Lessons from a Steak Snob…
I love a good Reverse Sear Ribeye Steak. Who doesn’t? And, let’s face it, after competing at a few Steak Cook Off Association competitions AND getting my SCA judging certificate, I feel like I know how to cook and judge a good steak. Because of this, I’m pretty ruined from eating steak out at a restaurant.
Paying high prices for a steak that I could cook better myself at home for half the price seems just plain silly for me. That’s why taking me to a nice steakhouse is a waste because we know I can cook a better steak—just take me out for chicken wings and beer instead! Ha!
We know I’m a certified steak snob, but the other part of enjoying a good steak is knowing where your steak comes from and how it was treated. Remember the old adage, “You are what you eat?” Well, it turns out, you are what you eat, eats. So, if you are eating the average steak from the grocery store, you most likely have no idea what that cow was eating and how it was treated. And, the research shows that you should be concerned about what they are eating.
According to the Organic Consumers Association, the average factory farm raised cow eats:
- An unhealthy amount of grains (which cows are not meant to eat because they are meant to eat grass, this then causes liver abscesses which then creates the need for, you guessed it, antibiotics!)
- Drugs and chemicals
- Plastics
- Manure and other animal waste
- Other animal body parts, diseased animals, and other cows. GROSS!
Have You Ever Questioned Where Your Steak Comes from and What is Was Fed?
So, would you eat that? And, let’s just talk about if a farm is willing to feed their animals those products, how are they treating their animals Sorry to gross you guys out, but it is important to know where your food comes from and how those animals were treated before they ultimately made it to your plate. And for this, I am super thankful that I discovered Moink Box.
Have you heard of Moink Box? They are a meat subscription box that works with small family farmers who ethically raise and harvest their animals that are only fed real food and no junk ingredients or antibiotics—no franken food like at the factory farms. Each box is fully customizable and comes with a ton of great recipe ideas, not to mention a TON of meat—you definitely get your money’s worth! But the best part is that you can feel GOOD about what’s in the box knowing that every farm goes through a verification process to be part of the Moink Box family, a group of “Tender Hearted Carnivores” as they like to call themselves.
As a “tender-hearted carnivore” myself, this makes a huge difference to me! If you want to give Moink Box a try, visit moinkbox.com/grillgirl to get a free ground beef for a year with your subscription! Now that’s an epic deal!
Okay, so back to the Ribeye – Why the Reverse Sear Ribeye Steak?
If you haven’t learned about the reverse sear method for steaks, well then you are long overdue. Just like a good steakhouse steak, they first sear the steak to get a nice crust on the outside and then let it continue to cook in the oven until it has reached the desired internal temperature. Essentially, when cooking your steak, you want to sear the outside on a really hot grill, and then finish on the indirect side. This simulates how they do it in a steakhouse and also why you can also cook a great steak in cast iron—it’s all about the sear and finish on indirect/ambient heat.
Setting Up Direct and Indirect Grilling Zones
Let’s get back to grilling basics for a second where I teach you how to set up direct and indirect zones on the grill in my Grill School Series. You can set up a direct and indirect zone on any grill, including a gas grill. For a gas grill, you want two burners on (temp 500) and two off or very low, for example. On a charcoal grill, to create direct and indirect zones, you move the coals to one side. And for a pellet smoker, you will crank the heat up, and then turn it down to a lower temp.
The second part of this epic Reverse Sear Ribeye Steak Recipe is the Cowboy Butter
Back to the steak competitions. I never ate butter with steak before I got into the steak circuit. And on the steak circuit, you finish the steak with melted butter. Period.
And so, after that, steak and butter just seemed to go hand in hand. For this recipe, we are making a Cowboy Compound Butter that you will want to slather on EVERYTHING in your house. Essentially, this is a garlic herb butter brightened with citrus that really complements the seared ribeye. You put this on at the end and you get a perfectly cooked bite with the herbaceous Cowboy Butter and well, you might be in steak heaven. Watch the video, I even wore my cowgirl boots for this recipe!
Grilling Steaks- It’s all about the Internal Temperature
Lastly, I can’t stress this enough, if you don’t have a proper thermometer for steaks then do yourself a favor and get one. This is going to save your butt on everything in your kitchen and allow you to cook your steak to the exact desired doneness you want. The key to getting the perfect internal steak temperature is to remove the steak at 8 to 10 degrees less than your desired temp because it will continue to cook when you pull it off.
So, if you want a perfectly medium steak, pull it at 125 degrees because it will be at 135 degrees by the time you tent it under foil and let it rest for 10 minutes. My advice for a steak is to always err on the side of undercooking a steak versus overcooking because you can always put the steak back on the grill, but you can’t fix an overcooked steak!
Note: this recipe was developed in partnership with Moinkbox.com. I only work with brands I use, trust and recommend to you, my readers!
Reverse Sear Ribeyes with Cowboy Butter
- Yield: Serves 2
Description
The Perfect Reverse Seared Ribeye from your Moinkbox paired with an extremely addictive Cowboy Compound Butter.
Ingredients
- 2 boneless or bone-in ribeye steaks (mine were sourced from moinkbox.com—hooray for ethically sourced meat!)
- 1 tbsp. olive oil, for rubbing the steaks
- 2 tsp. smoked sea salt
- 1 tbsp. freshly ground pepper
Cowboy Butter
- 8 oz. (2 sticks) organic butter, unsalted
- 1 tsp. smoked sea salt
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small shallot, minced
- Zest from 1 lemon
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 tbsp. fresh chives, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp. thyme, stems removed
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
Instructions
- Let butter come to room temperature. Combine all ingredients with a stick blender or a food processor. Roll butter onto a large piece of plastic wrap forming a log. Roll the plastic wrap up into a log and twist on the ends. Store in the refrigerator until it is time to use.
- Preheat your grill to 500 degrees, setting up a direct and indirect zone. See notes above on how to do this.
- Oil your grill grates with a high heat oil, like avocado oil. Once the grill has reached a temp of 500 degrees, put the steaks on for a quick sear of 1 to 2 minutes per side (for thin steaks, this will only be 1 minute; you don’t want to overcook yours steaks).
- Repeat on the other side. Put the steak on the indirect side and let continue to cook on indirect/ambient heat until the internal temp has reached your desired internal temp (remember to use an internal read thermometer so you don’t overcook your steak!). For medium rare, pull at 125 degrees.
- Tent the steaks under foil for 10 minutes so the juices have time to redistribute. Serve with a large pat of the compound butter. Be prepared for steak ecstasy and feel good about your steak being ethically sourced!
Want more steak recipes? Check out these posts:
