Uneven cooking?

Joel Ferman

<p />I've noticed that when I use any large or medium pieces of lump (even just 1 or two) steaks don't sear or cook evenly. Of course I know the remedy to this (commmon sense to use small lump) but have you guys/gals noticed this as well. The steak I cooked tonight (as you can see) came out kinda weird. The closer end was medium rare, the further was medium well..... pretty drastic especially b/c there was no difference in thickness.
Thanks,
-Joel

Joel Ferman

PAH I almost forgot......
There was no indication one part of the firebox was hotter than another, IE the charcoal level was even (no upward protruding lump) and it was all evenly lit.
-Joel

Nature Boy

Joel Ferman,
Couple idears. Direct fires are always uneven. You can tell a lot about the character of your fire by observing a few things. Where is the glow? When you move the palm of your hand over the grate, which spots are hotter? The hottest part of the grate usually looks dryer, less glossy and lighter in color. You have to kinda envision what the best way to lay the meat on to utilize the hot spots. And the cool spots for thinner meats. [p]There are a few things I do to help get more even fires, but the bottom line is you have to make some observations.[p]Hope your friday is going well, and that you are not getting too backed up on the studying!
Chris

Riley

Same here man. I'm a n00b, and I cannot get a steak right. I haven't cooked any really thick ones yet. That'd probably be easier. I cooked 4 tonight, and even rotated them around the grid, but mine was medium rare on one end, and WELL on one end. It's kinda embarrassing when you have neighbors over, and they're used to savoring the steaks you cooked on the gas grill.