Bullseye Grilling Notes - Ribeyes on the Bullseye, Friday 18 December 2020

[Sscottfitz]

Ever have a cut of beef that you simply aren't very good at? Seems like these Ribeyes (at least the last two cooks of them) have my number. Nothing special about this evening's cook - no reverse sear, just cooking a couple of Ribeyes on the Bullseye w/Grill Grates. About the only thing I DID do correctly during this cook was not to OVERCOOK the steaks... Other than that, I'd have to give this cook 1 or 2 out of 5. OBTW, this was not a Grill issue, this was clearly a problem associated with the carbon based unit between the ground and the grill....

• Grill Location: Hot Springs Village, AR.; 34 37 60.0N 92 54 55.4W - been a little "wintery" of late, but warmed up to 52 for today's high, so overall not bad as we get ready to officially jump into Winter in a few days.
• Weather at time of Grill: Temp ~51F, Humidity ~57% (showers later tonight into tomorrow). We actually got a light dusting of snow on Wednesday 16th.
• Total Event Time: ~82 Min Includes ribeye rub, uncovering the grill, laying on the Grill Grate, plating, consumption, etc.
• Grill Plates: Yes x1 (2 is over-kill for these two cuts of meat) - we use the Grill Plates we originally purchased for our Trailblazer, it fits nicely on the Bullseye.
• Temp Probes: Yes tonight, I'm putting one in the Med Rare steak so my wife doesn't have to tell a fib about her steak being "OK".....
• Pellets Used: Rec Tec Ultimate Blend

• Meat & Meat Prep
  • Meat: 2 x ~10.5oz. Pre Packaged Boneless Ribeyes (Brookshire's)
  • Total Meat Prep Time: ~2 min, “Private Selection” Expresso Rub w/olive oil as a binder - we really like this seasoning, 2nd time in a row we've used it on steaks.
  • Meat on:
    • 16:55 CST, probes say starting temp for the one Ribeyes is ~48F ~ 5 min per side on the ridged side of the grill grate. Target 130 for Med Rare (Wife's), and 145F for my Medium). NOTE: Did two things to avoid the overcook from last time.......1) Grill temp dropped to 400F, and 2) used a temp probe for the Med Rare steak. Note#2: We failed again, just this time on the OTHER side of the spectrum.... Pulled the steaks at the desired temps (according to the probe), they were WAY undercooked at the core......put them back on for at least a couple minutes more - still undercooked.........
    • Seasoned Butter added at presentation (we made up a lot of this from the last cook).

• Sides:
  • Blueberry Spinnach Salad
  • 1/2 Baked Potato w/butter & chunks of blue cheese
• Griller's Helper: 2019 Oregon Pinot Noir, Thor's Well (like the grill, it was "so-so".....)

Misc Grill Observations - all times are CST

• Total Grill Time: ~34 Min
  • Grill Start to Bullseye Target Temp 400F: ~55F to 450F ~ (16:34-16:49 CST) ~15 min.
• Grill plate used on top of OEM stainless steel grill top

General Comments:

• Griller’s support tool of choice: Trying a new Pinot Noir we picked up from Krogers this afternoon (2019 Thor's Well), from Oregon.
• We don't "go into town often these days", but made the 45 min (one way) trip into civilization today, dawned our COVID masks, not only to look for some new wine, but also scouting for seafood, as we're planning Shrimp & Grits for Christmas Eve and Smoked Crab Legs & Filets for Christmas Day.
• Not exactly sure why we're struggling with the Ribeyes....but we are. Maybe should of left them on longer since I didn't smoke them in advance of the sear, but thought using the temp prob would help us avoid problems.......either the temp prob was way off, or where I had it placed was too close to the grill grate, not sure, but it was giving us readings that was clearly hotter than the middle of the steak.
• Bottom line is this was NOT a great steak cook.....at all! Maybe it's the cut of meat, not sure. For Christmas we're going with either NY Strips OR Filets as we seem to be more consistent with those cuts.....

 

[C. Keeper]

I'm sure it's not you, the meat quality isn't what it used to be.

 

[MT26]

Since they’re giving you hell. Try sous vide. You know you’ll have the absolute perfect temp and then drop them on the hot bullseye (500°+) for a sear and to bring yours up to medium.
But there’s nothing you can do when you get poor quality meat.