While waiting for my Weber kettle to arrive, I decided to do one last cook on my vintage grill. I wanted to do something that only required direct heat, so I picked up two flank steaks. About five hours prior to cooking, I dry-brined them with kosher salt.
As flank steak tapers off in thickness, I cut each steak in half to have more uniform sizes (two thicker ones and two thinner ones).
I put one weber charcoal chimney's worth of coals in the grill. I did about three minutes per side, rotating the steaks a quarter-turn every 30 seconds or so.
My results were all over the map. Two steaks turned out medium-well, one turned out a lovely medium, and the other had a pocket of rare right in the middle (obviously, the thicker steak). Also, it has been a very long time since I've cooked flank steak. I had forgotten just how tough this meat can be, even slicing against the grain and as thinly as possible.
I learned a few things:
- After one opens the lid to the grill to start, the charcoal will get much hotter due to the increase in available oxygen. This sounds so obvious, but I hadn't put two and two together until now. After pre-heating the grill for 10 minutes and just opening it up, I could use my tongs without gloves. But just a few minutes later, wow, I had to wear my gloves. The temperature increase with an open grill surprised me.
- I need a better instant-read thermometer. I have a Weber one and it works....but there is no backlight and it can take 6-9 seconds to stabilize on a reading. May pick up the popular Thermopop.
The main problem I had with the larger steaks is that by the time I got the center to 135, the outside was charred, even with me flipping every minute or so. I wonder how much of this has to do with them going directly from a 35 degree refrigerator to the grill. I know Meathead advises that one does not need to have meat warm up before grilling it; in fact, cold me attracts smoke better. But what is cold? Was I too cold?
And it may just be that the larger parts of these flank steaks really could have been better done indirect then finished with a reverse sear. Although I am not sure I'll do flank steaks again for a while....they were tough. Tasty, but tough.
(I paired them with some roasted bell peppers, poblanos, and jalapeños. Those were good, especially the poblanos.)
And one last safety note....I have the G&F suede gloves. They are very nice; far, far better than oven mitts. I learned this evening that they are heat-resistant, not heat proof.
One of my jalapeños fell through the grill grate, so I decided to retrieve it by lifting the grate. For about seven seconds or so I was fine....then OUCH. I have a nice little burn on my finger. Lesson learned!
--Michael
As flank steak tapers off in thickness, I cut each steak in half to have more uniform sizes (two thicker ones and two thinner ones).
I put one weber charcoal chimney's worth of coals in the grill. I did about three minutes per side, rotating the steaks a quarter-turn every 30 seconds or so.
My results were all over the map. Two steaks turned out medium-well, one turned out a lovely medium, and the other had a pocket of rare right in the middle (obviously, the thicker steak). Also, it has been a very long time since I've cooked flank steak. I had forgotten just how tough this meat can be, even slicing against the grain and as thinly as possible.
I learned a few things:
- After one opens the lid to the grill to start, the charcoal will get much hotter due to the increase in available oxygen. This sounds so obvious, but I hadn't put two and two together until now. After pre-heating the grill for 10 minutes and just opening it up, I could use my tongs without gloves. But just a few minutes later, wow, I had to wear my gloves. The temperature increase with an open grill surprised me.
- I need a better instant-read thermometer. I have a Weber one and it works....but there is no backlight and it can take 6-9 seconds to stabilize on a reading. May pick up the popular Thermopop.
The main problem I had with the larger steaks is that by the time I got the center to 135, the outside was charred, even with me flipping every minute or so. I wonder how much of this has to do with them going directly from a 35 degree refrigerator to the grill. I know Meathead advises that one does not need to have meat warm up before grilling it; in fact, cold me attracts smoke better. But what is cold? Was I too cold?
And it may just be that the larger parts of these flank steaks really could have been better done indirect then finished with a reverse sear. Although I am not sure I'll do flank steaks again for a while....they were tough. Tasty, but tough.
(I paired them with some roasted bell peppers, poblanos, and jalapeños. Those were good, especially the poblanos.)
And one last safety note....I have the G&F suede gloves. They are very nice; far, far better than oven mitts. I learned this evening that they are heat-resistant, not heat proof.
One of my jalapeños fell through the grill grate, so I decided to retrieve it by lifting the grate. For about seven seconds or so I was fine....then OUCH. I have a nice little burn on my finger. Lesson learned!--Michael
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