Porterhouse-steak (Grill)

Porterhouse-steak grillé (grilled porterhouse steak) teaches the governing principle of a thick grill: fierce heat makes the crust, but a cooler zone brings the center home. Build both zones before the beef goes near the grate. With a porterhouse, keep the tenderloin toward the gentler side while the firmer strip takes the stronger heat.

The original recipe assumed a grill station with a deep, even fire and a sirloin already cleared of flank and projecting chine bone. It did not require a saucier, stock never off the fire, or a salamander because the steak was most often served plain. Your honest equivalent is one butcher-trimmed, 3-pound steak, a covered two-zone grill, and an instant-read thermometer. That feeds four without turning dinner into brigade service. One cook, one stove, one evening.

The optional procession of grill sauces and garnishes is scaffolding and can go. The fierce initial grilling and the rest afterward are the dish, and neither can be hurried. Let the meat rest for the full fifteen minutes before carving; that pause, more than any flourish at the table, decides whether the juices remain in the steak.