The Perfect Steak
I’m super excited to share this recipe with you today for The Perfect Grilled Steak. It was taught to me by Bobby, the executive chef of Big Green Egg. We grilled a ribeye that turned out rich, juicy, and packed with flavor. While it’s a great recipe for the Egg, it’s also a fabulous recipe to grill on any kind of grill!
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: The Perfect Steak
- Serves: 4 people
- Main Ingredients: 4 Ribeye steaks, ¼ cup kosher salt, 2 teaspoons black pepper, ½ teaspoon white pepper, ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- Why You'll Love It: Learn how to grill the perfect steak packed with rich, juicy, flavor with this simple recipe from Big Green Egg's executive chef.
Learn to Cook Steak Like a Pro
I had the absolute honor of having Bobby, the Executive Chef for the Big Green Egg, come to my home and teach me his ways… and I ate every blessed thing that beloved man cooked. His food is divine.
And today I’m sharing his recipe for the Perfect Steak, and I have to tell you, it was the most delicious steak I’ve ever tasted in my entire life. The flavor is incredible, the texture is perfectly tender, and making it is as simple as can be. I watched him go through every single step so I could show you how we did this, too.
Whether you’re cooking on a Big Green Egg, a gas grill, or whatever you’ve got in your backyard, this method works beautifully. Once you try it, you’ll never make steak any other way!
Ingredients
- Cayenne
- Ribeye steaks (1 ½ to 2 inches thick)
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- White pepper
Where can I find the most affordable ribeyes?
It can be a bit of a quest finding (and affording) steaks that thick. These are a little over an inch thick and were pretty expensive, but still a LOT cheaper than all six of us going out to eat. Folks tell me that Sam’s Club has the best deals on them, and if you have any hints or tips on where to find the best prices on steaks, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below!
How to Make The Perfect Steak
1. Place all of your dry ingredients in a shallow dish, like the pie plate I’m using here. Then, stir them all together.
2. Next, press each steak into the mixture on both sides. You can do this before you’re ready to cook them and then just put them back in the refrigerator for a few hours. Or you can do it right before cooking.
*Chef Bobby Tip
It is perfectly acceptable to season your steaks well in advance of cooking them. The salt will pull some of the moisture from the surface of the meat. The moisture mixes with the salt to form a brine, which will draw the flavor into the steak by osmosis. When the meat and brine are in osmosis, the seasoning will travel easily back and forth with the muscle tissues, so it’s really hard to dry out the steak by seasoning early.
3. Now lets get that grill going full steam ahead! Bobby says you want the temperature to be around 600°F.
Note: Of course, you can use this same rub recipe on your steaks and cook them on whatever grill you happen to have at your house, and it will even work in a cast-iron skillet in your oven, too!
4. Place your steaks on the hot grill. Cook for 2 minutes, then flip and cook for two more minutes.
Now just flip one more time, close the top to grill, and cook for 2 more minutes to have them at medium-rare. Since we tend to be medium-well people, we cook ours just a little bit longer.
There you have it – the perfect steak. Dig in and enjoy!
What to Serve with Your Perfect Steak
It isn’t really a steak dinner without some delicious sides! My Loaded Twice-Baked Potatoes or Southern Scalloped Potatoes add just the right amount of comfort to your plate. And why not throw some veggies on the grill while you’re at it! My Grilled Asparagus Recipe would be delicious. For something super quick and simple, try this Sweet and Butter Basil Corn.
Storage
Your steak can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Place it in an airtight container or wrap it tightly in foil before storing. To reheat, place the steak on a wire rack in an oven-safe dish and warm it at a low temperature (around 250°F) until heated through. This gentle method helps keep it from getting tough.
That leftover steak is just begging to be used in sandwiches, salads, or even a quick stir-fry. Goodness, there’s no end to what you can do with it!
