If you are in NYC, it would be Porter House or T-bone. Shoprite has a sale on both, $4.99 a lb.

Next week, it will be London boil, $1.99 a lb, sous vided to tender medium rare.

dcarch

This post was edited by dcarch on Fri, Jul 26, 13 at 23:13

My first thought was hanger, but I don't trust you to cook it enough to be palatable :)

Call me boring but I'd go with a couple nice thick (1.25"+) sirloins, weighing in at 5 or a bit more combined.

Costco has really nice sirloin. But their flank steaks are good also. The sirloins are cut thick so one steak is huge - in my opinion.

What else are you making?

Teresa

I don't like flank steak so that would be the last steak I would ask the dearest lady and family ruler to bring home.

Costco's whole loins, ribeye roasts and beef tenderloins are reasonably priced in Canada and I know they are priced even better in the USA.. I'd ask the dearest lady to bring home one of these and cut my own steaks. And depending on which cut you get, you will have enough beef for a couple of more family dinners.

~Ann

Rib eye, definitely rib eye.

Keep an eye on the labels because Costco sells USDA Prime on a seemingly random basis. We picked up a package of Prime tri-tip roasts and they were amazing. Marinated in the soy sauce/bourbon/ginger/garlic/sugar recipe, and grilled. Incredible.

I'd take anything labeled Prime and be happy.

I am the 'lady of the house' here, and I would WOW'em with a couple of marinated Tri-Tips and Santa Maria Beans. Even potato salad would work...but we love those beans, and the Tri Tip can be sliced to suit all ages and done-ness, I think.

Spouse is rib-eye fan. I'm a filet fan. After that, it's a big drop down to a tie between hanger and tri-tip.

No matter what cut, I use a wet marinade. The beef in CA is mediocre, regardless of price. The FDA keeps lowering the beef grades so that what is Prime now used to be Commercial grade when I was growing up in Chicago.

Steak, pesto a la trapanese (tomato pesto), garlic mashed potatoes, a spinach and langoustine salad, artichoke dip, not sure what else. The people are not adventurous epicures so we are sticking to traditionals.

Next question - anyone had luck putting charcoal in their gas grill, heaped on top of the burners? My gas grill is okay for low and slow but it doesn't get as charringly hot as a charcoal grill can. I have a half bag of wood charcoal that I want to use up anyway.

Sounds risky. Might ask over at the 'cooking outdoors' forum...
I would think the ash might screw your gas tube flame holes?

For steak shopping at Costco, we buy the NY strip steak. I believe it is the T-bone, Rib-eye?
without the bone, without the tenderloin? (i do not know my cuts so i tend to make stuff up)
Anywho, they are so big and thick we cut them in half as equal as possible. If they have a bit of 'tail' shape, we tie butcher twine around the 'waist' to tighten them up firm. (nice presentation and allows for even cooking) . They are almost square! So thick! And plenty big. Very difficult to overcook.

You can use any big tray, or a few bricks to form a fire pit. Dump the charcoal in the pit or tray and grill the steak directly on the fire. No need for a grill. Don't worry about a little ash.

See this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hlNhH29XB4

Or

Use a chimney starter. See link.

dcarch

Here is a link that might be useful: Grilling

Ribeye, T-Bone, Porterhouse and NY strips are all different cuts of meat.

One of my neighbors did the charcoal in the gas grill thing a few years ago. Things did not turn out well. I have no details on what made it go wrong however. But why chance it. Dcarch has a good idea - as usual!

The menu sounds deliciious. Nanny's ideas sound terrific and fitting for this gang.

I'd be concerned about getting ash into the holes of the grill, as someone else pointed out. Do you think charcoal would get hotter rather than only impart a smoky flavor?

My very old Weber gas grill is my sure char/sear 'appliance' in my battalion of cooking appliances. It's great without charcoal.

