How To: Manage Your Meat With A Grilling Timetable
There was frost on my car this morning, the hen has been hackling me to turn on the heat (I’m comfy at 60, she’d have the thermostat set at 90 in August), and The Jack has come and gone which can mean only one thing – my smoker is inevitably being replaced by my grill. While I will always keep my passion for BBQ alive all year long, it’s during the colder months that I typically focus more on grilling. The simple truth is that I find it easier to combat the cold weather with hotter fires and shorter cooks, which means there’s no better time to fire up your charcoal grill than in the coming months. Whether it’s brauts and burgers for a tailgate or a beef tenderloin for Sunday dinner, grilled foods are NOT just for summers alone. In fact, the fall/winter is a great time to hone your skills by trying out new recipes, testing new cooking methods, and mastering the doneness of the foods you are cooking. As you embrace the cold, the grilling timetable will be a priceless tool.
Before you refer to the chart below as gospel, keep these tips in mind:
- Smaller/thinner cuts of meat like beef and lamb are best cooked over a medium hot fire, around 400 degrees (Fahrenheit). Larger/thicker cuts of meat like chicken, turkey, duck and pork are best cooked over a medium fire, around 350 degrees.
- If you need it, the best instant read thermometer out there is a Thermapen.
- Always remember there can be hot and cold spots on your grill, especially when dealing with charcoal and indirect fires. Use this to your advantage when you want to sear steaks over 500+ degree coals and then finish them indirectly over 350 degree heat.
- Even after you take your food off the grill it will continue to cook, sometimes as much as 5 degrees, which can take your steak from medium to well done. ALWAYS take this into consideration when you grill. I’ll pull my flank steak with an internal temperature of 135 degrees, and then wrap and foil it so the juices are absorbed back into the meat. After letting it rest for about 10 minutes I’ll be able to serve the meat at a perfect medium doneness.
|
What’s Cookin’ |
Size |
Approximate Time |
You Know It’s Done When… |
| Burgers |
½ to ¾ inches thick |
7-9min (rare) 10-14min (medium) |
The internal temp reaches 130 degrees rare, 145-155 degrees medium |
| Beef Steak or Beef Tenderloin |
1 inch thick |
10-12min (rare) 12-14min (medium) |
The internal temp reaches 130 degrees rare, 145 to 155 degrees medium, 160 degrees well done |
| Lamb Chops |
1 inch thick |
10-12min (rare) 12-14min (medium) 14-16min (well done) |
The internal temp reaches 135 degrees rare…it’s the only way to eat it |
| Pork Loin or rib chops |
1 inch thick |
30-40min (medium) 40-50min (well done) |
The internal temp reaches 145 to 150 degrees medium |
| Pork Steak or Blade |
1 inch thick |
30-40min (medium) 40-50min (well done) |
The internal temp reaches 145 to 150 degrees medium |
| Pork Tenderloin |
2 inches thick |
20-30min (medium) 30-40min (well done) |
The internal temp reaches 145 to 150 degrees medium |
| Pork Ribs |
1 ¾-3 ¾ lbs |
3-5 hours (perfection) |
The meat pulls from the bone about 1/2 inch and there is a nice bend to your rack |
| Veal Chops |
1 inch thick |
8-10min (medium) |
The internal temp reaches 155 to 160 degrees medium, 160 degrees well done |
| Pork Sausage |
1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches in diameter |
10-12min |
The internal temp reaches 145 degrees |
| Chicken Breast |
5-8 oz |
16-20min |
The internal temp reaches 165 degrees |
| Chicken Legs/Thighs |
5-8 oz |
30min |
The internal temp reaches 165 degrees |
| Duck Breast |
3-5 oz |
6-10min (medium rare) 10-12min (medium) 12-14min (well done) |
The internal temp reaches 135 to 140 degrees rare, 145 to 155 degrees medium |
| Fish Fillet |
5-8 oz |
10min per inch of thickness |
The fish begins to flake |
| Turkey Breast |
6-10 lbs |
10-15min per pound |
The internal temp reaches 165 degrees – or when that little nipple pops up |
Not quite ready to make the move from BBQ to Grilling this season? Check out How To: Manage Your Meat With A Smoking Timetable
Be A Man.
-The Founding Father
