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Light the flame: once you're ready to cook, it's all about temperature and time

Men's Fitness, June-July, 2006

KNOW YOUR HEAT | When you're using a gas grill, you have two heat choices: direct and indirect. With direct heat, you've got the food directly over the fire; with indirect heat, you're cooking over an unlit burner (next to a lit burner). Thin cuts of meat cook quickly, so they're best cooked over direct heat. Thicker cuts of meat, however, can't survive direct heat for long--the outside will burn before the inside is cooked. If your steak is 1 1/2 inches thick or thicker, start it over direct high heat (three to four minutes per side to sear it and form a nice crust), then move it to indirect heat to roast it gently.

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IS IT DONE? | Lots of novice grillers check the doneness of their meat by cutting into it. Amateur technique, says Purviance--you're letting out all the juices, and you'll end up dining on hockey pucks. The trick for checking the doneness of meat that Purviance teaches in his grilling classes is called the thumb test: Open your hand and feel the skin at the base of your thumb. That's how raw meat feels: soft and pliant. Touch each finger to your thumb and press lightly, and you'll see how your meat should feel when cooked:

THUMB AND INDEX FINGER | RARE

THUMB AND MIDDLE FINGER | MEDIUM RARE

THUMB AND RING FINGER | MEDIUM WELL

THUMB AND PINKIE | WELL DONE

While the steak is cooking, the juices start to pool in the middle--if you cut it now, they'll all run out. Let the meat rest for three to five minutes after you remove it from the grill, however, and the juices will redistribute, ensuring that each bite is tender and juicy.

Light the flame: once you're ready to cook, it's all about temperature and time

Men's Fitness, June-July, 2006

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