is how all professional chefs do it. You also have to remember to pull it off before it gets as done as you'd  like because it will continue to cook.

a proper temp on your grill can come in handy for other things but typically with steaks you want that shit blazing fucking hot and then possibly an area with indirect heat to let them finish on for thicker steaks.

Put yer steaks in a dutch oven and cover with water.  Add a 1/2 cup of Old Bay seasoning, one jar of Jiffy Peanut Butter, three pine cones and a stick of oleo.  Boil on the grill for 45 minutes.  Now you know how not to cook a steak.  

steaks all day you will quickly get a feel for it. turkey or roast yes use the thermometer

thermometer is a good way to go at the beginning, because everyone seems to like hard and fast numbers for times/temperatures/amounts.  and the thermometer will never be obsolete, because you'll be using it down the road for other things.  alton brown uses several, and i'll never be as good a cook as that guy.

that said, the 'learn to poke it' guys are not wrong.  we all like numbers.  numbers are comforting, because we have the idea that if we cook with the right math, the food will be good.  so we pay too much attention to the numbers, and not enough attention to the food.  we focus on where the knob should be set, and what the thermometer reads, and what the book says, when we really should be giving that attention to the food itself.

OP, the difficulty with your question about time/temp recommendations is that steaks are going to react to heat in different ways according to how thick they are.  a thin steak is going to cook very quickly, but a thicker one isn't just a matter of multiplying the thin steak timing.  if you're using very high heat on a thick steak, the outside is going to be charred while the inside is still raw (not just rare, but completely uncooked).  but if your heat isn't high enough, you aren't going to get the browning (maillard reactions) that create the wonderful steaky flavor.

so here's my advice: go spend some money on a 3# pot roast, slice it crossgrain into ~3/4" thick steaks, and cook them up.  you're not going to eat them as steaks.  instead, you're going to be experimenting with how beef reacts to different heat/time.

first, start out at what you think should be the right temp/time.  don't worry if it's right or not--just guess, and cook 1 steak that way.  when you guess that it's ready, pull it off the heat, let it set for a couple of minutes (resting), and then evaluate.  what does the outside look like?  does it look moist or dry?  do you have nice, dark-brown grill marks?  are the marks burnt black, or are they barely there?  don't think in terms of right or wrong--just...what does it look like?  poke it--what does it feel like? squishy?  springy? like a football?  for comparison, poke your relaxed pectoral muscle--that's raw meat.  

then cut into the steak--what does the inside look like?  juices running, or dry and stringy?  what colors do you see?  how do the colors change from the outside toward the middle?  is it a slow, gradual change, or a sharp transition?  and finally--after you just look at the raw visual impressions like color/juice/etc--estimate whether it's rare/med rare/etc.  is it over or under where you wanted it?

this is your starting point.  now you're going to bracket the target, instead of trying to walk your shots in.  change your time/temp substantially--don't try to incrementally move towards your desired doneness.  if your first steak was overcooked, deliberately undercook the next one.  you still want it to look cooked on the outside, but once the outside is seared off, poke it to get the feel, and pull it off the heat before you think it's done.  then repeat the visual/tactile observations you did before.


i didn't mean to write a bible here (i'm not a particularly good cook), but the point is to spend an afternoon paying attention to the food rather than the recipe, and getting some repetitions in.  it can seem hard to experiment with food, because there's usually pressure to feed people.  if you take that pressure off, and are in a position where you can simply throw experiments to the dogs, cooking gets a lot more fun.  IMO, the single best way to learn is simply to keep adding heat to meat, and getting a feel for how the meat reacts.

Appreciate all the suggestions.

I got 2 rib eyes and letting them assume room temp (never done this before).

I'm re-reading the thread to complete my plan of attack.