Grill marks, lightish brown, mahogany, dark almost burnt, how do you like the surface of your steaks?

Noticed in steak porn there is a huge variation in the surfaces.

Personally I like it very dark almost black.slightly crisp.

Black lines matter.

Apart from aesthetics (c-hatch grill marks), if you want some sort of maillard crust (which I think most do), I believe the goal should be as close to burned as possible without being burned, so dark brown. I know some folks love black & blue, but apart from possible negative health concerns, imparts bitterness.

Dark brown for me as well. I used to go for grill marks (and got a cast iron griddle for the stove to get them) but after various studies on maillard flavors came out I stopped.

Seared to perfection of course. I’m guessing many home cooks do not possess the proper tools or knowledge to get the steak house sear which is why you see the classic gray steak with grill marks.

I agree with all of this. I used to go for pretty cross hatched grill marks when I grilled steaks until it sunk in that all of the lighter parts represented lost opportunities for more flavor. That was reinforced by Kenji’s articles on how more frequent flipping allows a faster and more even cook. Now when I grill I flip and rotate the steaks frequently so while I start with cross hatched marks, I fill in the gaps with additional turns.

Totes. And Totes. 100% co-sign.

It kind of depends on the cut - skirt steak can stand more cooking and blackening than some others IMO.

But whatever the cut, screw grill marks.

I can’t why anyone would care about grill marks. To get them you have to cook your steak wrong. The marks have nothing to do with cooking and everything to do with putting a picture on Instagram. Steven Raichlen has been on several TV shows and he bills himself as a grill guru and is obsessed with grill marks, which is why I turn him off as soon as he comes on. If they’re so important, why not get the entire surface covered?

Keep flipping the steak and make sure that every part of the surface gets some crisp brown/black marks. Cook it evenly, or in my wife’s case, get one part of it cooked more than the other part. But any way you do it, the cooking and the taste of the steak is more important than the design of the surface.

I like a nice whole surface crust covering the entire thing than grill marks. Blazing hot cast iron plate on the Weber and 1 chunk of smoke wood. I’ve had good results reverse sear to about 125, rest for 1/2 to 1 hour to stop the cook, and then sear and rest again.

Fuck grill marks.

Lennox Hastie nails it in the Netflix Chef’s Table: BBQ - “grill marks are a sign that you don’t know how to cook a steak.” Agree 100% with above steaks re: Maillard reaction and getting a solid crust on your steak. I get that opinions are like a$$holes - everybody has one, but I’ll go to the mat on this one. I can’t take the SCA seriously precisely because of their obsession with cross-hatched grilled lines.

I didn’t realize that the Society for Creative Anachronism had taken a position on grill marks, but I second your disagreement with any organization that endorses cross hatch grill marks. Even worse than a cross hatch is a single set of grill marks per side, which makes me wonder why the cook didn’t just boil or steam the steak.

And furthermore, waving my finger in the air

I get fired up on this one Can’t encourage people enough to watch the Lennox Hastie episode on Netflix.

Acronym?

@Linda - https://www.steakcookoffs.com/

Broken record here: maillardy crust deliciousness. Call me Mr. MCD! (wait…to close to McDonalds…)

Watched this!
I have a wood fired grill so this will give me a little inspiration to get more fired up!
Thanks

That was exactly my reaction

We get our BGE REALLY hot! Actually hit 1100 degrees once. Hard sear on both sides, then cool off BGE and cook to temp. They’re perfect!

V dark almost black on the outside, red inside (but not bloody), assuming meat top quality; if average quality maybe a shade warmer inside.

with good quality meat I usually baste it with duck fat (or pork fat) and build up a nice dark crust over very high heat.