Checking a Steak’s Doneness

With summer approaching and many of us dusting off the backyard grills, I figured I’d share what seems to be common knowledge amongst a few of us grill aficionados.
How to tell that your steak is done the way you want it without slicing it open to “check” it.
For the many who aren’t “experts” in the grilling arts, you use all manner of voodoo-like methods which always makes me laugh. It’s kind of like when you watch people “testing” fruit by sniffing it when it should be tapped, or tapping it when it should be sniffed. [That’s a subject for another day.]
First, let me explain why what many of you do to test “doneness” is so wrong as in committing the cardinal sin of grillery.

• Do not ever, EVER, cut a steak while on the grill to see if it’s done. I know lots of you have, and it’s just wrong. It’s wrong in how peanut butter and hot dogs on a bun is wrong. Wrong in that some of you probably eat spaghetti with ketchup on it. Or <shudder> pour ketchup on perfectly medium rare prime rib. [My mother-in-law once asked for ketchup twenty years ago when I served her a prime rib and of course she didn’t get it, but I still bring that up on a regular basis.]

Why is it wrong?
First of all, with the steak hot, the juices are flowing and looking for a way out of the steak. A nice sear on a steak tends to keep things in, but as soon as you put that harpoon of a knife into the steak, you give the juices a place to exit and ultimately losing what makes the steak oh so delicious. It’s juiciness. You ever eat a steak that looks like it was done alright, but dry as heck?
Some unthinking person likely sliced it and let all of the beef nectar out. 😉
Normally, the proper procedure is to take a steak off the grill and let it rest for at least 5-10 minutes. This gives the juices time to redistribute in the meat and ultimately gives you that succulent morsel you were looking for.
So, how does one tell how a steak is cooked without peeking inside?
Meat thermometer? Nope! [No stabby!]
Touch it. Yes, Virginia – you touch the steak.
By feeling how firm it is, you can get a pretty good estimate on how done the steak is. Simply touch your [clean] finger to the center portion of the steak and compare it to the simple illustration I’ve provided below. For each doneness, you compare the firmness of the steak to the firmness of the meaty portion of your thumb [as illustrated].
It’s just that simple.
Happy grilling!