by Kristen Lindorf

Created on: January 14, 2009   Last Updated: December 22, 2011

How to Grill THE BEST Steak!

Nothing sweetens up a summer barbecue like a tender, juicy, sizzlin' steak! The smell alone is enough to make anyone's mouth water The question is- how can you make the steak taste as good as you've been dreaming about? Nothing is more disappointing than when your vision of this steak is met by a dry, tasteless, piece of stringy beef. Here are some tips to make sure that your steak is always amazing enough for the pricey steakhouses to covet:

1. Know how steak works:

Meat is mostly composed of proteins. Proteins hold the meat together - making it stringy and tough to pull apart. The key is to break down the proteins to increase its tenderness and its juiciness

a. Freeze it: freezing your steak expands its juices into ice, which forces many of the proteins to break and make room for the ice. This also helps the meat retain its juices while in storage.

b. Beat it into submission: Use a meat tenderizer. This will break down a lot of the stringy protein fibers. It also provides more space in the meat for juices to soak in.

c. Marinate it: Find a good marinade recipe that includes acids (such as vinegar or lemon juice) which breaks down the proteins even further. Add 1 tsp. cornstarch per pound of meat to your marinade. It will thicken the juice when the meat cooks so it stays inside the meat.

Marinades also take care of the seasonings. Seasoning meat directly only coats the outside and burns up, creating a crusty outside that doesn't taste quite as bad as straight charred meat.

Add your seasonings to the marinade so the flavors are soaked up into the meat. This way, the whole steak tastes good!

My favorite marinade:

1 c. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. liquid smoke
1 c. soy sauce
2-3 Tbsp. minced garlic
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 tsp. salt
Pepper to taste
1/2 c. water
1 tsp. cornstarch per pound of meat

Mix all ingredients; marinate steak in freezer Ziploc bag in the refrigerator for 6-12 hours. Rotate periodically. 

2.Cook it right

Cook the steak too fast, and its still "moo-ing" when it reaches the table; cook too slowly and all the juices and flavor are drained out. The key is to find the right temperature and cook for the right time.

Fire up your grill to about 350-375 degrees (about medium to medium-high). If the meat is thicker, reduce the temperature a bit so the outsides don't cook too fast. Continue to baste it with extra marinade periodically as it cooks to keep the outsides from drying out while the insides cook. Patience makes the steak taste better- don't rush it

3. Find the right sauce

If you get a really good marinade and baste your steak enough when you cook it, you may not even need sauce. But for those steak sauce lovers, it's the best way to liven up any steak - and it's even better on an already tender and juicy steak!

Enjoy!

Learn more about this author, Kristen Lindorf.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.