An infrared grill cooks steak differently from a standard gas or charcoal fire: the heat is intense, direct and fast, so the window between a perfect crust and an overcooked center is narrow. The chart below gives you the two numbers that matter — pull temperature for your doneness and an estimate of sear time per side by cut and thickness — with one rule on top: the thermometer decides, and the clock only plans. This page is written for infrared cooking, so it keeps the doneness table compact and spends the rest on what radiant heat changes: time per side, where the steak sits on the grill, and when to pull. Every time here is an estimate, because thickness, steak temperature and grill variance change the real numbers.
Doneness targets that survive the rest
Doneness is a center temperature, so the pull number is the one to watch: pull a few degrees below your serving target because the center keeps climbing after the steak leaves the heat. On infrared heat, plan to pull at the bottom of the range in the chart. The radiant burner deposits more stored energy in the crust than a conventional gas or charcoal fire does, and a steak pulled at its exact serving target will rest past it — the most common reason an infrared steak quietly becomes medium when you wanted medium-rare. The chart uses the pull temperature, the number to look for on the probe before the rest, and the final temperature it rises to.
| Doneness | Pull temp (°F) | Final after rest (°F) | Center look |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rare | 115–120 | 120–125 | Bright red, cool center |
| Medium-rare | 125–130 | 130–135 | Red center, warm |
| Medium | 135–140 | 140–145 | Pink center |
| Medium-well | 145–150 | 150–155 | Slight pink line |
| Well done | 155+ | 160+ | No pink |
The U.S. Department of Agriculture safe minimum for a whole-muscle steak is 145°F with a three-minute rest, ground meat should reach 160°F, and rows below that line are personal doneness choices. Poultry and burgers have their own minimums, so use a clean thermometer for any safety-critical check.
Time estimates by cut and thickness
Times on an infrared grill are short, which is the point — a 1,500°F burner rating sears fast, but the actual surface temperature at the grate and the steak's starting temperature change the math. The table below assumes steaks straight from a short rest at room temperature (about 30 minutes), a fully preheated grill, and a direct sear with one flip halfway through. Treat the minutes as a starting point: start checking the crust at the low end and trust the probe over the timer.
| Cut | Thickness | Sear time per side (estimate) | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ribeye / strip / filet | 1 inch | 1.5–2.5 min | 5 min |
| Ribeye / strip / filet | 1.5 inches | 2.5–3.5 min | 5–7 min |
| Ribeye / strip / filet | 2 inches | 3.5–5 min per side, then check center | 7–10 min |
| T-bone / Porterhouse | 1.5 inches | 3–4 min per side, bone side adjusted | 7 min |
| Thin cut (skirt, flank, sirloin) | Under 1 inch | 45–90 sec per side | 5 min |
Notice what the chart does not say: a thick steak cooked entirely by direct sear will char before the center catches up. For anything 1.5 inches and thicker, use a two-stage approach — gentle heat first, then the infrared sear — or the crust and center will never arrive together. This chart is for the sear itself, and the probe is what tells you whether the steak needed the gentle stage at all.
Before you trust a time, measure what the chart assumes. Thickness should be measured at the thickest part of the steak, excluding the bone, because a 2-inch ribeye with a 1-inch tail cooks at two different rates — the thin tail will be done well before the center of the thick portion, and the chart time for the thick part is the number that matters. The steak's starting temperature changes the math just as much: a fridge-cold 2-inch steak needs noticeably more time to lose its cold center than the same steak rested at room temperature for thirty minutes. If you salt the steak ahead and leave it uncovered in the fridge to dry the surface, add a few minutes to the low end of the estimate. These variables are why the chart gives ranges, and why the probe still has the final say.
Carryover, flip cadence and the overcook risk
Carryover is the temperature rise that continues after the steak leaves the heat, and on an infrared grill it is easy to underestimate. The surface is so hot that the outer layer holds energy that keeps moving inward during the rest, adding roughly 5°F or more to a thick steak's center. That is why the pull temperatures in the first chart sit below the final numbers: if you pull at your exact target, the steak rests past it, and a medium-rare steak quietly becomes medium while you set the table.
