You have days you long to grill steak, but when you open your fridge, you get disappointed to find it completely frozen.
Reason?
You bought more meat than enough and decided to keep it for later. Of course, it was inevitable, but what should you do now? Throw the meat away or defrost it?
The reality is it’s possible to grill frozen steak if you do it the right way. But the sad part is you’ll have to tweak your cooking, and your meat might take longer than usual to cook.
The good thing is, you might even get a better taste than if you cooked meat that isn’t frozen. Now that your meat will take more hours to cook evenly. Experts add that the frozen meat’s low temperature ensures that the meat’s interior doesn’t overheat while cooking.
So, in this guide, we will walk you through the process of grilling a frozen steak but first let’s look at the advantages of grilling frozen steak.
The first benefit of grilling frozen meat is that it’s time-saving. You won’t have to wait for your meat to thaw. Instead, you’ll put it in your grill for some hours to defrost and kick off cooking to enjoy your meal.
Experts add that the steak thaws faster than the ordinary cooking methods and both the interior and exterior parts will cook properly.
Another great thing with grilling frozen meat is that the meat retains its original flavor. And you might even get lucky to get a
juicy flavor.
Trusted Source
How to Best Cook a Frozen Steak - ABC News
Defrosting meat has long been the first step after taking it from the freezer, but a food scientist at Cook’s Illustrated has found a better way.
Not only can you cook a frozen steak without thawing it, but it tastes better that way, according to the food magazine.
abcnews.go.com
However, we noted that the meat tends to lose some portion of its moisture, say
17%.
Trusted Source
Spur-of-the-Moment Grilled Steak - Cook's Illustrated
Irecently watched in disbelief as a fellow test cook took a rock-hard steak from the freezer and clunked it into a screaming-hot skillet. I’m all for questioning conventional wisdom, but really—could this possibly end well?
www.cooksillustrated.com
If you want to grill your frozen meat well, you’ll need some hacks and, in this section, we’ll guide you through them.
Use indirect heat
The first thing you should do when it comes to grilling any frozen meat whether it’s pork, chicken or beef is to use indirect heat sources, commonly referred to as the two-zone cooking method.
It involves arranging your grill’s coal such that you have a cool and hot size on different ends.
If you have a gas grill, blast off one burner and leave the other one to burn slowly. The hot side comes in handy for getting good sear marks on your meat while the cooler side allows the indirect heat to raise your meat’s temperature.
Also, experts feel that the direct heat source should be around 500 to 700 Fahrenheit. And you should keep the indirect side between 300 to 350 Fahrenheit.
Frozen takes a lot more time to cook than thawed meat. And that’s why it’s essential to use thick steaks for the interior and exterior to cook well.
Ideally, your steak should be around 1 to 2 inches thick for the best results. Unlike thick steak, thin ones will eventually slow down your cooking rate.
You don’t want your steak to burn or overcook, and that’s why it’s essential to track the temperature with a good thermometer like the Weber iGrill Thermometer that measures -22°F (-30°C) to 572°F (300°C). It has lots of features like presetting and monitoring temperatures.
Remember, the medium and medium-rare have a 10 Fahrenheit degrees difference to be vigilant while cooking. The steak’s temperature should be 5-7 Fahrenheit below your target temperature.
Though seasoning does not have a great impact on your frozen meat, it can help to improve the taste of your frozen meat. We recommend seasoning your meat 24 hours before cooking.
It’s easy to grill frozen steak with the right instructions and tools like the Cuisinart Deluxe Grill Set that features up to 20 grilling tools including grill tongs, digital temperature fork, cleaning brush and many more.
With the right tools, you’ll deal with menaces like the grey interior: the cost we often pay to get a well-charred crust. With little to no grey banding, you’ll enjoy eating a tender and juicy steak.
Let’s look at the process of cooking frozen steak:
The preparation face is equally important as grilling your steak, and that’s why you should get everything you need.
Here is the must-have stuff:
– At least 1-inch of frozen steak
– Kosher salt.
– Pepper
To make this part a success, your meat should be properly frozen. Put it on a flat surface preferably a sheet prior to placing it in your refrigerator. This ensures that your meat will sear properly when it comes into contact with your grill gate.
You can leave your steak to thaw for a while so that its moisture evaporates. It will remain dry for good sear marks.
Like we mentioned before, you can either use a gas or charcoal grill.
To recap, set either using the two-zone setup. You should fire up one end and leave the other on low heat conditions.
Here are the steps:
– If you own a charcoal grill, let it heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Five minutes is enough to heat up your gas grill.
– With a good grill gate brush, clean up your grill gate before placing any meat on it
– Next, start searing your 1-inch frozen meat. Leave it to sit on the grill for a maximum of 7 minutes over the direct heat for the parts to get good sears. While you do so, ensure the temperature does not exceed 90 degrees Fahrenheit. You’ll notice some crisp, brown crust forming on your meat.
– After your steak attains at most 90 degrees Fahrenheit, shift its position to the indirect heat side. Ensure the steak is at a reasonable distance away from the main burners, say 15 to 20 cm.
– Next, start seasoning your steak. We prefer you use both salt and pepper for the best results.
– Let your meat stay on the cooler side for the interior section to cook up well. You should use a best meat thermometer to get your desired doneness level. Depending on your grilling needs, you can choose 125 degrees Fahrenheit to get a final medium-rare doneness temperature of around 54 degrees Celsius.
You can now enjoy eating your steak.
Cooking frozen meat can seem simple, but you should be aware of some safety precautions:
– Never cook your frozen meat in a crockpot or slow cooker. But the good thing is, in this case, we will be using a grill. If you use the duo we’ve mentioned, you will contaminate your food through the toxic bacteria arising from cooking your food at low temperatures.
– If you prefer to thaw your meat, it’s best to leave it in the refrigerator. It takes around 24 hours to thaw.
– Never defrost your meat by leaving it at room temperature for more than two hours. The bacteria can invade your meat in this case too.
It’s possible to grill frozen meat. Now that you know the process, you won’t have to worry about grilling the ones you’ll store in your refrigerator.
The process is simple, but be careful enough and pay attention to the temperatures you use.
Also, remember that the most vital step when grilling frozen steak is to use a two-zone. It ensures that the interior and exterior sections of your meat cook evenly.
Also, take note of the tools we’ve mentioned above. They will come in handy for streamlining the grilling process.
The only major problem with grilling frozen meat is you may have to wait a little longer for your food to cook properly.
Overall, ensure you also follow the safety guidelines we’ve mentioned so that you don’t contaminate your food.
