How To Cook Steak With Pit Boss Pellet Grills
There are basically two options for cooking steaks with Pit Boss pellet grills.
First option. Begin cooking with the hottest grill possible. Sear the exterior and serve. This will allow you to create a succulent, tender and rare center while keeping the outside crunchy, well-seared and delicious. The surface of your barbecue will have the distinctive taste and aroma of well-grilled meals.
Second option. Grill your steak using the reverse sear technique. The smoke will then permeate the entire steak rather than just the well-done exterior.
How To Make The Pellet Grill Ready For Your Meat
When it comes to using a pellet grill, never compromise using the best wood for your meat. Woods such as mesquite, oak, and hickory should be highly considered for grilling because of the bold and unique flavor commonly associated with them.
It is necessary to keep your pellet grill clean for it to function at full potential and efficiency. Though a pellet requires extra maintenance tools, following a regular cleaning and maintenance pattern does maximize the flavor it produces as well as its efficiency.
Clean the grill grates, vacuum the firepot ash and wipe out the grease bucket and drip trays of any oil. And always cover up your pellet grill when not in use.
The boat is ready, so put fuel in it as the voyagers-steaks are already prepared for smooth sailing. Be calm and let the meat absorb as much smoke as possible. This will help the meat cook and acquire the right flavor.
How To Season Kansas City Steak
Anything more than salt and pepper on a steak makes me a little skeptical. Before you season the steak, pat the steak with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture from it. We dont want to steam the steak and it will be harder to get a clean sear if there is any moisture.
Once the steak is dry, sprinkle the steak with some coarse kosher salt and rub it into the meat on both sides and the edges. Then apply freshly cracked pepper to both sides. If you do want to apply any other seasoning or fresh herbs, you could apply that now. When I use a nice cut of meat, I really want the steak to be the hero of the flavor profile, not an overload of other seasonings.
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What Temperature Do You Cook Steak On A Pellet Grill
Pellet grills are great for smoking, but how do you get a good sear on a steak with a pellet grill?
You may be asking yourself What temperature do you cook a steak on a pellet grill?
Whether youve got a Traeger, Pit Boss, Camp Chef, Yoder, or any other type of pellet grill, weve got you covered!
Find out the best methods below!
Steaks. The king of the backyard grilling menu.
Ribeyes, t-bones, filets. Nothing beats a perfectly cooked steak, cooked outdoors with fire, flame. and smoke.
And if youve ever cooked on pellet grill, you know how great it can be to combine the convenience and temperature control of a gas grill with the smokey flavor of a charcoal smoker.
Have you purchased a pellet grill for the first time and are now asking yourself What temperature do you cook steak on a pellet grill?
In this article, we will be discussing what a pellet grill is, how to cook a steak on one, and the perfect temperature you will need to cook them.
New to using pellet grills? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Pellet Grills and How They Work.
Find out why they are one of the BEST ways to easily grill and smoke food at home, all in one easy to use appliance!
While youre at it, check out this list of our FAVORITE Pellet Grills of 2021 available for under $500!
Equip Yourself With The Right Tools To Cook The Perfect Steak
Before getting down to the cooking part, it is necessary that you get hold of good grilling gear. They say that artists are only as good as the paints they use, and your equipment dictates how good or bad a job you do with the cooking.
You need a thermometer to keep tabs of the meats temperature accurately. Youll also require grill grates, which allow you to sear your meat on the pellet grill with much ease. Use this tool for professional-level results.
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How To Measure Steak Doneness By Touch
You may have read about the “poke test” for determining whether a steak is done. The idea is that you find a place on your body that corresponds to a steak doneness level. You press that place sometimes a part of the face, sometimes a fingertip, sometimes the meaty part of your hand below your thumb note the “springiness,” then touch the steak to see if it has the corresponding “springiness.”
Chefs who cook many steaks a day, usually of similar cuts on the same equipment indoors, can get pretty good at using simple touch tests to see if steaks are done.
But as an outdoor griller, you’ve got other factors to consider, including the outside temperature, the cut of the steak, whether you marinated it or not, how soft your hands are so unless you cook the exact cuts of meat, prepared the same way, at the exact temperature, many, many times, the poke test will let you down.
Thats why recommend using a digital thermometer so you can nail the perfect doneness every time.
Two Preparing Your Steak
While your grill is preheating, take your steaks out of the refrigerator to rest for around an hour. After they have rested, you can season them and now they are ready to be cooked.
You want to ensure that all of the meat is seasoned, do not forget about the sides of the steak too.
Pro Tip: Ensure that you have removed any excess moisture from the surface of the steaks before placing on the grill, this will help to sear the meat.
