NY strip. . .first attempt at smoking a steak

[SmokinSusie-Q]

My husband insisted I try smoking a steak so I'm giving it a try tonight.  I'm smoking a 1 3/4 inch thick strip that has been previously frozen.  I'm trying a box temp. of 190 and internal temp. of 105 since we are trying for rare.  Then reverse searing on the grill.  I only have a 2 1/2 oz. hickory so hopefully that will be OK.  I'll let you know how this turns out.

• Tweet
• 

[swthorpe]

I have done smoked steaks and shrimp a few times and the smoke taste on the steak is wonderful!  I hope yours turned out as well.

[JackT]

My husband insisted I try smoking a steak so I'm giving it a try tonight.  I'm smoking a 1 3/4 inch thick strip that has been previously frozen.  I'm trying a box temp. of 190 and internal temp. of 105 since we are trying for rare.  Then reverse searing on the grill.  I only have a 2 1/2 oz. hickory so hopefully that will be OK.  I'll let you know how this turns out.

While I know that many love their steak rare, at 105 there's still a lot of moo in that cow:)

[40 caliber]

I do this with Rib Eyes and have done it at least 5 times. it is Awesome!! I use Hickory as well.
I pull from the smoker at internal  temp at 124 I then sear it  and end up at 130 or less. I do use a thick cut of steak. they are 1lb cuts.  I get a warm red center with little or no pink at 128-130. the chart below says rare is 130-135. 105 seems low to pull it,  but each to his own.

since I assume I am close to internal temp, I only sear it long enough on each side to get the grill marks on the steak on each side. 1 minute to 2 minutes a side

either way, it has an excellent campfire taste and comes out of the smoker a little  jiggly. it ends up being an additionally tender steak.  Although I like it smoked, there is also a place for grilled. both are great in their own way!

Good luck and let us see how it comes out!


https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=internal+temperature+of+steak+rare

[SmokinSusie-Q]

My NY strip results were wonderful with one exception. . .there was very little smoke flavor.  The total smoking time at 105 was 45 min.  I reverse seared it for a total of 6 min. on the grill. It was med. rare instead of rare as the pictures show (if I can find them).  Would I get more hickory flavor if I let it smoke for some period of time before adding the steak?  Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[SmokinSusie-Q]

My NY strip results were wonderful with one exception. . .there was very little smoke flavor.  The total smoking time at 105 was 45 min.  I reverse seared it for a total of 6 min. on the grill. It was med. rare instead of rare as the pictures show (if I can find them).  Would I get more hickory flavor if I let it smoke for some period of time before adding the steak?  Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Just located pictures of my NY strip.

[BedouinBob]

Nice looking meal Sue! Next time just add more wood and I'll bet you will be pleased with the outcome.

[swthorpe]

My steaks are typically on the smoker for 45 minutes, but I use either oak or mesquite (about 3 oz) and they come off with more than enough smoke.   I am surprised that you did not get enough smoke with 2.5 oz of hickory.

[SmokinSusie-Q]

Nice looking meal Sue! Next time just add more wood and I'll bet you will be pleased with the outcome.

When I looked at the hickory Sun. when I cleaned the smoker, it was barely charred.  I'd guess 80% of it looked untouched...all in one piece, no ashes.  I plan to actually reuse it.  Do I need more wood or maybe smaller pieces?  I obviously need to do something different.

[NDKoze]

You may want to run a dry test with several chunks of wood evenly spaced from the front to the back of your smoke box. Run at you normal smoking temp for 4-6 hours or so.

This will tell you where your hot spots are. I know my #3 has a hot spot at the back of my smoke box whereas others is toward the front.

This will help you evenly space your chunks for your next smoke. I typically space some of my chunks in the hot spot and others in the middle. This way I get good smoke early and extended smoke later.

If my chunks are really large I typically split them into 1.0-1.5 ounce pieces.

[DivotMaker]

Susie, when you smoke at low temp, like that, you may want to use chips, or (as I do), sliver your chunks.  I usually split a chunk into about 1/4" slivers, which smoke faster and you get it all. 

Something not normally recommended, that you can try (for a "special case," like steaks), is to pre-heat the smoker and get the smoke rolling before adding the steaks.  You will save a lot of warm-up time, since you're only smoking for around 45 minutes.  For a short, low-temp smoke like steaks, it actually may be your best option.

[SmokinSusie-Q]

Susie, when you smoke at low temp, like that, you may want to use chips, or (as I do), sliver your chunks.  I usually split a chunk into about 1/4" slivers, which smoke faster and you get it all. 

Something not normally recommended, that you can try (for a "special case," like steaks), is to pre-heat the smoker and get the smoke rolling before adding the steaks.  You will save a lot of warm-up time, since you're only smoking for around 45 minutes.  For a short, low-temp smoke like steaks, it actually may be your best option.

If I preheat the smoker, how do I set the auber for my 2D?  I think splitting the chunk into slivers is also worth a try.

[DivotMaker]

Susie, you would set your program to your box temp (190) and your trigger to time (vs Temp).  Don't plug in the meat probe until you put the meat in.  Here's what I would do:

C01  190   e01 t   t01  25   (190 for 25 minutes, which should be enough to heat the box and get smoke going)
C02  190   e02 F  F01  105  (smoke at 190 until meat hits 105).  Be sure to plug in the meat probe before the 25 minute preheat period is up.

That should do it!