(I confess I don't like the taste of smoke nor trust the non healthy aspects of smoked(nitrate and black burnt carcinogens)foods. I have secretly washed off the delicious burnt black stuff on grilled meats/chicken. I don't want my kids or other family eating that! Blasphemy on this cooking forum.

I agree with FOAS, I'd go with sirloin. It's one of my favorite cuts. You mentioned you weren't really interested in the ribeye cuts. Sirloin isn't fork tender, but I have teeth and I prefer the "beefier" flavor, so I'll chew a bit more. Just don't overcook it...

Annie

Teresa, I believe strip is the larger side of the porterhouse, the smaller side being filet. Strip is my favorite, but for me it's typically among the more pricey cuts which is why I recommended sirloin.

John, if your Costco has beef tenderloin or filet steaks, that would be my preference. Second choice would be rib eyes. I'm not a fan of California sirloin steaks, I've had too many bad ones---my guess is that Oregon would have similar cuts of meat.

Perhaps JKom is correct, the USDA grading system has sunk to carpier qualities. Sad sad sad.
I wouldn't serve flank steak either--the flavor is good, but the stringy texture is offputting to many. My DH hates it! Hanger steaks are iffy as is skirt steak. I NEVER buy London Broil-- tough tough, tough.
Your menu sounds delightful, what time should I arrive! ;-P

This is funny. SWMBO came home with 6 lb NY loin, 3 lb ribeye, 5 lb flank . . . Kind of a "I'll take one of each" solution?

The flank will be made into mass quantities of jerky tomorrow, Daughter-San has been asking for a care package up at summer camp in the mountains.

The NY loin and ribeye are salted and on the counter. I'm thinking about "treatments". Trying to remember something I read about an anchovy-honey glaze - it was on pork, but maybe?

Is the strip steak in a one piece roast or cut into steaks?

Nothing better with steak on the grill than Santa Maria style beans.

Here is a link that might be useful: Santa Maria style beans

It's funny you say that, Carol. I was just reading the August issue of Sunset magazine. (Remember, Elery has a son that lives near Laguna Beach, so we try to keep up, LOL) On page 72 is an article called "The West's Best BBQ Town" and it's about Santa Maria, California. On page 74 is a picture of Ike Simas holding up a big slab of meat. He says he has been doing the steaks at the Elks Lodge for 60 years and his cut of choice is top sirloin, grilled over red oak and served with pinquinto beans.

John, whatever you decide, the menu already sounds delicious and I think everyone will be happy. Especially your daughter. Good luck on that jerky too...

See, that's what happens when you specifically say you aren't interested in ribeye, that's going to certainly be what you get. (grin)

Annie

Dinner was fine. Easy cooking, low stress, food pretty okay.

I blended some roast eel, agave syrup, butter, oil, and salt (can you tell i was rummaging around the pantry?) and experimented with using it as a browning aid on a few of the steaks. It did help - those steaks were a bit darker - but it wasn't a big difference. They all had pretty cross hatch marks.

Ons guest said she wanted "medium, with some pink" but kept sending her ribeye back until it was gray through and through. Sigh. Otherwise, cooking half of the steaks to 120 F and half to 125 F worked out fine.

I liked the ribeye better than the NY loin. More fat. Fat is gooooood.

Ultimately, I feel a cast iron pan makes a much better steak than the grill. My ideal steak is your classic "steakhouse" version. Seared on a crazy hot griddle or under a salamander, outside crusty and dark brown, salty, with the fat border crunchy and dripping, the inside soft and red and juicy, finished with a big glob of herb butter, creamed spinach on the side. I have no salamander but a cast iron pan does a good job too.

When making the pesto trapanese, I paid attention to what I was doing, and thus can offer these tips. Everything has to be hand chopped; recipes will call for a food processor, but that is flat out wrong. Put tomatoes, garlic, basil in a food processor and you get something that looks just like throw-up. (My junior year of college made me an authority on throw-up.). After you chop the tomatoes, salt them and in half an hour, discard the pooled liquid. This concentrates the flavor. The chopped garlic should be lightly cooked, because some tummies can't handle raw garlic. A little vinegar gives the end result more depth and interest. I also added some minced sage and red pepper flakes.

SWMBO has been making these awesome appetizers of shredded kale, salted then dehydrated. Kind of a nori texture. That was popular.

I have been following the lead up to your grilling assignment. Sounds like it was fantastic meal, well except for well-done gray steak. I have been contemplating trying the pan searing as a backup when I'm out of fuel for the grill.

Thanks for sharing.

One of my way for my perfect steaks:

After the steak is sous vided to absolute perfect done-ness based on exact temperature, 10 minutes before serving, (while guests are having appetizers), the hot steaks are removed from the SV cooker into the freezer.

The cast iron skillet is fired to 580F with no oil. Temperature on the skillet is checked with an infrared remote read thermometer.

Then the steak is put on the skillet (with the exhaust fan on high) edges first to fry and render the fat cap/ring.

Then the steak is grilled/fried on the smoking fat rendered from the steak about a minute or two on each side. There is no need for oil or butter.

Steak, still sizzling, no resting require, is served right after appetizer. Perfect hot steak, perfect timing.

dcarch

I do prefer cast iron for good steaks. I like a thick cube as i mentioned above. Hitting the hot pan on all six sides...peppered and a bit of sea salt.
I've been using a heavy cast iron wok...splatter screen fits easy. I do ok on the grill getting it very hot but like cast iron.

Sous vid is not on the bucket list , yet, : )
though cooking nerds at word talk it up....

My favorite method to cook steaks indoors is by salt searing. You need a cast iron skillet (or two) twice the size of the steaks. Cover the entire bottom of the skillet(s) with a thin but solid layer of Kosher salt.

Heat over high heat until they start smoking and then slap on the steak. The superheated salt should sear them quickly-about a minute or less. Then pick them up with tongs and flip them onto the unused salt to sear the other side. Remove the steaks to a platter to rest a bit. They'll be ready now if you like them rare.

If medium rare or medium, wipe any remaining salt out of the skillet with a damp paper towel and put it back on the burner with a hunk of butter on medium-high heat. When the butter is golden and bubbly, return steaks to the pan and cook about 30 to 45 seconds or more per side until to the degree of doneness you like. Put steaks back on platter to rest and you can pour the browned butter over the steaks or add some red wine and reduce or whatever you'd like.

Ruthanna, that's a method I would like to attempt! The salty crust sounds delicious and DH would love a butter/red wine au jus. Can I use a Le Creuset enameled cast iron pan or do I need a Lodge type cast iron to make that work?

New York strip, strip loin, shell steak, or Kansas City strip steak. In Australia it is known as a porterhouse steak or boneless sirloin, Also in NYC, Delmonico steak.

Shoprite shell steak $3.99 a lb. Top round London Boil $1.99 a lb.

dcarch

I've always thought the NY Strip was a portion of the T-Bone. And it is. And FOAS said "Teresa, I believe strip is the larger side of the porterhouse."

And that's true also. There was a beef guy at the market next to the stand I was working in today. I asked him. He said the Porterhouse includes more of the tenderloin on one side. The T-Bone is the same as the Porterhouse but contains a much smaller portion of the tenderloin on one side. When the side that isn't the tenderloin gets cut away (from the Porterhouse OR the T-Bone) it's call a NY Strip, or shell steak or Delmonico.

All of this talk is making me want a steak for dinner. However, tonite it will be a smoked pork chop from the Tollefson's of Waverly. They sell at the Minneapolis Farmer's Market all year round. Even in the winter they are there every other Saturday. Which is great because their pork products are fabulous.

Compumom, I can't answer your question because all my cast iron pans are the plain black heavy ones with no enamel involved. Maybe someone who has done a similar process with a Le Creuset pan will chime in.

