Take Back the Grill!
Grilling is fun. Why should men have a monopoly on it?
August 15, 2008
By Karen Nitkin
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With food, some matches are made in heaven. We all know that that salty, intense prosciutto pairs well with sweet, juicy honeydew. Assertive caviar shines when combined with mild sour cream. We like crunchy tortilla chips with creamy guacamole.
But men and grilling? That’s one pairing that is going the way of the dinosaur. When Nicole Hein began cooking at Morton’s the Steakhouse in Charlotte, North Carolina, she was the only woman in the kitchen, she said. In culinary school, too, she says, “the men would always take over all the proteins in the class.”
Times are changing. Hein, now food and beverage manager for Morton’s in Baltimore, isn’t about to step back and give men a prime spot at the grill. Neither is Judi DiGioia, sales and marketing manager at the restaurant. Both pride themselves on their ability to handle a slab of meat, and they note that two of the chefs in the Baltimore steakhouse are women. Not bad, considering that Morton’s, with restaurants across the United States and abroad, is touted as the spot for a good steak.
Grilling is fun, Hein and DiGioia say. Why should men have a monopoly on it?
“Don’t be intimidated,” DiGioia says. “Do it. Get next to the heat, the grill, the fire and have some fun.”
The first step, they say, is to purchase the best meat you can afford. Here we’ll talk about steak. “If you start with a good product, you’re head and shoulders ahead of the game,” DiGioia says. “You really do need to look for the higher grades, the prime grade if you can get it.” That means avoiding the prepackaged meats in the refrigerated section of your supermarket and heading for butchers or specialty markets. Sam’s Club can also be a good source if you are willing to buy in bulk, DiGioia says.
Look for steaks with marbling, as the fat will make the meat juicy. Rib eyes, for example, are so flavorful they don’t need anything besides salt and pepper or a seasoning mix like McCormick Grill Mates, says Hein. A leaner cut, like a New York strip, benefits from marinating.
Now, the procedure: Lightly oil your grill rack so the meat doesn’t stick, then preheat the grill until it is really hot — between 600 and 800 degrees — and let it stay at that temperature a half hour or so before cooking. Charcoal and wood grills impart the most flavor, but gas grills work fine too.
When you’ve lit the grill, take the steaks out of the refrigerator and let them warm on the counter, DiGioia advises. “You don’t want them to be too cold when they’re going on the grill because that can cause uneven cooking,” she says.
Place the steaks on the grill and give it a “really nice sear to seal in the juices,” DiGioia says. Then comes the hard part. Leave it alone. Don’t turn it. Don’t press down on it with your spatula. Don’t move it from one spot to another.
Let the steak cook for 5 to 10 minutes, looking at the side to see how it is cooking. When it is about halfway cooked, flip it. Then cook another 5 minutes or so and that’s it. (This is a rule of thumb; adjust depending on the thickness of the cut.)
Never cut a steak to test for doneness, as that lets out the juice. You can tell if a piece of meat is cooked to your specifications by touching it. Use yourself as a gauge: Make a fist and touch the back of it with your other hand — that’s the feeling of a well-done piece of meat. The softer flesh between your thumb and forefinger mimics the texture of a rare steak.
Once the steak comes off the grill, let it rest for a few minutes before cutting it. Then enjoy!
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