Grilled Sirloin for Two

Help!  All of a sudden I’m getting an Andy Williams song coursing through my brain—“It’s That Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”   Arrrghhhhh, I can’t stand its incessant reverberation at Christmas let alone in June.

This is supposed to be about grilling which is probably why that song has hit my brain.  But I live in the San Diego area and it’s grilling season year round.  Notice here that I’m referring to grilling season not barbecue season.

If you Google “grilling gas vs. charcoal” you’ll come up with 1.5 million hits.  So I’m not going to engage in that debate other than to say that some of the “experts” (I read pieces by both Steve Raichlin and Bobby Flay) say you can go with either and that gas is easier and quicker to work with while charcoal is fussier and imparts a bit of extra flavor. So I just say “take your pick”.

I use gas.  I use gas because a tank of propane is cheaper than charcoal.  I can cook food on my gas grill as quickly as I can in the kitchen—sometimes, like my Thanksgiving turkey breast, more quickly.  And I live in a second story apartment with a balcony and I think that gas is a bit “safer” in that environment than charcoal.  And I’ve put out some pretty good food on my crappy little gas grill that cost me $88 at Target.  I’ve also managed to cremate some food on it too.

But today I want to talk a bit about grilling steak.  Sounds easy.  Just throw a hunk-o-meat on a hot grill, incinerate it and then chow down like a caveman.  Maybe it’s done just right.  Maybe it’s black on the outside and raw on the inside and maybe it’s now a heat-treated roofing shingle.  I’ve managed at one time or another to do all of these.  The trick is to be able to consistently grill that hunk-o-meat into something enjoyable not just edible.

Recently I came across an article purporting to provide the 5 key rules to grilling a steak.  And I had a few problems with it.  One of them was their endorsement of the porterhouse steak as the ultimate cut.  OK, I can buy into that but my own personal favorite is the New York strip.  I really can’t afford either one of them more than once or twice a year—and then it’s only on special and is not the USDA Choice which is tastier and a lot pricier.

So, from time to time, I pick up some sirloin when it’s on “special” at $2.99 a pound.  Sorry, but that’s about as good as it gets around here these days.  And, you can get a sirloin to be tasty and thoroughly enjoyable.  Today, I’m just going to do a basic grilling of a sirloin that’s about 1 ¼” thick which is just about right.  Stick with me here because the technique is pretty universal for grilling beef.

Recipe: Grilled Sirloin for Two

Summary: Here’s a quick primer on steak grilling techniques whether you have a gas grill or a charcoal grill.

Preparation time: 5 minute(s)

Cooking time: 8 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 2

It’s really pretty simple.  Oil the meat rather than the grill.  It works just the same and doesn’t waste oil.    Then season your meat—it doesn’t come off the cow seasoned so adding a bit of flavor really makes a difference.

Build a hot fire.  If you’re using propane like I do or if you’re using charcoal, get yourself a nice hot fire going.   The fire is ready when you can only hold your hand over the grill for about 3 or 4 seconds before it gets too hot.  Now you’re ready for your meat.  Put your meat on the grill directly over the heat.  Now, close the lid.  Leave it alone.

I’ve conditioned myself to cook based on time.  I put the meat down.  Personally, I time it for 3 minutes.  Then I flip it.  DO NOT, EVER use a meat fork.  Use tongs.  Or even a spatula.  Stabbing a hunk of meat with a meat fork only lets the juices drain out, drying out the meat.  What happens if the meat sticks to the grill?  Don’t force it.  Give it another minute.  The meat will let go of the grill when it’s ready. Cooking, even caveman grilling over open flame, is chemistry.  Flip the meat and let the other side have a shot at cooking.  You should have some nice, sexy grill marks on the steaks you just flipped.

Your cooking times are going to be set by how many BTUs your grill throws out.  Know your equipment and how it reacts to different air temperatures and humidity.  The only way to really learn it is to have done what I have done on more than one occasion—you have to have cremated some perfectly good meat and then had to chew the hell out of it soaked in A-1 to give it any moistness at all just to be able to choke it down.

Yeah, I’ve done that.  But, these simple techniques will help you get a steak cooked the way you like it—even a humble cut like sirloin.  It takes a bit of trial and error but that’s any kind of cooking.  And even overdone steak tastes pretty good when it’s cooked with that critical ingredient—a little pinch of love.

The Cheap Bastid Test:  For the meat, $3.00/lb for 2 lbs.  A couple of potatoes for about $.50 and a couple of tossed salads for about $1.  So for $4.50 we had the classic summer dinner of grilled steak, baked potato and salad.

That’s the Cheap Bastid Way:  Eat Good. Eat Cheap. Be Grateful!