One of the reasons your personal steak recipes evolve over time is you just get tired of the same recipe over and over. The original may be the best possible steak, but sometimes you just need to mix it up. Pan searing a ribeye is an excellent alternative to a direct grate sear. And for many people, it is their preference; the crust created by a cast iron pan is hard to beat. It also creates the opportunity to add some additional flavor into the dish. For this recipe, I am going to stick with the reverse sear method, utilizing a pellet grill first, and then the Big Green Egg to sear the steak.
Ingredients
Ribeye Steak, around 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches thick
Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder, per steak
1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper, per steak
1 tbsp Killer Hogs Steak Rub, per steak- your favorite steak seasoning will work. I try to use a rub that really brings out the meat flavor, usually not too strong of a rub since we are going to be adding a lot of flavor with butter and herbs later on. Hardcore Carnivore Black is also an excellent choice
Duck Fat spray
2 cloves of Garlic
2-3 sprigs of Thyme
1/4 stick of unsalted butter
Instructions
Allow steak to rest at room temperature for 15-30 minutes
Coat one side of the steak with Worcestershire sauce for flavor and binding. I usually allow 5-10 drops, and then rub into the steak ensuring the entire surface is coated. (I tend to use less Worcestershire for well-marbled, high-end steaks. For less marbled, I will increase the amount of Worcestershire used).
Lightly season with Garlic Powder and Black Pepper
Season with Killer Hogs Steak Rub. Use a good amount to ensure the seasoning is visible across the entire surface of the steak
Pat the rub into the steak
Repeat steps 2-5 on the other side of the steak
Allow steak to rest between 15-20 minutes
This resting period allows the steaks time to react with the rub (usually 15-30 minutes), as well as the opportunity to get the grill going. Additionally, the rub will draw out some moisture from the steak. Since this is a reverse sear, I usually get two grills going:
A Traeger Pellet Grill set at 225°
Big Green Egg Charcoal Grill. Heat until it stabilizes around 450-500°
Any pellet or charcoal grills will work. You do not even need two grills, one grill will work just fine. This method will just require some temperature adjustments in the middle of the cook.
Place the steak on the pellet grill at 225°
Insert a probe into the ribeye. (If grilling more than one steak, I select the thinnest ribeye to ensure the steaks are not over cooked. You can always throw them back on the grill if they are not cooked to your liking. I try to make sure all steaks are even thickness, but if not you can always leave the thicker ribeye on a little longer)
Smoke the ribeye at 225°, until internal temperature reaches 100° (this can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 1 hour)
While waiting you can start on some sides; I recommend grilled asparagus and sautéed mushrooms. Anytime you are doing pan-seared steak on the grill, you can use the same pan to grill some vegetables after you sear the steak. There are excellent flavors that remain in that pan from the butter, garlic, and thyme.
Once the ribeye hits 100°, it is ready to come off the grill (you can wrap it in foil if you need to finish up any sides or prepare the grill for searing. I have left steak in foil for up to 30 minutes with no issues)
Make sure you have a grill going that has stabilized between 450° and 500°
Place a Cast Iron Pan on the grill, directly over the flame
Once the pan has reached temperature, lightly spray the pan with duck fat (grape seed oil works well too, just do not over do it)
Place steaks in pan to sear
Close lid and allow steak to sear for 2-3 minutes, enough time to get a good crust across the entire surface area, but do not go over 3 minutes. If crust does not develop, likely the pan did not get hot enough, or there is too much oil in the pan
Flip the steak over, add butter, garlic cloves (I roughly chop them up), and thyme sprigs. Add everything to the bottom of the pan
Close the lid for about 1 minute to allow butter to melt
After the butter has melted, open the lid. Using a heat-resistant insulated glove, grab the pan handle and swirl around to distribute the butter garlic mixture around the steak
After about another minute, use a spoon to capture some of the butter mixture and pour over the top of the steak. This might require using a heat-resistant glove to tilt the pan
Once the steak has been on this side for 2-3 minutes, remove it from the grill and place some sprigs of thyme onto the top of the steak. Leave the pan on the grill if you want to use it for some vegetables. (Steak should only be seared for 2-3 minutes each side)
Allow steak to rest for 10 minutes before cutting into it
This recipe infuses some great flavor into these ribeyes. The smell from the grilled thyme is evident as soon as its placed on the grill.
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