It's steak season: make the most of it with the right cuts and the best sauces - includes recipes

Sunset, June, 1997 by Linda Lau Anusasananan

RELATED ARTICLE:

Steak thickness   Method/Heat        Minutes(*) (Rare/Medium)

1 inch            Direct/Hot         8 to 10/12 to 15
2 inches          Direct/Medium      20 to 25/27 to 30
3 inches          Indirect heat      40 to 45/50 to 65

* When using charcoal. Gas barbecues may take a little less or a
little more time, depending on design.

Direct heat. Place steak on grill with heat directly under it. Cook, turning once, until meat is browned and desired doneness.

If using charcoal briquets, cover fire-grate with a single solid layer of ignited coals.

If using a gas barbecue, turn all burners to high and close lid for at least 10 minutes. Then adjust to desired heat and cook with lid closed.

HOT: You can hold your hand at grill level only 2 to 3 seconds.

MEDIUM: You can hold your hand at grill level only 4 to 5 seconds.

Indirect heat. Heat is balanced on opposite sides of steak, but not directly under it. Place meat on grill with a pan directly beneath it to catch drippings.

Cover barbecue (open vents if using charcoal) and cook steak, without turning, until browned and desired doneness.

If using charcoal briquets, mound and ignite 80 coals on the firegrate of a barbecue with a lid (20 to 22 in. wide). When briquets are dotted with gray ash, in about 15 minutes, push equal amounts to opposite sides of firegrate. Place a drip pan between coals. Add 10 more briquets (20 total) to each mound of coals. Position grill 4 to 6 inches above firegrate.

If using a gas barbecue, cover and turn heat to high for about 10 minutes. Adjust burners for indirect cooking (no heat down center) and keep on high. Set a drip pan beneath grill between ignited burners. Put grill in place.

COOKED RARE. Interior meat color: Red to pinkish red, pale pink near surface. Temperature: A thermometer in thickest part registers about 125 [degrees]. Feel: When pressed, meat has a lot of give (like the flesh between thumb and forefinger when your hand is relaxed). For best flavor and texture, cook very lean steaks only to rare.

COOKED MEDIUM. Interior meat color: Pink in center, gray near surface. Temperature: A thermometer in thickest part registers about 135 [degrees]. Feel: When meat is pressed, it springs back (like the flesh between thumb and forefinger when you make a fist).

RELATED ARTICLE: CUTTING STEAK - DOWN TO SIZE

If you succumb to a whole steak, you usually exceed the recommended 3-ounce cooked portion limit, and the only remedy is to ration fat intake for several meals before or after you indulge.

It helps to know how fat-trimmed, cooked steak measures up. These USDA numbers are based on an average of three beef grades (select, choice, and prime). So if you use select grade, the leanest of these three, the numbers will be lower; and if you use prime, with more marbling, the numbers will be higher. For perspective, an equal amount of boned and skinned chicken breast has 3 grams of fat and a boned and skinned chicken thigh has 9 grams.

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