Reverse Sear Picanha
Author
Reverse Sear Picanha starts with a whole picanha seasoned on both sides, then cooked on a pellet grill before going directly over the flame. @thegalleryBBQ uses a low-smoke stage followed by a high-heat finish, with the fat cap scored into squares before it goes on the grill. The process includes a brief rest after seasoning, one hour of low smoke under 225°F, then a direct-flame finish at 500°F or as high as the pellet grill can reach. For rare picanha, pull it at about 120-125°F.
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Watch How to Make It
Why You'll Love This Recipe
This method gives the picanha two distinct stages on the pellet grill. It begins with low smoke, then moves to direct heat over the exposed fire pot for the final flame and char.
The fat cap is trimmed to about 1/8-1/4 inch, then scored about 1/2 inch apart and cross-scored into squares. That scoring is part of the setup before seasoning the front and back with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.
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Ingredients You'll Need
This recipe uses a 3-4 lb picanha along with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. Season the back and front generously with all three seasonings before the picanha rests on the board.
The picanha is trimmed before seasoning. Remove anything loose or dangling, then trim the fat cap to about 1/8-1/4 inch before making the scored-square pattern.
How To Make It
Set up the picanha first, then prepare the pellet grill while the seasoned meat rests on the board. The cooking moves from low smoke to direct flame over the fire pot.
Remove the picanha from the cryovac and dry it off. Trim away anything loose or dangling, then trim the fat cap to about 1/8-1/4 inch.
Score the fat cap about 1/2 inch between each score, then cross-score it to make squares. Season the back and front of the picanha generously with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.
Allow the picanha to rest on the board for about 15-20 minutes while preparing the grill. Set the pellet grill temperature to under 225°F.
Low smoke the picanha for 1 hour, then remove it from the pellet grill. Remove the ineurs from the pellet grill and expose the fire pot with one grate above it, using a flame-proof glove to avoid getting burned.
Turn the pellet grill up to 500°F or as high as it can go. Place the picanha fat-side down directly over the flame and shut it down for about 1-1 1/2 minutes.
Over the next 3-4 minutes, flip the picanha and build up the flame and char. Cook to the desired temperature, pulling the picanha at about 120-125°F for rare.
A practical detail from this method is to use a flame-proof glove when removing the ineurs and exposing the fire pot. That step happens before the grill is turned up for the direct-flame finish.
Serving & Variations
Put the picanha on the board after cooking and allow it to rest. Then slice and enjoy.
The source method seasons the picanha with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic, cooks it under 225°F for the low-smoke stage, and finishes it over the flame. For rare, the stated pull temperature is about 120-125°F.
Remove the picanha from the cryovac and dry it off. Trim away anything loose or dangling, then trim the fat cap to about 1/8-1/4 inch. Score the fat cap about 1/2 inch between each score, then cross-score it to make squares. Season both the back and front of the picanha generously with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. Set the pellet grill to under 225F and low smoke the picanha for 1 hour. Remove the picanha, expose the fire pot with one grate above it, and turn the pellet grill up to 500F or as high as it can go. Place the picanha fat-side down directly over the flame for about 1-1 1/2 minutes, then flip it over the next 3-4 minutes to build up the flame and char. For rare picanha, pull it at about 120-125F. Allow it to rest on the board before slicing.Frequently Asked Questions
How should I trim and prepare the picanha before seasoning?
What seasonings are used for Reverse Sear Picanha?
How long should the picanha smoke before the sear?
How is the picanha seared after smoking?
What temperature should I pull picanha for rare?
Wrapping Up
This Reverse Sear Picanha follows @thegalleryBBQ's pellet-grill process from trimming and scoring through low smoke, direct flame, resting, and slicing. Recipe created by @thegalleryBBQ for Trust Me Try It.
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Ingredients
- 3-4 lb picanha
- Salt
- Pepper
- Granulated garlic
Instructions
- Remove the picanha from the cryovac and dry it off.
- Trim away anything loose or dangling.
- Trim the fat cap to about 1/8-1/4 inch.
- Score the fat cap about 1/2 inch between each score, then cross-score it to make squares.
- Season the back and front of the picanha generously with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.
- Allow the picanha to rest on the board for about 15-20 minutes while preparing the grill.
- Set the pellet grill temperature to under 225°F.
- Low smoke the picanha for 1 hour.
- Remove the picanha from the pellet grill.
- Remove the ineurs from the pellet grill and expose the fire pot with one grate above it, using a flame-proof glove to avoid getting burned.
- Turn the pellet grill up to 500°F or as high as it can go.
- Place the picanha fat-side down directly over the flame and shut it down for about 1-1 1/2 minutes.
- Over the next 3-4 minutes, flip the picanha and build up the flame and char.
- Cook to the desired temperature; for rare, pull it at about 120-125°F.
- Put the picanha on the board, allow it to rest, then slice and enjoy.
