NY Strip Steak - How do you do them?

Longtrain

Each year we get 1/2 of a grass fed Black Angus, which is corned for the at least the last month.
The meat generally is excellent, great flavor, quality butchering.
Although many people rave over the NY Strip, we usually find them a bit tough and not nearly as tender as a nice medium rare sirloin.  

This is a shot of four NY Strips from last night. I reversed seared them, 115F indirect and then direct got to about 130F. They were pink inside, edge to edge, not medium rare. I don’t think they got to medium, but maybe close.  Did I just get what I cooked as far as tenderness of this steak? Should i have shot for a 125F finish or something else. They were flavorful steaks and were enjoyed by those who had them, but I want better. 

Any insight is appreciated. 

fence0407

How did you season the steaks? The pic above doesn't look like the fire for the sear is very hot. You might try to ramp that up to get some good crisp. I am by no means a steak expert, just throwing out some ideas.

saluki2007

For me when I eat NY Strip I pay attention to the grain of the steak.  Cutting across the grain makes a world of difference in the texture and "toughness" of the steak.

fishlessman

i will approach 130 with a ribeye but with a strip 122/123 internal is as high as i will go.  i just stick to the trex method

fishlessman

i would add that you need to get those steaks closer to the fire

MasterC

I grill my strips close, sometimes on the coals. I have reversed seared steaks but only it's 2++ inches or better for a strip. 
Season with salt pepper and garlic.. Egg at 500 to 600 degrees. Cast iron grate for thin fast cooking steak, steel or no grate for thick cut your own bad boys. Pull at 120° let rest then enjoy.
This is my method for ny strip.


First steak was steel grate, second cast iron ,third was just off the coals on steel grate

Longtrain

Thanks for the comments. The steaks were seasoned with a Salt and Pepper blend that I bought in Savannah last year.
Yeah, the dome was 450F, and they were on the felt line. Too far away, I understand now.
This is my second season with the Egg and I’ve been mainly a slow and low smoker guy with good results. 

The steaks are a little different dance, I’ll try again and I’ll post my results.  Thanks again.

Mark_B_Good

ALL my future steaks will be cooked like this method, less the bacon wrap!

https://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1227597/filet-mignon#latest

Mattman3969

Pre salt on a rack for 1-2hrs on any steak. For NYS under 1 1/4” cook hot n fast to about 125 and no higher than 130 and let rest uncovered. If you have a SV I would run about 127 with just salt in the bag for 1-2hrs. If under 1 1/4” thick I would ice bath before searing. This helps to not overshoot target temp. 

YukonRon

gunpowder for the rub, medium rare throughout.

nolaegghead

Strips get tougher the more you cook them, and they cook faster than ribeye or sirloin, in my experience.

4TheGrillOfIt

Strips are my least favorite cut.  However, they do pack a great beefy flavor.   

I sometimes use a tenderizing marinade for them like soy sauce and pineapple juice.  Lime juice can help tenderize them as well.

PigBeanUs

I prefer strips actually (unless there’s aged ribeye in the offing).

They do tend to be firmer though. Not necessarily tough maybe. 

If they are of any decent thickness, don’t cook them just by searing. Because you will have a larger amount of overdone meat before you reach the desired temp in the center. 

Do a two stage cook

either sear first, hot and fast and close to the coals, and then roast indirect until it finishes. ...or roast first until they are about twenty degrees below desired temp, and then sear. 

That leaves you with a larger cross section of perfect interior temp, and an outer crust

air dry them in the fridge for a half day, even a day. 

Your exterior will never sear until the water in that surface meat is gone. So give it a head start

Teefus

I reverse sear. I start with the meat at room temperature. I roast them indirect to about 120F then sear each side quickly. I pull a bit early and let them rest a bit and coast up to medium rare. Never not yummy. Always tender too.  

StillH2OEgger

We probably do NY strips more than any other steak, but I don't bother if the marbling doesn't look decent. I'm less particular when it comes to ribeyes.

Edit: just realize I didn't answer the question posed. We always reverse sear NY strips -- 250 until 115-118 or so, and then a nice sear -- assuming they are thick enough.

SonVolt

Looks like they got that dreaded reddish colored sear from up-draft convection instead of intense radiated heat of the coals.  I struggled with this when I first got my egg.  Your fire doesn't look hot enough and they probably sat too far way from the heat.  For steaks try leaving the bottom vent closed and letting the lump get blazing hot with the lid open. 

nolaegghead

^^^ that and a cheap solution to the problem of "not hot enough" is to buy a small grate from your local hardware store (under 10 bucks) that fits inside of the fire box.  Lay it right on the coals and do you searing on that.

bbracey21

Prime NY Strips from Costco. Egg at 600°-650°. Season with Meat Church Holy Cow. Grate on fire ring. 3 mins each side and 1 min each tail side. Thermapen at IT 130°. Pull and rest 5-10 mins. Small sliver of kerrygold garlic & herb butter on top while they rest. This is done on my LBGE and almost every time they come out perfect!