I can't believe I'm going to give away my Ribeye secrets, but everyone wants to know how they turn out the way they do. Each step of the process has been years of trial and error and experience to lead to this process. I only make steaks one way, that's PERFECT. Ha. Of course, once you've mastered perfect (a nice medium-rare) you can gauge from there on cooking time to complete anywhere on the Rare to Well Done range. More to come on that later.
Buy the meat: Whether you like bone-in or boneless Ribeyes, give the meat the respect it deserves and don't buy cheap unless it's on sale (just about every Holiday and Superbowl there's a sale at most grocery stores on Ribeyes...sometimes 1/3 of normal price). l look for pre-cut Ribeyes first in the refrigerated section. These are the ones in the styrofoam trays that come 4 or 5 to a pack and already have been wrapped and priced. These are bulk buys and will be less expensive than what the butcher can cut for you. The FIRST thing I look for, and the MOST IMPORTANT is the thickness. When dudes tell me, "I got inch and a half thick Ribeyes, baby!" I generally question their grilling skills. This is too thick, don't do this. First, it is difficult to cook hot and fast and get it exactly like you want it. Second, the last time I checked, the thickness doesn't affect the taste at all...so why all the excitement? SIDE NOTE - often times these are the same guys that will marinate a steak in beer. Don't do this either. I've experimented w a beer marinade and evolved...you can too). I look for a cut that is 3/4" to 1" max thickness. If I'm lucky and find that thickness in the refrigerated section, I then look for marbling on the meat. These are Ribeyes, so they will taste great with marbling. If you see a lot of red meat and minimal marbling you are probably buying sirloin. Try to get as much marbling as you can without the thick bands of fat. If you can't find any in that general section, go to the butcher and tell them exactly what you want. Have them cut it for you if needed because often times they will have the Inch and a half cut displayed for those same dudes that like bragging about how thick their meat is ....Remember 3/4" - 1" max thickness is the perfect cut. SIDE NOTE - NEVER buy thin cut anything; and if the meat looks old and brown, pass it on by.
Prep the meat: Very Simple. At room temperature, position your steaks on a cookie sheet and add about a half-dollar sized pour of Olive Oil on each steak...you don't want to soak the cookie sheet, but you want just enough to coat the steaks lightly. Rub the olive oil to cover the entire steak. Apply a generous amount of HellYeah! Original Mix or Diablo Mix on the top. Don't skimp, be generous. Turn the steaks over and repeat - light covering of olive oil spread across the top and generous amounts of HellYeah! Let those steaks sit while you go get the grill ready (NO...you don't need to marinate, just let the HellYeah! do the work).
Prep the grill: First thing's First...set your music. Anything that you enjoy listening to while outdoors will work (I usually start with Chris Stapleton's Traveller Album - Tennessee Whiskey, Outlaw State of Mind and Fire Away are perfect). I use lump charcoal and chimneys with newspaper in the cage for fuel. You don't need lighter fluid with Lump...just light the newspaper and it catches fast and minimally. I don't use any sort of lighter fluid as I've found that can give meat a gas taste (yuk). Lump Charcoal is the way to go because the briquettes have a binding ingredient that gives them a gas taste as well. Lump is natural, it's burned wood that was flashed before is could burn down to ashes. I even make my own lump from my own pear trees in my firepit to add authentic local in there. Lump gets burning quicker and burns hotter - you will need this as cooking perfectly is about how long you cook the meat. Once the lump is burning I spread it and the grates need to be placed 3 to 4 inches off the coals for those with adjustable grills. Let those grates heat up for about 5 minutes and do a twice over with a scrub brush. Nothing too drastic or too clean, just to knock the char off. Apply a coat of spray Olive Oil or Cooking Oil to make your grates non-stick. Another 3 or 4 minutes and you are ready for the meat. If you measure in beer time, this whole process should take you about 3 beers from getting the music ready to getting the meat ready to go on.
Cook the Meat: Put your steaks on the grill over the heat and start your timer. I cook them 4 min 10 seconds and then flip them over. I reset the timer and cook them another 4 min 10 seconds. Trust the time. After that second 4:10 min..take them off the grill but place them on your cookie sheet hot side up (the side that just came off the grill). Never cut them on the grill...trust the time. Take them inside and set them down on your counter and put a pad of REAL SALTED SWEET CREAM BUTTER on each steak and cover them up with a foil tent. You can use garlic butter if you prefer. If you like blue cheese, sprinkle some crumbles on there at this time as well. Again, cover all with a foil tent. Let this sit for about 6 or 7 min until the butter melts and it is time to serve. Try the following times for cooking preference (disclaimer: I cook medium rare so the other times are my best guesses baselined off medium rare times).
Rare: 3:40 minutes per side (this is really rare).
Medium Rare: 4:10 minutes per side (perfect)
Medium: 4:40 minutes per side
Medium Well: 5:00 minutes per side
Well Done: 5:30 minutes per side
Side dish: There is rarely an occasion when I'm making Ribeyes that I dont cook some sort of sausage link or brat to go along with it. Jalepeno Cheese Sausage, Beer Brat, Hill Country Smoked Sausage, even Earl Campbells Hotlinks. Throw some of these on the grill when you start your steaks and they will take longer to cook but will give you time to let the steaks rest with the butter before you take them off the grill. When you take the sausage off the grill, you can put them all in a dish and add butter to those too if you like. Any way you want to eat them is great.
Tortillas: Lastly, I always heat tortillas up on my dying coals. I've got a tortilla warmer to put them in and it gives me a last chance to finish up another beer or beverage by the fire. Tortillas are very communicative, they show you when they are ready. Put them on the grill and they will puff up just a bit, that's when you flip them over (use tongs). Once they puff up again, they are ready to be put in the tortilla warmer and brought inside. Don't cook them too long because they will get stiff . I usually wrap those brats in a tortilla and put some spicy mustard on it and it's done. If you like an authentic brat, throw some sauerkraut and mustard on there.
Trust me. This is the Perfect Ribeye process. The HellYeah! is the secret weapon. This spice blend came from years of trial and error and making batches for my friends once I finally perfected the blend. The other things, such as the meat, lump, chimneys, timing, butter, sausages, tortillas, I am just as passionate about as I am our HellYeah! mixes. Try it out. Hero-Style. And enjoy that Chris Stapleton!