Ina Garten Just Revealed Her Tricks for Perfectly Grilled Steaks

Just in time for grilling season!

By
Myo Quinn
Myo Quinn
Myo Quinn
Myo's recipes, writing, and food styling can be found on King Arthur Baking, Food Network, Delish, Food52, and more. She collaborated on the cookbook Delish Vegan Dinners and trained at Gramercy Tavern and Untitled at the Whitney Museum.
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Published May 24, 2023
Myo Quinn
Ina Garten, grilled steak

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Expertly charred steak fresh off the grill is the definition of summer. Yet grilling steak can be stressful and challenging, especially for novice grillers. If you have an irrational fear of grilling steak and messing it up, this is going to be the summer you finally master steak on the grill, thanks to Ina Garten.

Recently, Ina revealed on Instagram that she once feared grilling steaks, saying, "I used to be terrified to grill. I'd buy these gorgeous steaks—and they're really expensive—and I was sure I was going to overcook them." (So relatable!) Then she shared her tricks to grill perfect steak every time, making it look so achievable—it inspired me to run over to my local butcher!

steak on the grill

Simply Recipes / Mike Lang

Ina Garten's 5 Easy Tricks For Perfectly Grilled Steaks

Ina credits Lobel's Prime Meats for this foolproof method for grilling steaks. Here's what you do, and it couldn't be easier:

  1. Ideally, start with steaks that are 1 1/2 inches thick. Ina prefers New York strip steaks.
  2. Set up your grill with two cooking zones: For a charcoal grill, bank the hot coals to one side of the grill, leaving the other side bare. For a gas grill, crank up the burners on one side, leaving the other side off. One side of the grill—the hot zone—is meant for searing. The other side—the cool zone—is meant for gentle cooking.
  3. Place the steaks on the hot zone and sear them for two minutes exactly (like Ina, use a timer!) without moving them around.
  4. Flip the steaks and sear the other side for exactly two minutes over the hot zone.
  5. Move the steaks over to the cool zone and cover the grill with a lid. Cook them for eight minutes if you want them rare and 10 minutes for medium.
A cowboy steak cooking on the grill.

Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

5 Links to Read Before Grilling Steak for the First Time

If this is your first time grilling steak—or maybe you just need a refresher—here is a list of links that will set you up for success: