Hot tubbing steaks (definition thereof)

[Anonymous]

I have subjected several steaks (generally I cut them about 1.5″) to a “poor man’s sous vide”) as I typically vacuum them in a Food Saver bag and freeze them to begin with. With a Thermapen insta-read thermometer, I get a pot of water going to a steady 125F. I have kept thawed steaks at that temp for several hours, and then seared them at 700F plus over charcoal grill for about 1.5 minutes per side.

Smoke flavor didn’t really penetrate, so next time I will just use my propane Weed Burner for the crust like I do on slow-coked rib roasts.

It’s a nice technique if you want to serve steaks at a moment’s notice and don’t want them over-done. I still like 3 minutes per side over Mesquite wood at a scorching temp …

[Ron Pratt]

Not being argumentative here – OK?… Just trying to help others should they wish to try this method. Personally if you are warming your steaks in constant 125° temp water for several hours then those are essentially already cooked by the time they finally hit the grill and no, they wouldn’t take on much smoke flavor at that point, nor in that short period of time. Guess that’s why I like to use the hot tap water and replacing it as it cools down to 100°.

At least we seem to agree on the idea of pre-warming the meat. I always get a kick out of those steak recipes that say “take your steak out (of your 37° refrigerator) and leave them on the counter for 10 minutes to bring them to “room temperature”! I guess 10 minutes works if you live in hell or something!

[Barry]

Does anyone think that there would be an advantage to BGE indirect smoking at 250 degrees for a short time before heating the chamber up to 700 and searing?
Has anyone tried this?

[Anonymous]

that’s kinda what i do but at a slightly higher temp. I toss on my steaks close to the end of my baked potato cook, turning once, and then when i pull the bakers, let the BGE come up to 600-650 and sear both sides for about 90 seconds. admmittadly not quite the 250* you speak of, but if i had a way of doing it at the same time as my baker at 250, i’d certainly give it a whirl. hmmm, may be next time I’ll try to figure out a way to finish the baker at 250*, then sear. I’ve always thought the extra *smoke* time would be great

[Ron Pratt]

aiki wrote:

quote :

Does anyone think that there would be an advantage to BGE indirect smoking at 250 degrees for a short time before heating the chamber up to 700 and searing?
Has anyone tried this?

Sure – I do that all the time with a large cut of meat such as prime rib and roasts. There actually is a term for that method – it’s called a reverse sear. BTW this method gives you far better control in achieving your desired internal temp without charring the exterior!

Ron

[Barry]

Thank you. Previously I had cooked direct to sear, then move to the indirect side to finish. It does make sense to uniformly heat the steak.
That’s interesting doing that to a roast also.
Thanks again for the advice.

Barry (yep, looks like there are two of us!)

[Ron Pratt]

The other advantage is at the lower roasting temperature you can use your probe type/cable thermometer so as to closely monitor your internal temp so there is no guessing where the temp stands before starting the sear. Most cable thermometers get fried at high temps. Granted you can use an instant read Thermapen and eliminate the cable one.

[Barry]

The thermapen sounds like a great idea.
Have you heard of the BBQ Guru? It is a controller for wood fired cookers. The new cables are resistant to 450 degrees tho. One probe in the chamber and one in the meat.

[Ron Pratt]

aiki wrote:

quote :

The thermapen sounds like a great idea.
Have you heard of the BBQ Guru? It is a controller for wood fired cookers. The new cables are resistant to 450 degrees tho. One probe in the chamber and one in the meat.

Yes, I’ve owned and used a Guru for probably 10 years now. Handy device for getting a full night’s rest for an overnight cook!

[Barry]

We all may be beyond help, gadget freaks that we are!

[Charlie]

I am thinking about getting a stoker. The new one is wifi but they haven’t released the software for it yet.

Charlie

[Barry]

Please educate me–what is a stoker?

[Ron Pratt]

stoker is a come along competitor to the BBQ Guru, though I will give them credit as they were the first to allow you to tie in to your computer, phone etc. Personally I never leave my home while my grill is going so being able to kick up my unattended fire while half way around the globe doesn’t interest me! Besides I somewhat know the brilliant philanthropist Fred who invented the Guru. He recently donated $25 MILLION to the U of T.

[Barry]

Thanks for the info. Like you, it’s best to stay nearby when the fire is going. It looks like we are gadget freaks!

Barry

[Charlie]

Here is the stoker site

https://www.rocksbarbque.com/index.html

I use my I pad and like the idea of graphing my cook temps. Being able to set alarm parameters and temps is a very nice feature. It can also tweet you if you there is an alarm.

I haven’t researched the guru very much but now I will since Fred is such a generous person.

Charlie B)

[Author]

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