Which Fat Creates the Best Steak Crust? Ghee, Tallow, Mayo, and One Surprise
Four NY Strips, Four Methods, One Clear Winner
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Introduction
Four Bone-In NY Strips, Three Searing Fats, and One Steak With Nothing on It
What’s up BBQ fans! Today on the patio, I’m answering one simple question: which steak has the better sear and the better flavor? I lined up four identical, dry-aged, bone-in New York strips from North 36 Farms (use code: RUMANDCOOK100 for 2 lbs of free ground beef on a $100+ order, or RUMANDCOOK200 for a free NY strip package plus the ground beef on $200+). Three got a searing fat: ghee, tallow, and mayo. The fourth I cooked like the tomahawk from my last steak video, right over the lump with nothing on it. Let’s get into it.
I dry brined all four, fired up the Komodo Kamado 38 with Bear Mountain lump, and reverse seared three of them while the fourth went straight over the coals. By the end we’ll know which one has more flavor, which one has the better sear, and which one you should cook going forward.
The Prep
I’ve been eating North 36 Farms beef for three or four months now, and I’ve eaten a ton of it because I like me some beef. It’s grass-fed and grain-finished, so you still get some marbling, and the price point is good. Here’s how I prepped the steaks:
Dry brined with salt in the fridge for about 18 hours the day before
Tempered on the counter for about 20 minutes (they came out of my beer fridge, so they were cold)
A probe in the center of all four steaks so they cook as close to identical as possible
The Setup
I lit the Komodo Kamado with Bear Mountain lump and no wood at all. One side was hot and the other side was indirect, and the steaks went on the indirect side.
Bottom vent open about 3/4 of the way, top vent open 2 to 2½ turns
Let it heat soak and settle at 250°F, then dialed the vents back to slow the fire
Probes: the Typhur Sync (use code: RUMANDCOOK to save 10%) with one in each steak
Pro tip: it takes very little vent movement to change your temperature on a Komodo, so make small adjustments.
The Cook
The three reverse sear steaks cooked indirect at 250°F. I set the alarm at 115°F to allow for carryover and pulled each one at 116°F so they stayed equal, then let them rest while I took care of the fourth. That rest ran about 15 minutes.
For the fourth steak, I set the dome at 450°F with the grate just above the lump and flipped it every minute with a stopwatch. That took about 8 minutes total, 4 minutes per side. I pushed it to about 90°F internal, let it sit off to the side for a couple of minutes, then put it back on for a little more color. Normally I’d use clarified butter or tallow here, but I left it bare so I wouldn’t skew the results.
Then I opened the vents and took the dome up to 600°F. I coated the other three with mayo (warmed for about 20 seconds so it matched the warm ghee and tallow), tallow, and ghee, and seared them about a minute per side with the lid closed to tame the flare-ups. The probes are rated to 932°F and they got up to about 800°F.
The Results
I plated them individually so nothing got contaminated. The sun was so bright that the color was tough to judge, but every steak looked juicy.
Mayo: you can’t taste the mayo. I was worried about that, and honestly I don’t want it on my steak anyway
Tallow: I can taste it, and I use a lot of tallow, so I know exactly what it tastes like
Ghee: just a little bit of buttery flavor
No fat: about an eighth of an inch of gray, more charcoal flavor, and noticeably more tender
The no-fat steak was more tender, and I noticed it right away. I could feel it when I squeezed it. My guess is the cooking temperature kept the meat from tightening up as much, but I can’t say for sure. The miss: I wish I’d used some ghee or tallow on it for a little more crust.
Final Thoughts
Reverse sear is an easy way to cook a thick steak, but it had been a long time since I was proud of the flavor of what I was cooking at home. Then I read Adam Perry Lang’s book Charred and Scruffed and cooked a tomahawk that way, and steak changed for me. Edge-to-edge pink and packed with flavor.
This is the same idea. Nobody at your table is going to turn down any of these, but the steak cooked over the lump and flipped every minute was significantly more tender. Next time I’d do it the same way with a little ghee or tallow for the crust. If you don’t believe me, try it yourself.
Thanks For Watching
Whether you’re a seasoned pitmaster or a novice, these tips will enhance your cooking skills and leave your family and friends raving about your delicious, smoky creations. Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more step-by-step videos, and let’s together become the barbecue heroes we were meant to be!
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