23 Best Steak Cuts To Grill This Year
Mar 27, 2024, Updated Oct 25, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Read more at our disclosure policy.
Fire up the grill! These top steak cuts are calling your name. We have rounded up some of the Best Steak to Grill all year long. From affordable to luxury, this guide will inspire you to head out to your local butcher and get grilling.
Whether you have a gas grill or you are a live fire expert using charcoal, there are so many beef steaks to choose from when it comes to firing up the grill. Not all steaks are created equally in terms of flavor and price. The best steak to grill always comes down to how much your budget is and how much time you have to cook it.
And read on for some of the best tools and tips for cooking the perfect steak.
Table of Contents
Grilling Technique – Two Zone Grilling
If you are looking to master the best steak to grill you need to consider the following options for grilling.
You can opt for direct grilling, which is cooking with the heat source directly under the meat. We typically use this method for seafood recipes or thin steaks because you can’t control how much heat the steak gets.
Or use our most popular method, two-zone grilling. This method leaves one side of your grill as the heat source and the other as a cool zone to control cooking. Have a flare-up? Move the steak to the indirect side until it subsides. Like the crust on your steak? Then finish it on the indirect side so it doesn’t burn.
90% of the time we opt for two-zone grilling so we can control the direct heat and sear for steaks. It gives you the most control when grilling any protein like a steak.
For some of the best flavor consider reverse searing your meat. Start by smoking it at a low heat and then when it is close to your desired internal temperature you finish over a high heat source.
Chef Tip
To evenly cook both sides of a steak perfectly be sure to flip your steaks often. This minimizes flare-ups and allows both sides of the steak to cook evenly with that perfect pink middle.
Carry Over Cooking: Don’t Overcook Your Steak
Be sure you are using your digital meat thermometer to determine your perfect steak temperature. You also need to account for carry-over cooking. This is the process where the steak continues to cook up to 5 or 6 degrees Fahrenheit while it is resting off the heat source.
Steaks On A Budget
These steaks are on the more affordable side of beef steaks. But they don’t lack in flavor.
Flavor First – The Classics
The saying fat is flavor has some truth to it. Many of the following grilled steak recipes have great marbling, which adds more flavor to the steaks as they cook.
Quick and Easy
Sometimes you want to get the steaks on the grill and done. If that’s the case consider the following. The thinner the steaks, the faster they tend to grill.
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this to you AND teach you how to smoke the perfect turkey.
Splurge-Worthy Steaks
If it’s a special occasion and you want to go big with the budget consider the following grilled steak ideas.
Beyond The Basics Steak Recipes
You may hear the term “butcher cuts” which are lesser-known steaks or steak cuts that were historically reserved for the butchers (it was their little secret!). Today – there is more popularity and demand for these.
Want more recipes? How about some of our favorite side recipes to pair with steak. Some of the standouts are our Steakhouse Mushrooms and our Roasted Potatoes.
Tools + Fuel
Before you grab any of these steak cuts be sure you have the right tools to grill the perfect steak.
- A good set of long tongs to be able to move the steak around the fire
- A good instant-read meat thermometer. We use the Thermoworks Thermapen One.
For fuel, we prefer lump charcoal over briquettes for the added flavor. But you can still achieve grilled steak perfection with briquettes, gas, or even some pellet grill models. Our favorite two brands are Jealous Devil and Fogo.
Grilled Steak Seasoning + Finishing Ideas
You can customize your flavor profiles with seasonings, marinades, and finishing sauces. It’s easy to mix and match based on the flavors you like.
Seasonings
For grilled steaks, we recommend a rub that does not contain sugar (sugar will burn when cooking over direct heat or flame).
- SPG – An easy beef rub that is equal parts kosher salt, coarse black pepper, and granulated garlic (versus garlic powder).
- Beef Seasoning – This combination of herbal seasonings and salt creates a nice harmony when grilling steak.
- Steak Seasoning – This savory dry rub uses unique ingredients like anchovy powder to really make the flavor shine.
Finishing Sauces and Butters
- Roasted Poblano Corn Salsa – You can make this as a topping to steak or as a side salad.
- Easy Chimichurri – You can also use our Jalapeno Chimichurri if you want a little more heat.
- Compound Butter – Compound butters are only limited by your imagination. From horseradish spicy compound butter to herb butter, the added fat is a great addition to your grilled steak recipes. It’s also a great way to add fat and mouthfeel to grass-fed and grass-finished steak.
Get a signed copy of our cookbook! Order Now
About Vindulge
Mary (a certified sommelier and recipe developer) and Sean (backyard pitmaster) are co-authors of the critically acclaimed cookbook, Fire + Wine, and have been creating content for the IACP nominated website Vindulge since 2009. They live in Oregon on a farm just outside Portland.