Ingredients
- 4 Ribeye steaks 1½ to 2 inches thick
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
Instructions
- Mix all of the dry ingredients together. Cover the tops and bottoms of the steak with the rub. You do not have to use all of the rub.
- Set the EGG® up for direct cooking and stabilize the temperature at 650°F Cook the steaks for 2 minutes, flip them and cook for 2 more minutes, flip them one more time and close all of the vents on the EGG. Cook for 2 more minutes for mid rare and longer for more doneness.
- *You can easily use this same rub and cook the steaks on your own grill no matter what type it is, and they'll still be delicious.
Notes
We get all our meat from Costco. Inexpensive and oh sooo good! We also love to grill asparagus or any veggie for that matter.
Who says you have to give up your mom card by being a master of the grill! 🙂 Of all the women in my house hold I was the one who learned the grill! I was also the youngest girl! And my dad’s joke was of all of us my cooking temp was HI! I’ve helped cure cast iron skillets, and when Dad had yard work to do I was left in charge of the grill and the meat to get it done for lunch or dinner! Simply because I guess I had a healthy respect for fire, and I LOVED IT!
One of the last times I was home my Dad fired up his grill while I was seasoning the meat. Came in carried out the steak, chicken, etc. Helped me put everything on, and said….Let me know when you need help turning everything, and taking it back in the house!
This is a rub I’m gonna have to try! Will have to take out some steaks for dinner tonight! Now I’m hungry and I just had lunch!
Hey Christy–I am a Kroger shopper too. I like to buy the “Manager’s Specials” meats at Kroger. I think that’s a fancy way of saying meat that has been aged at the store :). Either way, I buy ribeyes in that section ALL the time for a lot less money. Then, my husband seasons them and grills them and they are DELISH! So, next time you hit Kroger, look for the yellow tag meat for yummy steaks at good prices.
I cooked the perfect steak on my new Lodge cast iron grill pan (made in TN not too far from you) this past weekend. Get the grill pan very hot on the burner. Do not put oil in the grill pan; it will pool between the ridges and burn. You may spray it lightly with cooking spray if you want. Brush the steaks with oil (I used olive). Do not season the meat until after cooking. When the pan is very hot, put the steaks in the pan. They should cook until you see the juices pool on the top of the meat; then turn. When you see the juices pool on that side, remove the meat or turn once more if you prefer your steak a little more done. Remove from pan, season, let rest. My husband likes a little more rare, so we turned his once, and I like mine a little more well, so we turned mine twice. Both were perfect; lots of pink for him, not so much for me! I used “store-boughten” (as we say in the South) grill seasoning, but am anxious to try Bobby’s recipe. How ironic that you and I both just learned how to cook the perfect steak in the last few days! Thanks for all your recipes (and Bobby’s also).
Thanks for this story! As a child I hated steak; literally running in fear whenever mom announced we were having it for dinner. It wasn’t until I was in my mid-20s that I learned there were other modes besides “shoe leather”!!! Turns out mom cooked it to suit my dad’s tastes, and he wanted it beyond well-done. Horrors!
Today, almost 30 years later, one of my favorite things in the world is a nice, thick ribeye, cooked medium. Yummmmmmmmmmmm.
I married a Carnivore 20 yrs ago and he can throw down some grilled steaks on our BGE. Other times, we grill Teriyaki (or Terri-yaki 😀 ) chicken or salmon steaks. Life seems best to me at the leisurely pace of a grilled meal outdoors. Thanks for the post today. Maybe honey-pie hubby will step to the side one day and show me how to work the BGE so I can be a Grill master too.
Love this! I want a Big Green Egg myself, for smoking and grilling. Costco has the best prices on the best meat in my opinion. And if you really want to splurge and buy Costco’s prime beef rather than the choice, you will have meat that melts in your mouth it’s so tender.
I’ve been using Ina Garten’s iron skillet method for filets and find it really is the best as I never have much luck on the grill. But I may have to try Chef Bobby’s method. Thanks!