Fundamentally, there are only two things you need to posses in order to cook the perfect steak - ample prep-time and abundant patience.

A little known fact is that the pre-grill preparation is as important as the grilling process itself. To begin with, your steaks should be at room temperature before you even look at your barbeque. Here’s a useful (and convenient) way of timing: If you remove your steak from the fridge, replacing it with a room temperature six-pack, you’ll be ready to start prepping your meat at about the same time that your beer’s cold enough to drink.

The clock doesn’t really start ticking though, until you’ve fired up the barbeque. If you’re cooking with coals, you’ll have about half an hour from when you touch flame to briquette and a little less if you’re cooking with gas. While there’s merit in both methods, charcoal is the flavorful choice for the true aficionado so we’re going to move forward under the presupposition that you agree…

Start with a basic seasoning. However you eventually choose to coat, cover or otherwise accent your steak, it’s imperative that you begin with a liberal dose of salt and pepper. Sprinkle each side of your meat generously with both and rub with garlic clove halves for a little extra zing. Now here’s the important part: crack into one of those icy cold beers. The seasoning needs time to dissipate across the steak and you need an exercise in patience. Problem solved.

Once you’ve tossed that first can into the recycling bin, your coals should be ash white and ready to cook with. Disperse them evenly across the bottom of your barbeque, place the grill on top and reward yourself with a second can of beer. By the time you’ve finished this one, the grill will have heated up sufficiently. Having a hot grill is of great importance because it stops your steak from sticking and assists in the creation of that mouthwatering crust the meat will eventually possess. Before beginning, pay your grill some attention. A wire brush followed by a rag lightly dampened with cooking oil will ensure that the surface is clean and lubricated. And lastly, brush your steak with oil and season a second time with salt and pepper.

Finally, it’s go-time! Place your steak on the grill at a 45 degree angle. To illustrate, if the back of the grill is your hypothetical north, aim the top end of the steak northwest. Don’t make the amateur mistake of playing with your food once it’s sizzling. Relax. Your steak doesn’t need flipping, poking, prodding or reassuring. It needs space and you should respect that. This is when the sugars in the meat begin to caramelize to produce that flavorful crust… and nothing you can do will make it any tastier. Go tell your guests an amusing anecdote. By the time you’re through (providing your storytelling takes approximately 3-4 minutes), it’s time to turn the steak. Don’t confuse this with flipping. Turning your steak is how you’re going to produce those menu photo-quality diamond grill marks. Just take the steak and aim the top end northeast. After another 3-4 minutes, flip and repeat from the top.

It’s important to note that while the occasional flame-up is an impressive way of reminding your guests that you’re indeed barbequing, it will invariably cause carbon deposits on your meat that translate to a charred crust and bitter flavor. Barbeque modestly with a small spray bottle of water on-hand to douse excessive flame. You’ll impress them more once the meat hits the plate.

For the precision grill-master, the exact iGrill temperatures for each grilling preference are listed below:

If your iGrill reads: 120ºF - 125ºF (49ºC - 52ºC) steak is RARE
If your iGrill reads: 130ºF - 135ºF (54ºC - 57ºC) steak is MEDIUM RARE
If your iGrill reads: 140ºF - 145ºF (60ºC - 63ºC) steak is MEDIUM
If your iGrill reads: 150ºF - 155ºF (66ºC - 68ºC) steak is MEDIUM WELL
If your iGrill reads: 160ºF and above (71ºC and above) steak is WELL DONE

And as a final test of your patience, remove the steak from the grill and let sit for five minutes. Why is this so important? Because meat is muscle. During grilling, the fibers tighten, pushing the juice to the center of the meat. If you dig in too early, you’ll be left with a dry steak swimming in a plate of juices. Take the time to let the meat relax and you’ll be serving gorgeous, juicy cuts every time.

Have another beer. You’ve earned it.