Flannery wagyu rib cap going down tonight......but

Oh, the humanity, I rubbed it with salt and Dizzy Dust AND it’s being cooked on the Big Green Egg. Blashpemy!! No pics, sorry. Will report back on the results though. May do a Blackberry pic. 03 Almaviva and an unknown Mouton (friend’s) to accompany.

Neither the Dizzy Dust nor the smoke was too much for the Cap. So rich and full of flavor. An amazing cut of beef, and dare I say a decent value given the price Bryan was selling these for at the time. The Mouton was 85. [basic-smile.gif]

Nice.

Had the Almaviva a week or so ago, and I thought it was outstanding.

Good to hear. I have 3 or 4 in the cellar.

To the grilling experts out there: drove up to Corte Madera yesterday so I could treat my in-laws to the best steak they ever had. Bought some nice rib-eye cut by the master, BF. Got my gas grill ready to go, put the steaks on and left for two minutes with the top down. I came back to see a conflagration to end all conflagrations. Needless to say, I barely grilled the other side a few seconds before taking them off the grill. End result: the steaks were overdone in the flash of an eye, and a few had way too much carbon deposits. It is hard to ruin a Flannery steak, so they in-laws still loved them. But they were not ideal. Bigtime fail in my book.

My grill is not spic and span, but it is not that dirty either, and does not usually flare up like this. The fat on the Flannery steaks is clearly a contributing factor. My question is, what is the best way to avoid this kind of flare up? Do I need to use charcoal for this kind of meat? Any info on the Kamado being sold at Costco? Thanks for your help, great legends of the grill!

Keep the lid up?

Or…less time in the grill with the lid down. I used Bill’s suggestion once with a gas grill and also had too much flare up so instead of leaving it in for 3 minutes each side, I did 2 and it worked.

The big mistake was leaving the grill. I also had like 8 steaks, so they whole grill was covered. I should have cooked 4 at a time so I could have a “fire free” area. These Flannery steaks clearly need more expertise and care than I provided!

You pulled a Manlin. The difference is that he cuts his steaks extra thick and chars the crap out of them so there is a rare center–Pittsburgh style. I prefer something done mroe slowly with less carbon. Justin Wells does a wonderful job over medium in a cast iron just draining off fat. Amazing crust on his steaks.

That is the nice thing about BF’s beef – you can make a mistake and cook it beyond medium rare and it still tastes good to beef connoisseurs and fantastic to most other people.

It is tough to ruin a Flannery, but I came close! Maybe an iron skillet type thing would avoid the carbonization. Or maybe I should go with charcoal when I fire up a Flannery? I have no problems with Costco ribeyes on my gas grill…

It is tough to ruin a Flannery, but I came close! Maybe an iron skillet type thing would avoid the carbonization. Or maybe I should go with charcoal when I fire up a Flannery? I have no problems with Costco ribeyes on my gas grill…

Some thoughts:

  1. Being dry aged, Flannery as well as Lobel’s, have inherently less moisture and are prone to flare ups.
  2. Being USDA Prime, there is more intramuscular fat which is most definitely prone to flare ups.
  3. Rib-Eyes have quite a bit of fat surrounding the steak and will contribute to flare ups once it starts to melt.
  4. Keeping the lid on limits oxygen and helps to reduce flames. Keeping it off will only introduce more O2 and keep the flames going.
  5. For steaks (rib-eye, strips and porterhouse) I like to use charcoal exclusively. For rib caps, hangers, flank or skirts, gas or charcoal. My reason is this: gas is always producing a “flame” and charcoal once glowing is emitting heat without a dedicated flame…if you follow my logic. Once the coals are hot, the grill is hot and the grate is hot, you can cook with minimal flare ups…at least for me.
  6. Creating a two zone fire is a must for rib-eyes…searing and then a cooler area for finishing or a rescue pad if a flare up occurs.
  7. Always choose a thicker vs. thinner cut as it will give you more wiggle room if problems ensure from whatever reason.

Hope some of this helps.

The great man speaketh. [worship.gif]

As I suspected, it is charcoal for the win. I will try the two-zone approach next time with my gas grill. If no luck, then I will have to go out and buy a charcoal grill…

Thanks for all your suggestions, gang!

Your problems are my problems.

Someday I hope to see the master at work in person.

This is just me but 90 % of the time, my grill is used just for searing and marking the meat and then it is always finished in the oven. It’s much easier to control the heat and get exactly the ‘doneness’ you are looking for.

to echo Rob, because of the high fat content, there are always flareups and you have to stay at the grill watching and moving the meat as needed. I’ve come round to starting on the grill to get a char and a little crust–but not too much–and finishing in a 400 degree oven where I can use a meat thermometer to pull at the correct time. Then I don’t end up with the black exterior that I personally don’t like. Did the Flannery lamb saddle yesterday, some ribeyes today. As for the Wagyu ribcap, it’s quite good, but the more expensive Brandt Family blows it away if price is no object.

alan

The meat thermometer… Greatest aid to ANY chef.

I always determine the doneness by picking-up the steak with a tongs and seeing how floppy the meat is (relative to how floppy it was before cooking): very floppy = rare; floppy = medium rare; somewhat floppy, but starting to hold = medium; not floppy, a little give, but not much = ruined steak (medium-well), but perhaps salvageable depending on the dish; not floppy at all, rigid = ruined steak, proceed straight to trash can.

The floppy steak test? hmm… considering how much I spend on steak, I’ll stick with my thermometer.