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Searing A Steak: Grilled Outside Juicy Inside
Most pitmasters follow a simple formula when grilling steaks the traditional way â a cooking method called searing. The secret to a mouthwatering steak is in this step, which involves cooking a steak on high heat for a short cook time. Below are the steps youâll want to follow:
- Let your steaks rest for an hour at room temperature. Pat them dry with a paper towel to make sure theyâre not moist at all.
- Season your steaks as desired. Some pitmasters like to add very little to their steaks. Others rub seasonings into the meat before searing.
- Bump up the heat to 500 degrees.
- Place your prepared, rested steaks on the hottest part of your pellet grill. When searing on a pellet grill, you want to hear that sizzle of the steak making contact with the heat of the grill.
- Sear each side of the steak for about three minutes, or until the steaks have reached your desired internal temperature.
- Remove the steaks from the pellet grill, slather them with about a tablespoon of unsalted butter, place them under a foil tent and wait 10 minutes.
What could be more straightforward? Of course, if you want to get fancy, you could also try whatâs called a reverse sear.
How Long Do You Cook Steaks At 350
To give a general rule of thumb, six minutes per side on medium heat should be adequate for a 1-inch thick piece of steak. If youre using a gas grill, preheat it for 10 minutes on medium heat. Remove steak from refrigerator and place on grill, reducing heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and cooking for six minutes per side.
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What Gear Do I Need To Sear A Steak On A Pellet Grill
Before we get too far down the how-to path, letâs cover some basic gear you need to sear a juicy and tender steak on a pellet grill. Youâll need a fast and accurate instant-read thermometer. I use the Grilla Grills Meat Thermometer, which is fantastic in reading the meatâs internal temperature.
Can You Smoke The Steak On Your Traeger
Absolutely you can. A different recipe will cover that. Here we are using the Traeger as a high heat grill. I have smoked a large ribeye steak on the Traeger smoker at low heat for about 45 minutes, and then reverse sear it on high heat in the preheated cast iron pan to give it a nice sear. This way does give more of a smoky flavor and is delicious. But it does take more time. I recommend trying to cook them both ways to determine which you prefer. I like variety, I go back and forth between both depending on the time I have and what else I am cooking.
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How To Cook Steak On Pellet Grills
Cooking a steak on a pellet grill can be as easy as using the pellet grill for any other meat. However, procedures can be slightly different depending on the beef cut you choose and the level of doneness you want to accomplish.
As long as you do the following steps, youll have better chances of producing the perfect steak you crave.
How Do You Cook Steak On A Pit Boss Pellet Smoker
Directions
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Doneness Use One Of These Methods:
Cut into the steak in the center. Rare meat will be red medium rare will have a little red in the center turning to pink medium will have some pink in the center medium well will have a mostly gray or brown color.
Use the touch test. Rare will feel soft and only a little springy, with very little resistance. Medium rare will feel firm and springy, with some resistance against your finger. Medium/medium well will be firm and will snap back when pressed.
Use your meat probe. The USDA recommends that you cook steaks to a minimum interior temperature of 145°F . If you do so, your meat will be gray to brown and about as tender as a bicycle tire. The reality is that you risk getting sick from steaks cooked to lower interior temperatures. I enjoy rare steak enough to risk it, but you may not.
Best Temperatures For Grilling Steaks On Pellet Grills
Below are the recommended cooking temperatures and times for cooking steaks on a pellet grill.
Depending on your preferred steak doneness, the cooking time will change from having a Medium Rare steak to a Well Done steak.
Keep in mind that using a pellet grill with higher temperatures will cause the food to cook faster and not absorb as much of the smoke. So do not expect smoky flavors or smoke rings to develop when cooking food at a higher temperature.
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What Is The Best Wood For Cooking Steak On Pellet Grill
Wood Pellet comes in various flavors, and this will go a long way in affecting the outcome of whatever is grilled with it, especially your steak. Here are some of the best-flavored wood pellets for a steak that you can choose from.
Mesquite and hickory produce a prominent flavor on the steak. Mesquite has more potent smoke than hickory. Because of the beefy nature and strong cut of steak, it can hold up nicely to strong smoke flavor, and this also helps to cook the meat.
If you want to spice things up, then you have Pecan at your service. It is less smoky compared to mesquite and hickory, therefore less appreciated for grilling and smoking. It has this vanilla and nutty finish that just made the steak flavor awesomely complex.
Some people have also testified to using oak wood pellets for their steak and complimented the medium smoky result you can give it a try as well.