Carryover grows with thickness and with the temperature difference between the crust and the center. A 2-inch steak pulled at 125°F can climb to 133°F or higher in ten minutes of rest, while a thin skirt steak barely moves. Infrared cooking adds a second failure mode: over-sear. Because the radiant side builds crust fast, a steak left in one position develops a dark, bitter surface while the center lags, and the probe still reads raw. The counter is flip cadence — one clean turn halfway through for steaks up to about 1½ inches, and more frequent turns for thicker cuts so each face spends less continuous time in the radiant zone. Grate or rack position is the control you set before the steak lands: when your manual offers a choice, test the higher position for thin steaks and the lower position for thick cuts, and keep the preheat identical either way. Account for all of it by pulling early and resting long, then write down what your grill and your typical steak actually do — after three cooks you will know your carryover number the way you know your oven's hot spot.
Probing without losing heat
An instant-read thermometer is the only reliable way to use these charts. On a high-radiant grill the crust sets faster than the center warms, so read the thickest part of the steak away from bone and fat and treat that center reading as the only number that counts. Probe quickly and remove the thermometer between checks — every opening on a fast sear costs surface heat, and one clean reading beats three hasty ones.
Leave the steak on the grate when you probe; pulling it off to measure cools the surface and slows the sear. If you prefer a leave-in probe, place it before the steak goes on the grill and route the cord clear of the flame, then pull at the number while the probe records the whole cook. Clean the probe between steaks, especially if you are cooking below the USDA minimum, so raw meat juices never cross into the finished piece.
Adjusting for your grill
A burner rating of 1,500°F describes the heat source, not the temperature your steak actually experiences — the grate, the distance from the burner and the preheat time all lower the real surface heat. Learn your grill's rhythm: preheat fully with the lid closed, then test a single steak with the probe and note how fast the crust forms at your usual setting. If the crust is black by minute one, the grate sits closer to the burner than the chart assumes; if two minutes barely browns, the grill needs more preheat or the steak was cold and wet. Write the corrected times on the chart and they become your grill's version of this guide.
Also adjust for the steak itself. A wet surface steams instead of sears, so pat the steak dry and salt it early; a cold steak straight from the fridge shifts every time by a minute or more; and a windy day steals heat from the open grill even when the burner is the same. Start each cook with the chart, correct for the three variables — preheat, surface dryness, starting temperature — and the estimates turn into repeatable results within a few sessions.
Heat zones give you the escape hatch when a sear is moving too fast. On a dual-burner model that lets you set each burner separately, such as the 21.2-inch dual infrared burner steak grill, sear over one burner and let a thick steak finish or rest on the other side at a lower setting. On a single-burner unit, the controls are the grate position and your flip cadence — raise the grate for thin cuts, turn thick cuts more often, and pull early when the crust threatens to outrun the center. The probe, not the zone, decides when the steak moves.
Using the chart: a simple routine
Print this page or save it to your phone and run the same routine every cook. First, choose the row for your cut and thickness and note the time range. Second, pull the steak from the fridge, salt it, and let it sit about thirty minutes so the center starts less cold. Third, preheat the infrared grill fully with the lid closed. Fourth, sear within the chart's range, flip once, and start probing at the low end of the time estimate. Fifth, pull at your doneness pull temperature, rest for the minutes shown, and slice against the grain.
The routine works because it separates planning from judgment: the chart plans, the probe judges, and the rest finishes. Big Horn's portable infrared steak grill and 16-inch infrared steak grill are the kind of high-heat zone these numbers assume, and the infrared steak grill collection shows the full range. The first steak tells you where your grill sits on the chart; by the third, the estimates have become your numbers.
For a group cook, use the chart as the sequencing plan: sear the thickest steak first, rest it while the next one cooks, and slice each steak just before serving so no one eats a cold version of your best work. Keep a small notebook or a note on your phone with the pull temperature that produced your favorite result and the actual time your grill took — after a few cooks you will have a chart that is specific to your steaks, your grill and your taste.
These steps are general guidance, and models vary: follow the manual for your specific unit, and verify temperatures with a clean thermometer where the text calls for one. Product details reflect official Big Horn Outdoors listings reviewed September 5, 2026; re-check prices and availability at checkout.