I know the LC pieces I have warn against heating past medium. I've pushed the envelope a bit occassionally, but I'd be hesitant to heat it "screaming hot." Lodge or other CI is cheap, LC is not. I'd not risk it.

I like to sear in a skillet, too, One thing I've found is that this method is not ideal if there's a bone involved because the meat quickly shrinks enough to create a small airspace next to the bone. Wonder if others have had this problem. I also tend to like my strip side slightly more done than the tenderloin side, so that presents issues of its own. So I rarely buy Porterhouse, but I'll be happy to order it at a steak house that knows what they're doing better than I do. :)

John - Glad your meal worked out. My guess is your "pretty ok" is "pretty excellent" by most people's standards. Interesting about your eel concoction. MC@H mentions using fish sauce to mimic some of the nuances of aged steak, but I don't recall if they marinate it for a while, or how long. Unfortunately I can't locate that cookbook (or much of anything cooking related) to look it up, as my kitchen is still not back together.

What is SWMBO?
And, you can't go wrong with bone-in rib eye or T-bone on the grill IF they are not over cooked.

FOAS, is there a Shoprite near you? Strip(Shell) steak is $3.99 a lb. I just had one. Very tasty. I will go and get a lot more to stock up. As i mentioned above, London Boil is at $1.99 a lb. Stocking up on that too.

Regarding enameled Le Creuset cast iron. I don't have one. Therefore I am only guessing.

I would not try very high heat. Although when the item is made, it went thru heat high enough to melt glass, the heat is applied very uniformly in a kiln.

On a stove, the heat is applied very unevenly. I think the coefficient of thermal expansion is very close between the enamel and cast iron, there is still a difference which can cause micro cracking in the enamel which can cause rusting.

The problem with iron rusting is that the rust expands a lot. This can cause the enamel to crack further and more rusting and chipping.

Each year, billions of dollars of structural damage is caused by the fact that rust expands.

dcarch

This post was edited by dcarch on Sun, Jul 28, 13 at 17:15

A gas flame is 2800 F. Even a cast iron pan cannot get near that temperature - iron melts around 2000 F and on a burner I think a cast iron pan wouldn't reach much above 600 F (guessing, since around 800 F it would start to glow).

So would the best way to get the crusty seared exterior and nearly raw interior be to expose the steak directly to a flame? Or is 2800 F too high, there being a happy medium rather lower on the temperature scale?

I don't have a big torch, but I suppose I could cut a 2" x 2" mini "steak" and try. Perfect for Barbie and Ken's steak dinner.

The reason the cast iron canâÂÂt get too hot is because the cast iron is also radiating heat at the same time (Black Body radiation). When the radiated heat equals the maximum BTU output of the flame, an equilibrium temperature will be established.

Torching is a common technique to get a good crust on meat. The problem is the heat from a flame is too concentrated, so you need to kind of move it around so that you get caramelization and not carbonization.

dcarch

angelaid, SWMBO=She Who Must Be Obeyed. She's John's DW.

I'm one of a very small minority of people who do not like fatty beef. I can't stand short ribs and seldom eat cuts like ribeye because I don't like the grease slick in my mouth. Tenderloin is relatively flavorless and requires sauces. It's the only thing I think I've ever agreed with Cook's Illustrated on...

I do agree, however, that a screaming hot cast iron skillet makes a steak that I like better than a grilled one. That fat around the edge can get crispy and I can cut it all off that way, and it makes Cooper much happier too because he gets it ALL.

The eel sauce is interesting, I've got fish sauce in the fridge, I'm going to have to give that a try.

Annie

The "eel sauce" was semi-copied off a Cooks Illustrated trick of mixing anchovy paste and honey, and coating pork chops with it, it helps the pork brown quickly, before the chop gets overcooked. I think they used it for pan fried chops but seems it would work for roasting too. Kind of like Coppertone for meat. It didn't make much difference for steak on the grill. I rather liked the flavour and might use it as a spread on crackers, but I have weird tastes.