I’m a 35+ year Kettle user and in that time I have tried just about every technique out there. Personally I think forward searing steaks (and most everything else) is the way to go.
I start over a blazing hot zone (600f +) flipping very frequently, whenever I see sizzle starting on the underside edges. The movement builds an even, rich caramelized crust without burning. Once the color and texture are where I want them, I move the steak to a covered cool zone to finish gently if it needs a few more degrees.
The result is a deep, rich crust and properly rendered fat with no bitterness or acrid edges. I often see people trying to finish reverse-seared steaks over direct flame to force a crust, and that’s where things go wrong. Fat flares, the surface scorches, and what should be Maillard flavor turns into burnt carbon. In my opinion, you never get the same depth of caramelization from reverse sear anyway, the flavor just isn’t as rich or developed.
With forward sear, you build that flavor from the start and stay in control of the heat the whole way through.
by vaguelysticky
4 Comments
Ok but what about turning the inside of my steak grey? The main reason I reverse sear is because i get a nice crust with almost wall-to-wall pink inside. I have not been able to master that with a normal sear.
AFAIK, the reverse sear was developed 20ish years ago for a cast iron pan on a stove. Introducing fire brings in a lot of variables that weren’t accounted for.
either the steak is thick enough to prioritize and handle long periods of time on direct heat to make the crust, or it’s too thin for reverse sear anyways.
That being said, if you are smoking a steak then you have to reverse sear. But if I was cooking with charcoal, I wouldn’t bother smoking a steak.
I like to fwd sear just bc it gets done faster eliminating some steps. Results are great. But if I’m cooking a big cut for a crowd, I usually take the time and reverse sear. The reverse sear on a big cut very reliably gets me that edge to edge doneness with no grey band.