How to Grill Steak Perfectly Every Time

Grilling a steak to perfection is easier than you might think! Here are some tips and tricks for how to grill steak that will make you look like the ultimate grill master.

When should I season the steak?

Timing is everything when it comes to seasoning your steak. For the absolute best flavor results, you should season all sides of your steak with a course kosher salt 24 hours in advance. This gives the salt enough time to diffuse through the meat.

With that said, if your Bo Jackson 34 Prime Beef Tailgating Pack has just arrived and you can’t wait to dig into it, never fear! You can still season your steak 30-40 minutes ahead of grilling time and leave it covered on the counter while the salt does its work. It will come out flavorful and tender.

Whether you salt your steak 24 hours in advance, or only 30 minutes ahead of time, you should always be sure to remove the steak from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before grilling time, so the steak can adjust to room temperature. Tossing a cold steak on the grill straight out of the fridge is going to take the steak more time to get to the right internal temperature, which increases your odds of overcooking the meat.

How long should I grill a steak?

The biggest question when it comes to how to grill steak is how long does it take to reach the right level of doneness? The beauty of steak is that it’s a versatile cut of meat, which means people have varying preferences on steak temperature.

At a minimum, you should grill the steak for an average of 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown and slightly charred on the outside. How long you grill your steak after this is going to depend on your ideal steak temperature.

For Rare steak continue to grill the steak for roughly 3 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. The meat will be brown on the outside, but red and juicy on the inside, with a texture similar to raw meat. This level of doneness tends to be an uncommon order, but it’s good to know how to grill steak rare in case you’re in the company of a carnivore connoisseur.

For medium – rare steak, continue cooking for 3-5 minutes after browning to reach an internal temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit. Medium-rare steak is more cooked than rare, but it has not quite reached medium. This is one of the most popular levels of steak doneness, still juicy and tender but not quite as red as rare steaks.

Medium steak will have an internal temperature of 140 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. To reach this level, continue grilling the steak for 5 to 7 minutes after the initial browning time. Alongside medium-rare, this is a very popular level of steak doneness and is the ideal level for the cuts of meat in Bo Jackson 34 Prime Beef Tailgating Pack.

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If you aren’t a fan of pink meat, and prefer a medium-well steak, you can keep the steak on the grill for 8 to 10 minutes after browning to reach an internal temperature of 155 to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

And finally, if you want no pink at all, the temperature for a well-done steak is 170 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. In order to get the best results, grill the steak on a cooler side of the grill for a longer period of time to prevent the outside from charring too heavily while the inside of the meat browns.

Please note that the exact grilling times may vary based on the heat of your grill and the thickness of the meat, but these are some good standards to start from. We recommend keeping a meat thermometer on hand to make sure your steak reaches the correct internal temperature until you’ve mastered the timing for your grill.

One other factor you’ll want to think about when learning how to grill steak perfectly is the thickness of the steak. A thin cut of steak is going to take less time and heat to cook through than a thicker cut. But what is a thick cut?

The average thickness of a steak you would get in your local supermarket is one inch thick (or thinner for cuts like flank and skirt). Anything thicker than that—such as one and a half or one and three-quarter inches—is what we would consider a thick cut of steak.

Should I keep the lid open or closed?

Whether or not you grill a steak with the lid open or closed is going to depend on the cut of steak.

When grilling a thick cut of steak, you want to keep the lid closed. This will keep the temperature even and help the meat cook evenly. You’ll also want to grill a thicker steak on indirect heat in order to make sure it doesn’t char too heavily on the outside before cooking in the middle.

For thinner cuts of steak and other meats like burgers, shrimp, or pork chops, we recommend cooking with the lid open. Keeping the lid closed can cause these more delicate meats to overcook or even burn before you realize it. These cuts generally don’t need to stay on the grill for as long as the thick cuts do, so it’s advised to keep a closer eye on them and make sure you don’t leave them on too long.

How do I cut the steak?

Now that your steak has been grilled, you’ll need to know how to cut the steak if you want to reach true culinary perfection.

When cutting a steak, you want to pay attention to the grain. The grain is the direction of the muscle fiber. While this is more easily visible in some steaks than in others, you should be able to see the lines where the muscle fibers meet and form the direction of the grain.

Cut your steak across the grain, NOT parallel to the grain. This shortens the length of the fibers and results in a more tender cut that’s easier to chew, which will let your friends and family fully enjoy the tender, juicy meat.

Bo Jackson Signature Foods has provided us with this all-star example using one of their ribeye steaks:

Now that you know how to grill steak perfectly, be sure to show us what Bo Jackson 34 Prime Beef Tailgating Pack is on your grill! Tag us on social @patioproductsUSA and use the hashtags #bigleaguegrilling and #IwantBos34Steak.