How To Reverse Sear Steak On A Charcoal Grill – Recipe

How To Reverse Sear On A Charcoal Grill

There is something special flavor-wise about cooking steaks on a charcoal grill. It adds a different flavor that many people enjoy. However, if you have a thick-cut steak, it requires a bit more care than just putting steaks over hot coals. Otherwise, you might end up with a burnt exterior when you reach the proper internal temperature. Or you might have a perfectly cooked exterior that is nowhere near your target temperature.

That’s why I like to reverse-sear thick steaks. It allows me to gradually raise the internal temperature in a controlled environment while still getting a nice seared crust or some beautiful grill marks if I’m using a charcoal grill.

But how do you reverse-sear steak? At its core, it’s a simple process. You start your steaks over indirect heat before finishing over hot coals. But, as always, it’s the details that can trip us up.

Why Do I Use The Reverse Sear Method?

Some steaks are thin enough to sear each side for a few minutes and have a great crust while also being the proper internal temperature. If you’ve ever cooked thicker steaks or eaten at a steakhouse, you know that traditionally, thick-cut steaks are seared and then finished in the oven to raise their internal temperature.

But why do I reverse-sear my thick-cut steaks? I find that reverse searing steaks results in a super tender steak. I use wireless meat probes and an instant-read thermometer to monitor the internal temperature throughout the cooking process so I make sure I hit my target temperature every time.

Plus, you can add a bit of wood smoke flavor to my steaks. I’ll sometimes add smoker chips to start the process, whether it’s a pellet grill or a charcoal smoker. It’s nothing crazy, but it adds just a little more depth of flavor.

At the end of the day, just like everything in grilling and barbecue, it’s all about preference. But if I’m cooking a thick-cut steak, I love the results I get from reverse searing.

The Reverse Searing Process On A Charcoal Grill

I’ll be upfront with you. Reverse searing steaks on a charcoal grill is a little more difficult and requires more care than using a pellet grill or other digitally controlled smoker. With those grills, you just set your preferred temperature and go.

With a traditional charcoal grill, I have to ensure that I’m not running my grill too hot at the start while also making sure I get the grill hot enough to sear when it comes time. So it takes a bit more time and intentionality than a reverse sear on a pellet grill.

But the flavor is pretty darn great. I don’t know about you, but I love cooking on charcoal. It’s nostalgic. So if you’re like me and love cooking with charcoal, learning how to reverse sear on a charcoal grill is worth it.

Substitutes

• New York strip steaks for ribeyes (also known as cowboy steaks when cut this thick)

• Steaks for tri-tip

Step 1: Set Up Grill For Two Zone Cooking

In order to reverse sear on a charcoal grill, you need to set it up for two-zone cooking. That means you have your hot coals set up on one side of the grill, creating an indirect heat section and a direct heat section.

Not only does this help you control the heat in the cooking chamber, but it also gives you room to place your steaks so they don’t sear while they cook slowly.

This involves creating a pile of charcoal on one side of your grill and lighting it. This is the time to add your preferred wood for extra flavor if you like. Oak is my go-to if I’m doing this.

Step 2: Prep Your Steaks

You always want to pat your steaks dry before seasoning to get the best possible results. Removing the steak’s surface moisture will help promote even browning and give you the best searing results. All I do is pat my steaks dry with some paper towels. It doesn’t take long.

After patting my steaks dry, I season them with kosher salt and coarse freshly cracked black pepper. At this point, I also insert a wireless meat probe like my new MEATER Pro XL, which can handle high heat exposure during the searing process.

Step 3: Add Steaks To Grill And Start Cooking

Place your steaks on the indirect heat side of the grill. Cook until 10°F short of your intended internal temperature. So if you’re going for a nice medium rare steak, you’ll want to pull your steaks off the grill around 120°F.

Step 4: Rest And Crank That Heat

Once your steaks have reached that internal temperature, pull them off the grill and let them rest for 10 minutes on a cutting board under some aluminum foil.

If you have a deeper kettle grill like I do with the Char-Griller Premium Kettle, you’ll want to add charcoal at this point. I’ll start half a chimney’s worth of charcoal and add it to the existing charcoal to prepare for searing. I’ll also open all of my grill vents at this point to get the fire as high as it can go.

Step 5: Get Those Beautiful Grill Marks

Once your steaks have rested for 10 minutes and your charcoal fire is nice and hot, put your steaks over high heat. With a hot grill, you’ll want to only cook the steaks for about a minute and a half on each side. You want to get that nice crust and grill marks, but you aren’t trying to cook the steaks anymore.

Step 6: Remove, Slice, And Enjoy!

Since you already rested the steaks after the first part of the cooking process, you don’t need to let your steaks rest again after searing. Just pull them off, slice, and eat!

What To Serve With Reverse-Seared Steaks

Smoked Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes work well with steak. So why not put a smoky spin on this classic side dish?

Sauteed Asparagus

This is a slightly elevated take on a simple sauteed asparagus that doesn’t take much more work but adds a lot more flavor.

Maybe this is slightly cheating, but there are a lot of great side dishes for steak. So take a look and try something new!

Add compound butter or chimichurri sauce to the steaks for added flavor

When you cook steaks this good, you have to complete the meal with a dessert. Try our smoked cheesecake or Dutch apple pie recipes.

FAQs:

Question: What Are The Disadvantages Of The Reverse Sear Method?

Answer: It takes longer than just about any other method of cooking steak. Because you’re essentially slow-cooking a steak, it just takes longer than searing a thinner cut of steak.

Question: Can I Reverse Sear Any Other Cuts Of Meat?

Answer: Absolutely! I love to reverse-sear a tri-tip. I’m not the only one here at Angry BBQ that does, either. Brent Doud has a recipe specifically for a reverse-seared tri-tip that you can check out.

Question: Do I Have To Finish Right On The Grill Grates?

Answer: Nope! I love to reverse sear on a charcoal grill because of the flavor I get from the charcoal (and wood if I feel like that, too). But I know people who prefer an even crust on their steaks versus grill marks. You can get the best of both worlds by pre-heating a cast iron skillet over the direct heat and searing the steaks in the skillet.