Core Searing Principles (Any Grill)

No matter what grill you own, restaurant-style searing comes down to a few non-negotiables:

1. High enough heat (and the right zone)

• Your sear zone needs to be 500–700°F+ at the grate or pan surface. Below that, you’ll get pale, gray steak before you get a good crust.
• Always keep a cooler indirect zone open as a safety lane if things get too hot.

2. Dry exterior = better Maillard reaction

• Moisture is the enemy of browning. If your steak is wet, the heat spends its energy boiling water instead of browning the surface.
• The surface should feel tacky, not wet before it hits the grill.

3. Enough fat in the right place

• Restaurant pans aren’t dry — they use oil, tallow, or clarified butter to transfer heat and carry flavor.
• On grates, a lightly oiled steak or hot, lightly oiled grates help prevent sticking and improve contact.

4. Short, controlled time in the blast zone

• Steakhouse sears are usually 45–90 seconds per side at very high heat.
• Anything longer than that should be happening at lower temps (indirect heat, oven, or smoker), not on the sear zone.

5. Temp targeting, not guesswork

• Use an instant-read thermometer to check internal temp.
• Know your finish line: most steak-house medium-rare steaks land around 130–135°F after rest.

Prep: Thickness, Trimming, Drying & Seasoning

The best sear happens on a steak that was set up correctly before any flame ever touched it.

Choose the right steak

• Cuts: ribeye, strip, filet, porterhouse, T-bone, or picanha all sear beautifully.
• Thickness: 1–1.5" for direct sear; 1.5–2.5" for reverse sear + restaurant-style finish.
• Marbling: look for visible fat streaks throughout the meat, not just a big fat cap.

Trim smart

• Remove hard, waxy exterior fat that won’t render.
• Leave a reasonable fat cap for flavor.
• Clean up stray flaps or thin edges that will overcook and burn.

Dry the surface

• At minimum, pat the steak dry with paper towels right before seasoning.
• Better: salt and leave uncovered on a rack in the fridge for 4–24 hours (a dry brine). This dries the surface and improves browning.

Season like a restaurant

• Use kosher salt — it’s easier to control than fine table salt.
• Salt more than you think on thick steaks (the surface area is larger and you want a seasoned crust).
• Add freshly cracked black pepper either before cooking (if you’re not going nuclear-hot) or after searing to avoid burnt pepper flavor on ultra-high heat setups.

How to Sear Steak on a Gas Grill

Gas grills are convenient, but you have to work a bit harder to get steakhouse-level heat. The key is preheat time and using direct + indirect zones correctly.

Step 1 — Set up zones

• On a 3–4 burner grill, turn one or two burners to high (sear zone) and leave at least one burner off (indirect zone).
• Close the lid and preheat at least 10–15 minutes until the grates are scorching hot.

Step 2 — Decide on direct-only vs reverse sear

• Thin steaks (≤1"): you can cook them entirely over high direct heat. Aim for 2–3 minutes per side, rotating halfway if you want grill marks.
• Thicker steaks (≥1.25"): consider reverse searing. Low-and-slow on indirect, then follow this section for the sear finish. (Use our Reverse Sear Guide for full details.)

Step 3 — Sear over the hottest part

• Place the steak on the hottest section of the grates, usually right above the burner closest to the firebox.
• Don’t move it for 45–60 seconds. Let a crust form before flipping or rotating.
• Flip and sear the second side for another 45–60 seconds.
• Optionally rotate 90° halfway through each side if you want cross-hatch marks.

Step 4 — Use the indirect zone as insurance

• If the outside is darkening faster than the internal temp rises, move the steak to the indirect zone and finish gently with the lid closed.
• Once internal temp is 5°F below your final target, you can give it a quick last kiss over high heat if needed.

Pro tip: If your gas grill never seems hot enough, preheat a cast-iron skillet or griddle directly on the grates and sear the steak in the pan instead. It mimics a restaurant flat-top.

How to Sear Steak on a Pellet Grill

Pellet grills nail low-and-slow but are weaker at true searing. To get restaurant-style crust, you almost always want an assist from cast iron or a sear station.

Option 1 — Pellet-only sear (good, not perfect)

• Crank the grill to its max temperature (often 450–500°F).
• Let it preheat for 15–20 minutes so the grates and diffuser plate get as hot as possible.
• Sear steaks directly on the hottest zone (near the fire pot) for 2–3 minutes per side.
• This works, but the crust will be lighter than a restaurant pan sear.

Option 2 — Pellet grill + cast iron (closest to steakhouse)

• Preheat the pellet grill to 500°F with a cast-iron skillet or plancha on the grates.
• Once the pan is smoking-hot, add a thin layer of high-heat oil (avocado, grapeseed, tallow).
• Lay steaks in the pan and do not move them for 45–90 seconds.
• Flip and repeat, basting with fat at the end if desired.

Option 3 — Pellet low-and-slow + separate sear station

• Use the pellet grill for the gentle cook (225–250°F) until the steak is just below your target temp.
• Move the steak to a gas grill, IR burner, or ripping-hot cast-iron pan for the final 45–60 second sear per side.