You Should Know 4 Important Things About Grilling Steaks:
Bring the meat to room temperature before you put it on the grill. If you dont, the outside will cook much faster than the cold inside, and you will get a dry exterior with a cold interior.
Use rubs without a high salt content. Copious quantities of salt tend to draw moisture out of the steak. Sugar will caramelize and add that great char on the surface.
Baste with butter or spritz with apple juice/Worcestershire mix. Or both!
Let the meat rest about 10 minutes after youve finished cooking. This will keep the flavorful juices inside the steak where they belong. Cut into one too early, and the juices will run all over the plate.
Technique: As a general rule, you should grill a high quality steaks on high heat . A lower quality steaks will likely benefit from a slower cook . Occasionally, if I have the time, I will cook a steak for an hour or so at 150°F and then turn it up to 500°F to finish it off.
TIME: Grill about 7-10 minutes per side at high temperatures or 15-20 minutes per side at the lower temperatures mentioned above. The actual amount of time will depend on the thickness of the meat and your preference for doneness.
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Seasoning Is About What You Choose And How You Apply It
You can use a simple salt and pepper blend, a complicated rub, or a ready-made steak seasoning blend from the store. Each one will bring different flavors to the meat. But the keyno matter what you choose to season your pellet grill steaks withis how you apply the seasoning.
Dont just shake it on and throw the steaks on the grill. Take your time to massage the seasoning into the meat on every side. Pour it into your hand, and rub it thoroughly onto the steaks with your fingers. This will make a huge difference!
How To Prepare Your Steak
When you’re cooking a steak, you’re doing two things:
Searing the surface of the steak which you want to get up to at least 285 degrees Fahrenheit, and heating the inside of the steak which you want to keep much cooler.
To get the perfect sear, you need to get the surface of your steak up to 285 degrees Fahrenheit. This will initiate the Maillard reaction, giving your meat a pleasing color.
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How Long To Cook A Steak On A Pit Boss Pellet Grill
The time duration for which you smoke your steak depends on its thickness. Smoking for around 15 to 30 minutes is sufficient for most purposes. Once you reach the 15-minute mark, make sure that you check the internal temperature using a good thermometer. Keep checking the temperature after every 5 minutes to ensure consistent heating. You should also flip the steak after 15 minutes of grilling.
Keep grilling your steak until its temperature is between 100 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit. At this point, you should remove your steak from the grill and raise the temperature of your grill. The ideal temperature of your Pit Boss pellet grill for this phase of cooking is 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Allow your grilling grates to reach this temperature before putting the steak back in. Before you put your steak back on the grill, infuse it on both sides with barbecue rub.
After this point, things will start moving pretty quickly, so you must be prepared and ensure that everything is in place. Carefully place the steak back on the grilling grates at a small angle. Continue to cook for another minute. After a minute has elapsed, rotate the steak by 45 degrees. Cook for at least another minute. You can then flip your steak over to the other side and repeat the previous process for this side as well.
What Happens If You Don’t Rest Your Steak
Going into the nitty gritty of why you shouldn’t immediately cut into your steak is a whole other chemistry lesson, but to make things simpler, think of it as allowing all the juices and proteins in your meat to settle.
Jumping into the yummy parts of this whole process sooner than you should will only result in all your hard work going to waste, as your meat will be overcooked.
Another important point to remember is that there will be residual heat that continues to cook your steak once you’ve taken it off the grill, so you have to allow time for the heat to dissipate. For the best results, pour on some melted butter once you’ve taken it off.
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Tips And Tricks For A Better Steak On Pellet Grill
Do you want to cook the perfect steak on a Pellet Grill? You just need to check out below some tips and tricks for a better steak:
- Preheat your grill before adding the steaks. This will help them cook evenly.
- Season the steaks generously with salt and pepper. This will give them flavor and help to prevent them from sticking to the grill.
- Use high-quality olive oil for the balsamic glaze. This will make a difference in the flavor of the finished dish.
- Use good-quality balsamic vinegar for the glaze. Avoid using cheaper vinegar, as it can be harsh and acidic.
- Use beef broth instead of water for the glaze. This will add more flavor to the dish.
- Garnish with fresh parsley leaves, if desired.
- Use Dijon mustard instead of regular mustard for the glaze. The flavor is more complex and will complement the other flavors in the dish.
- Mince the garlic finely so that it doesnt overpower the other flavors in the dish.
- Cook the steaks for 6-8 minutes per side or to desired doneness. Baste them with the balsamic glaze during the last few minutes of cooking.
Finally, remove the steaks from the grill and let them rest for 5 minutes before serving. This will allow the juices to redistribute, making them more tender and flavorful.
Serve the steaks with the balsamic glaze spooned over them.
