GRILLIN &
CHILLIN
July is National Grilling Month, and because our mouths started watering when we discovered this, we decided to ask a few local grillmasters to share their best tips and a few of their favorite recipes. If you decide to try one of these recipes, take a photo of your creation and send it to us, or post on social media and tag us. We’d love to celebrate your grilling success — and maybe join you for dinner?
5 Tips for Grilling Steak BY ASHER KELSEY
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For an evenly done steak, use the reverse sear method.
Always let your thawed, refrigerated steak sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before cooking. Invest in a good meat thermometer — if you spend less than $50, you are risking inaccuracy. If you really want to make grilling easy, get two grills: one that’s built for low temperatures (like a pellet grill) and one for high temperatures (like a traditional gas grill or griddle). This setup allows you to bring the steak to 10 degrees below your desired internal temperature on the low-temperature grill (131 degrees is the perfect medium rare) before searing it a few minutes per side at close to 500 degrees on the hightemperature grill. Your steak will have a nice smokey component this way.
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If you want to play around with flavor, don’t do it with the seasoning (which should be limited to salt, pepper and garlic powder) — do it with accompaniments and garnishes. Herbs and compound butter are perfect toppers. Experiment with different flavor profiles to give guests a unique experience. For instance, try a compound butter with garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper and fresh lemon juice.
Grillmaster Asher Kelsey stands in front of his Traeger and Blackstone grills at his home in Woodstock. TOWNELAKER | July 2021
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