Think of the pellet grill as your seasoning and internal-doneness machine. Use a secondary heat source to give it the restaurant crust.

How to Sear Steak on a Charcoal or Kamado Grill

Charcoal and kamado cookers are naturally good at searing. The key is managing your coal bed so you’re using glowing coals, not giant flames.

Step 1 — Build a strong coal bed

• Use a full chimney of charcoal for kettles or a solid bed in a kamado.
• Let coals ash over until they are glowing red with a light gray coating. This is where the intense radiant heat lives.

Step 2 — Two-zone control

• Bank coals to one side (direct) and leave the other side empty (indirect).
• For very thick steaks, start on the indirect side and then finish over direct — or use the full reverse sear method.

Step 3 — Sear directly over the coals

• Place steaks directly over the hottest section of the coal bed.
• Sear 30–60 seconds per side with the lid open to watch flare-ups.
• If fires flare aggressively, move steaks briefly to the indirect side to calm things down, then go back for a quick finish.

Kamado tweaks

• For kamados, you can sear with heat deflectors removed and the grate close to the coals.
• Use the top and bottom vents to control oxygen — more air for hotter sear, slightly closed to tame flare-ups.

How to Sear Steak with an Infrared Burner

Infrared (IR) burners are as close as you’ll get to restaurant broilers that run 1,200–1,800°F. They can give you an insane crust in seconds — but only if you control time and distance.

Step 1 — Preheat the IR burner fully

• Turn the IR burner to high and let it run 5–10 minutes. You want the ceramic surface visibly glowing.
• Position the grates or sear cage at the manufacturer’s recommended distance.

Step 2 — Use IR as a finishing tool

• Cook the steak to 5–15°F below your final target using regular burners, charcoal, or a pellet grill.
• Move the steak to the IR burner for 15–45 seconds per side only.
• Check internal temp after each side — IR can add heat very quickly.

Step 3 — Control color, not time

• Instead of chasing a specific number of seconds, watch the crust through the process.
• Pull the steak when the surface is a deep mahogany brown, not black. A few charred edges are fine; a fully black surface is bitter.

Cast Iron & Plancha Searing (On Grill or Stovetop)

Restaurants use either ripping-hot pans or flat tops. You can copy that with cast iron on the grill or stove.

Setup

• Place a cast-iron skillet or plancha over your hottest burner or directly over charcoal.
• Preheat until the pan is so hot that a drop of water dances and disappears instantly.
• Add a thin film of high-heat fat — avocado oil, beef tallow, ghee, or clarified butter.

Searing in cast iron

• Lay the steak down and don’t move it for 45–90 seconds.
• Flip once you see deep brown around the edges.
• For the last 30–40 seconds, you can add a small knob of butter, garlic, and herbs, tilting the pan and basting the top of the steak.

Plancha / griddle sear

• Use a flat-top griddle or plancha on the grill to mimic a restaurant flat-top.
• Same rules: preheat hard, thin layer of oil, short and aggressive sear.

Cast iron is the great equalizer. If your grill can’t get hot enough on the grates, a screaming-hot pan on top usually can.

Finishing Moves: Butter Basting, Resting & Slicing

The sear is only part of the restaurant experience. The last 5% of the process is where a lot of the “wow” factor lives.

Butter basting

• Best done in a pan (cast iron) where butter is contained.
• Add a small knob of butter, a smashed garlic clove, and a sprig of thyme/rosemary in the last 30–40 seconds.
• Tilt the pan and spoon the foaming butter repeatedly over the steak.
• Avoid doing this for more than a minute — burned milk solids taste bitter.

Resting

• Rest steaks 5–10 minutes after searing.
• Place them on a rack or plate; tent loosely with foil in cold weather.
• This rest lets juices redistribute instead of pouring out on the cutting board.

Slicing & serving

• Slice against the grain for strip, flank, hanger, and picanha.
• For ribeye or filet, you can serve whole or slice into thick strips and fan them out on the plate.
• Finish with a small sprinkle of flaky salt and a tiny drizzle of good olive oil or beef tallow if you want a glossy steakhouse finish.

Common Searing Mistakes to Avoid

• Steak is wet: not drying or dry-brining leads to steaming instead of searing.
• Grill not hot enough: searing at 350–400°F cooks the inside before the crust develops.
• Too much time over high heat: sear is meant to be quick. Use indirect heat or reverse sear for the internal cook.
• No thermometer: guessing internal temp is how you overshoot medium-rare.
• Flare-ups left unchecked: letting fat fires rage will scorch the outside and taste bitter.
• Slicing immediately: cutting before a short rest dumps the juices onto the board.

Restaurant-style sear is mostly discipline: dry steaks, hot surface, short time, and a little patience before cutting.

Restaurant-Style Sear FAQ

Related Guides from Solavi Living

• Reverse Sear Guide (Gas, Pellet, Charcoal, Infrared)
• Direct vs Indirect Grilling Zones Explained
• Infrared Burners Explained (Pros, Cons, Myths)
• Grill Size Guide: What Size Grill Do You Need?
• Grill Fuel Guide: Gas vs Pellet vs Charcoal