She Whyeo Must Be Obeyed got me some nice chunks of tritip for New Years Eve Dinner. I decided to try searing them on the open grate of my Louisiana Grills Pellet smoker for the first time.
The grill has a plate you can slide down that opens a grate directly above the firebox to allow a really high heat exposure.
I started by rubbing down the beef with Louisiana Grills Chophouse Steak Rub.
I fired the pellet smoker up to 525 F, no small feat as it was minus 12 C at the time. Here is a picture of the open grate over the fire box. It is hot!
I put the steaks over the open grate for 1 minute, rotated 45 degrees and gave them another minute. It was almost too much time for a sear. The steaks had a nice sear but a few seconds more would have been black steaks. The lesson I learned is to keep an eye on those steaks over the open grate!
I turned the steaks over onto a regular part of the grill. It took about 5 minutes to get to an internal temperature of 140 F (the rarest I can cook a steak without getting abuse from the boss).
I let them rest for a few minutes and served them with scalloped potatoes, broccoli salad and steamed vegetables.
A close up.
The Verdict
I really love this feature of my grill. The steaks had a nice sear and were just the way I like them in the interior. The temperature was so high you could char a steak on the outside and still have it cool in the centre. I will use this method again.
The Old Fat Guy
The grill has a plate you can slide down that opens a grate directly above the firebox to allow a really high heat exposure.
I started by rubbing down the beef with Louisiana Grills Chophouse Steak Rub.
I fired the pellet smoker up to 525 F, no small feat as it was minus 12 C at the time. Here is a picture of the open grate over the fire box. It is hot!
I put the steaks over the open grate for 1 minute, rotated 45 degrees and gave them another minute. It was almost too much time for a sear. The steaks had a nice sear but a few seconds more would have been black steaks. The lesson I learned is to keep an eye on those steaks over the open grate!
I turned the steaks over onto a regular part of the grill. It took about 5 minutes to get to an internal temperature of 140 F (the rarest I can cook a steak without getting abuse from the boss).
I let them rest for a few minutes and served them with scalloped potatoes, broccoli salad and steamed vegetables.
A close up.
The Verdict
I really love this feature of my grill. The steaks had a nice sear and were just the way I like them in the interior. The temperature was so high you could char a steak on the outside and still have it cool in the centre. I will use this method again.
The Old Fat Guy
