Can't get griil marks

[Delaware Smoker]

Hi,I'm still here,just not posting much.No matter how hard I try,just can't get grill marks on the meat.I start getting them,but seems the longer I cook the meat,the grill marks disapear.The grill gets hot enough & the grates are porclien.Any advice?
Bill

[OSD]

I have porcelain grates on my one grill and if they are not hot enough they won't leave good marks. For steaks I get the heat very hot ( around 500* - 600* ) and let the grates heat up for a few minutes before putting the steaks on and get good grill marks. Maybe try getting the grill hotter and letting the grates warm up for a few minutes longer before starting to cook on them.

[txngent]

How hot is "hot enough"? How long is your grilling time? I have a porclien grate on my grill but I have a cast iron grill that I lay on top of the grate. I do this to get a really, really, really hot grill surface. Works better for me and my steaks. My cast iron grill can be turned over for a flat iron grill as well... love the multi taskers! You can pick them up pretty cheap at most outdoor sports stores. I bought mine at Academy.

[JamesB]

One key to great grill marks and a big trick to searing off any meat is to make sure that the meat surface is dry before you place it on the heat... Otherwise, you are just boiling off that surface moisture as opposed to getting the grill marks etc.

James.

[JaCK2U2]

Good point, James. Beat me to that. I learned that the hard way after a whole lotta meat. Now, I pat them with paper towels to make sure the surface is dry.

[bigwheel]

Think some of this grill mark bizness might also hinge on whut high crimes and misdemeanors which has been perpertrated against the steak before it goes on the fire...such as but not limited to various marinade concoctions..rubs..and any type of lengthy exposure to salt. In addition to getting the grill nice n hot try cooking it nekked and unadulterated..flipping once at the midpoint of the cook time. If you want some type of rub or seasoning on it...apply it a side at a time after its done. Salt will slow down the browning process very handily as will flipping it too much influence the grate mark formation. Just a theory I have of course:)

bigwheel

[Papa Tom]

I can get perfect grill marks every time, here's how.
Get a straight edge, a 1/4 inch artists brush and some Kitchen Bouquet.......then cook on the griddle.... You can personalize this way too....

[honu41]

Aloha... salt does draw out the moisture in the meat to the surface. If the grill isn't hot enuff it will steam a little bit preventing good grill marks. I also think that if the grill is lightly oiled it will sizzle the meat it contacts.
Just my 2 cents...

a hui hou,

[bigwheel]

Dont think that trying to oil the grates works too well on a grill. It gets too hot and just burns off. Or least it has the times I have tried it. Sure various expuriences can differ. Now it works great on a regular old slow cooking bbq pit. Helps Keep the grate from rusting too. Now have heard of folks who oil up the steaks but I tried it on chicken one time and didnt like the results. Seemed like it made it sorta sooty for some reason. Definitely didnt help in browning it up. Dittos that for turkey too. May be a whole new ball game on steaks. Who knows?

bigwheel

[DATsBBQ]

Like Stephen R says in his PBS show, clean and lubed. I fire up which ever toy seems appealing at the time, and after it is hot hot hot, I brush the grill to make sure it's clean (kinda deja vu cause I do the same thing after a session) and then spray with pam. Then place the meat.

Leave the meat on long enough to sear, then flip. Steaks get flipped once, burgers twice to get a cross hatch pattern.

Einstein has a porclein grill, the Aussie gasser is cast iron and the webers what ever weber makes 'em out of. If I follow the above method, it doesn't matter as I get grill marks. The gasser with cast iron grate does produce better marks.

I should say that I don't grill that often, more into the low & slow.

[Larry Wolfe]

One key to great grill marks and a big trick to searing off any meat is to make sure that the meat surface is dry before you place it on the heat... Otherwise, you are just boiling off that surface moisture as opposed to getting the grill marks etc.

James.

Couldn't have been said better!!!

[Papa Tom]

Dats said it well. Your grate must be hot and have enough mass to support the thermal inertia to create the grill marks. So not surprisingly his cast iron grill works best. We (lazy) usually do steaks on our gasser and it has stainless grates that don't have enough mass to do any searing. So it's break out the Kitchen Bouquet time if you want the marks. I used to have one of those little hibachis that had cast grates and it worked great.