Grilled Chuck Eye Steak: What is It and How to Cook

If you are like most folks then you have probably never even heard of a chuck eye steak, much less tried grilling one.  Let me tell you, they are awesome!

This post is going to cover how to grill a chuck eye steak and share an optional marinade and sauce that you can use to take things to the next level.

How to Cook a Chuck Eye Steak

This steak is nearly identical to a ribeye in terms of tenderness, flavor and marbling.

The chuck eye steaks that I buy are always under one pound and about a half inch thick.  My preferred way of cooking these is to go Hot and Fast at four minutes per side.  You can sear these in a cast iron skillet or cook them on a hot grill over direct high heat.

Grilled Chuck Eye Steak Recipe

• Season the steak liberally with salt and pepper.
• Allow the steak to rest at room temperature for at least half an hour.
• Preheat your cast iron skillet or grill to a temperature of 500F.
• Cook the steak for four minutes on a side then flip and cook for another four minutes.
• When the steak reaches an internal temperature of 135F remove from the heat and eat with reckless abandon.

Here are a few ideas to make this steak even better.

Add Some Sauce

My favorite steak sauce is a bright, sharp and earthy Argentinian chimichurri.

Everyone has their own version of this sauce and mine is constantly changing depending upon what I have on hand in the kitchen.  My current chimichurri recipe is below and is an adaptation of the one from the New York Times.

• 1 cup flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano
• 1 Tablespoon chopped garlic 
• 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
• Juice of one medium lemon (about a tablespoon)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1 teaspoon salt

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth.  This is amazing on steak.

Marinate the Steak

My favorite marinade for beef is a coffee based concoction.  The sweet balsamic is one trick for getting great grill marks.  The other trick for amazing grill marks is using a set of GrillGrate panels.

Chuck Eye Steak Marinade

• 1 cup coffee
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon Accent (msg)

Let the steak marinate at least an hour then pat dry before cooking.

Here is a nice video showing how to cook a much larger chuck eye steak if you are fortunate enough to have found one.

Is This the Delmonico Steak?

This steak is cut from the chuck eye roll and is sometimes called a Delmonico steak.  Although to be honest, nobody actually knows what a Delmonico steak actually is. By some definitions the chuck eye steak is cut from the first three inches of the eye roll.

Here is a video showing exactly where this cut comes from.  Go ahead and skip the first 30 seconds.

Think of a chuck eye as the baby brother of a rib eye steak.  The Chuck roll and the Rib roll are neighbors on the cow and the chuck steak is incredibly similar to a small ribeye.  In the picture below the chuck steak is on the bottom and the rib eye is on the top.  The biggest difference between these steaks is the price with the chuck almost always costing less on a per pound basis than the ribeye.

I have done a chuck eye vs rib eye blind taste test and couldn’t tell any difference between them.

If you can find some of these steaks at your grocery you should give them a try.  They are easy to cook, delicious and more affordable than a ribeye.