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An Experiment: A technique not normally used on pellet grills, the front sear.

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    An Experiment: A technique not normally used on pellet grills, the front sear.

    So, this idea started way back on Memorial Day weekend when MAK had an accessory sale. I ordered a MAK sear grate and a couple other items. While waiting and waiting and waiting for the sear grate to arrive (MAK has had some delays due to material shortages and overwhelming demand), I was thinking about different ways to use it. I began to wonder, can a pellet grill accomplish the old tried and true front sear?

    Fast forward and the sear grate finally got here 2 months later and has now been waiting another 3 weeks for me to finally regain the excitement after the wait and get around to this experiment. Thursday night I pulled a nice SRF/Double R Prime Ribeye out of the freezer for me and a nice Creekstone Prime Strip out for the girls. Last night I salted them up (think I got a tad too much due to the Morton Kosher inconsistent grind that's been discussed recently) and let them sit overnight. Late this morning, I setup the MAK with the Sear Grate, flame zone open in front, covered in rear. I cranked that baby up, set her to rip roaring hot (relative to a pellet grill) and chopped up some lettuce and prepped some zucchini to be grilled trying out a new Mercer knife and Epicurian cutting board.

    When the MAK cracked 600, I wiped a little Avocado oil on the new sear grate and threw the steaks on straight from the fridge. Flipped four times about 90 seconds a pop. Tossed the zucchini on the Genesis behind me as front seared veggies were not part of the experiment. I missed the rotation on a couple flips running two grills at once and having the door open and questions start flying out at me where to put things that could have easily waiting until after lunch to be put away After the square was completed (4 x 90), I pulled the steaks aside, set the MAK to 300 and left the lid open about 5 minutes. I sprayed the steaks lightly with EEVO and sprinkled on a little garlic powder and freshly ground pepper. When the grill read below 400, I popped in the probes and tossed them back on the upper rear rack.

    I'll just say I was quite surprised at the result, I'll let ya'll judge from the pics. Served with some garlic Parmesan compound butter and not shown is the boring lettuce salad and white 'homemade' bread we usually buy on Friday evenings from the local farmers market since Richard Chrz isn't quite close enough to get a loaf of his.

    I should have gotten a few more pics, but between running two grills and the aforementioned distractions from people that worry more about pre-meal cleaning than actually preparing for the meal itself, it didn't happen. Though there is no good excuse for the lack of a steak photo before they ever hit the grill.

    1: New toys
    2. Grill setup
    3. Yes a MAK does get hot, probe is actually second rack on rear of grill where the flame zone cover is there.
    4. Why this won't be an everyday technique
    5. Trying to match classic BK commercials
    6. Between the front and the finish
    7. Plated
    8. You decide
    Attached Files

    #2
    And for the nerds...please ignore the labels on the steak probes, everything was done before I had time to adjust the session.
    Attached Files

    Comment


      #3
      I'd eat that.

      Comment


      • CaptainMike
        CaptainMike commented
        Editing a comment
        Wut he sed ^

      #4
      Only 16 minutes to get from 300* to 600*? I’ve tried this before on my MAK, but it took 40 minutes to get to 500* using 100% oak pellets from Lumberjack. Main caveat is I tried this with previous version Pellet Boss controller, not the newer one with the K style food probes. I understand the newer one can get well above 500*. My basic question is: how long to get from start to 600*.

      Comment


      • glitchy
        glitchy commented
        Editing a comment
        24 minutes

      • glitchy
        glitchy commented
        Editing a comment
        Oh and pellets were Weber GrillMaster blend I’m still finishing up from a past life.

      • GolfGeezer
        GolfGeezer commented
        Editing a comment
        glitchy That’s pretty good. I’ll have to give it try now that I have the latest controller. Thks.

      #5
      Great write up and pics. Thanks for sharing.

      Comment


        #6
        As usual, you killed it! I’d be honored to make bread for everyone in here. Although I’d rather make it "with" everyone one in here, fr more fun to share in craft with others, in all sorts of ways.
        Last edited by Richard Chrz; August 23, 2021, 09:49 PM.

        Comment


        • glitchy
          glitchy commented
          Editing a comment
          I’m not much of a baker, but need to learn and couldn’t think of many I’d rather learn from.

        #7
        Great work buddy. Love to see your cooks!

        Comment


          #8
          Nice sear, I'm still waiting on my backordered sear grate, front shelf and door.

          I'm sure I'll try it too but curious if you prefer the method you tested versus a reverse sear. In my case it is faster and easier to use the MAK first and then sear over an infrared burner on my propane grill but I look forward to comparing myself once I get the grate. Thanks.

          Comment


          • glitchy
            glitchy commented
            Editing a comment
            The results were delicious, but I actually don’t anticipate using this method very often. I’ll still lean towards a charcoal front sear or the MAK/Weber reverse sear combo. I had ordered the sear grate before I decided to buy the Genesis, so wanted to try it out. The biggest drawback was just all the smoke from the grease hitting the drip tray at 500-600 degrees. I know the MAK can sear a pretty good steak if I’m out of gas now though.

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