FUEL’S GOLD
Here are three ways to level up to logs.
Four 1½-in.-thick rib-eye steaks
½ cup Worcestershire sauce
½ cup white vinegar
½ cup ketchup
⅓ cup packed brown sugar- Salt steaks generously on
both sides and let come to
room temperature, about
30 minutes. - In a medium bowl, combine
Worcestershire sauce,
sauce again, turn, and cook
for 2 minutes. Brush the top
of the steaks, turn, and cook
for the final 2 minutes.
Steaks should be deep brown
and cooked to an internal
temperature of 125° on an
instant-read thermometer
for medium rare. Let steaks
rest for 10 minutes. Slice into
¼-in. pieces and serve.Grilled Salpicao-Style Rib-Eye Steaks
Beef salpicao is a classic weeknight staple in many Filipino households. Typically, it’s made with cubed
beef sirloin that’s been cooked in a skillet then enriched with a garlicky, slightly sweet, soy-based pan
sauce. In this version, Olalia uses flavorful rib-eye steaks lacquered with a salpicao sauce brushed on
the steaks as they char. Olalia compares it to yakitori, in that you’re building layers of flavor as you
add sauce to the steaks as they cook: “It’s brush, burnish, turn. Brush, burnish, turn.” Olalia rounds
out the meal with purchased longganisa sausage cooked alongside the steak.vinegar, ketchup, and brown
sugar and mix well until sug-
ar has dissolved.
3. Heat grill to medium (350°
to 450°). Blot steaks dry.
Brush sauce on one side of
the steaks. Place steaks,
sauce side down, on grate
and cook for 2 minutes.
Brush the top of the steaks
with sauce, and turn over.
Cook 2 minutes more. Brush
the top of the steaks withLEVEL 1:
Lump charcoal
Unlike charcoal briquettes that
can be made from wood pulp,
paper, or sawdust, with lump
charcoal what you see is what
you get. And what you get is
whole carbonized chunks of
wood that burn superhot and pro-
duce a natural-wood smoke fla-
vor, which is how Charles Olalia
cooked all the dishes in this story.
Fire & Flavor’s almond and olive-
wood charcoal comes from sus-
tainably managed forests and is
ideal for getting that perfect
crispy sear on a steak or crack-
ling skin on chicken ($35/8 lbs.;
fireandflavor.com).
LEVEL 2:
Binchotan
Beautiful binchotan is the gold
standard in izakayas, and it’s the
secret fuel in the kitchens of many
a Michelin-starred restaurant. The
carbonized branches of indige-
nous Japanese ubame oak burn
clean, even, and smokeless and
are perfect for lightly searing
delicate foods like scallops and
shishito peppers. Andy Ricker’s
Portland-based Pok Pok Restau-
rants will deliver their house
brand of Thai rambutan-wood
binchotan straight to your door
($9/5 lbs.; pokpokrestaurants.
com).LEVEL 3:
Hardwood
Wood-fired cooking is the pinna-
cle of the outdoor culinary arts.
There’s the initial high heat of the
roaring flames that demands a
cast-iron pan and a well-marbled
steak; the medium stage when
vegetables caramelize; the linger-
ing embers that slow-roast root
vegetables. Sourcing the wood
requires effort but is worth it.
Scour Craigslist and Yelp for culi-
nary woods such as almond, oak,
mesquite, and pecan. Ask a
local restaurant specializing in
wood-fired dishes where they
source their wood from and join
the delivery route. Or, Kingsford
offers bundles of mesquite logs at
select Home Depot stores ($20/1
cubic ft.; homedepot.com).