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The Magazine

Northshore October 2025

Secrets of Successful Grilling From Top Chefs

Tiffany Raiford
Professional chefs use many methods to test steak for doneness. Daniel Gursha, executive chef at Ledger in Salem, slides a super-thin cake tester into the meat, and then touches it to his lip. Cool is rare, while too-hot-to-touch is well done. Chef Steve Zimei swears by the famous finger test—judging the temperature by comparing the firmness of the meat to the firmness of various parts of your hand. But if you don’t spend 10 hours a day sweating over an open flame, with the scars to prove it, just use a meat thermometer. The tiny puncture it makes is well worth knowing your meat is properly cooked. “I can’t imagine hosting a group of
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