Grill marks are meaningless: Here's what matters when cooking out
Unfortunately for some, more grilling means more over-cooked hamburgers, burnt bratwurst and scorched steaks.
But chef Tyler Florence, whose latest cookbook is 'American Grill,' says the biggest mistakes grillmasters-to-be make can easily be fixed before their next backyard feast.
Without hesitation, Florence says the most common mistake grillers make is turning their grills to full heat.
'They'll either put charcoal and hard fuel in the bottom of a grill, light it, and make the entire thing one temperature,' Florence explains. 'Or they'll light all four burners on the gas grill and make the whole thing hot.'
He says grills should be set up to have one hot zone, where meat and vegetables are exposed to direct heat, and a 'cool' zone that allows food to be cooked via indirect heat. If using a charcoal grill, the best way to create separate zones is to simply put the charcoal only on one side of the grill. For gas grills, only ignite the burners wanted as the hot zone.
'Beef, shrimp, chicken — protein loves high temperature, but only for a minute,' says Florence. 'They like the caramelization.'
But he warns too much time at high temperatures directly over charcoal or gas burners will cause the meat to overcook on its outside before the inside cooks all the way through.
'You want to do this little dance back and forth between the hot side and the cold side. You start with searing on the hot side and getting a little more color, a little more golden delicious color. And then you move it to the cold side,' explains Florence.
In the cool zone, Florence says the grill becomes more like a convection oven, with flowing hot air inside the grill cooking the meat internally at an even rate.
'The hot side is going to give you the color, and the cool side is going to give you the ability to cook it all the way through without flare ups,' Florence says before quickly pivoting.
'Let's talk about flare-ups.'
Florence, chef-owner of San Francisco's Wayfare Tavern and Miller & Lux steakhouse as well as a Miller & Lux location in Hawaii, says meat cuts with high fat ratios like ribeye steaks and smashburgers are extremely popular to grill.
But, he warns, they can cause unwanted flame flare-ups that can quickly ruin your grilling game plan.
When fat renders down at high temperatures, it will drip onto the heat source and cause flare-ups that can burn the exterior of the meat and cause safety issues.
Florence's simple solution: use a cast iron skillet on your grill.
'I like to use cast iron — on top of the grill — as a plancha,' says Florence. A plancha, made popular in Spanish cuisine, is a flat metal plate used to sear meats at a very high temperature.
'I want to put the hot pan over the hot side. I want to make sure the outside [surface of the meat] is dry. I want to season with salt and pepper, a little extra virgin olive oil and then I put it down on the pan to sear,' Florence details.
'And then when the fat collects, it doesn't drip. Also, it gives you something to baste back on top of the meat, which is great.'
While marinades and sauces can enrich the flavors of grilled proteins, Florence warns that adding them before grilling can cause headaches.
'If you're going to make barbecue chicken, don't dip your barbecue chicken in barbecue sauce and then grill it because the sugar in the barbecue sauce will burn before the chicken can cook all the way through.'
He believes patience is key before adding your favorite marinade or sauce.
'Grill the chicken two thirds of the way and then mop or brush on your sauce,' he says. It's in that final third that 'you get that gorgeous mahogany color.'
And lastly …
The sight of perfectly branded grate marks on grilled meat has long been sought by grillers at home and those in steakhouses across the globe.
But Florence says aside from the aesthetics, grill marks are useless.
'F*** grill marks,' proclaims Florence.
He says the pursuit of perfectly seared lines on meat cuts doesn't make the meat taste any better.
Plus, it creates more opportunities for hamburgers, steaks, chicken and fish to stick to the grates and make it hard to scrape off.
Florence reiterates that using a cast-iron skillet will create a more attractive-looking sear and more opportunity to baste the meats with fats and herbs.
And that ups the likelihood that your guests will come back for the next backyard cookout.
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