Pulehu Steak

20 min · Easy · Serves 2

Pulehu means 'to broil over hot coals,' and it's how Hawaiian cowboys — the paniolo — have cooked beef for two hundred years: rock salt, cracked pepper, an open kiawe fire, and nothing to hide behind. The simplest recipe on this site and maybe the best argument for the wood.

Coals, not flame. That distinction is the entire method: you burn the kiawe down until there is no visible fire left, just a bed glowing orange under grey ash. Flame deposits soot and unburned compounds on the meat — that is where the harsh, bitter "campfire" flavor people blame on wood actually comes from. Ash-over coals give clean radiant heat and nothing else.

Flip every 45 seconds. It contradicts everything you have been told about leaving a steak alone, and it is right: frequent turning cooks the interior more evenly and builds crust faster, because neither face ever gets hot enough to burn while the other rests. Salt hard right before the steaks go on, or a full hour ahead — the window in between is the one that draws moisture to the surface and steams your crust.

The Numbers

• Fire: coals only, no flame — all glow
• Flip: every 45 seconds
• Pull At: 130-135F for medium-rare
• Burn: kiawe splits or lump, one chunk on top

Ingredients

• 2 thick steaks (ribeye, NY, or tri-tip)
• Coarse Hawaiian sea salt
• Cracked black pepper

Method

1. Bring the steaks to room temperature. Season hard with salt and pepper — more than feels polite.
2. Burn kiawe lump (with a chunk on top) down to glowing coals — no flame, all glow.
3. Grill directly over the coals, flipping every 45 seconds, until a dark crust forms.
4. Pull at 130–135°F for medium-rare. On a pellet grill: run 225°F to 118°F, then sear wide open.
5. Rest 5 minutes. Slice against the grain. Eat outside.

On Your Rig

Same recipe, different fire. This one is about coals, not equipment — any rig that gets you a clean ash-over bed will do it.

• Charcoal Grill (Kettle) — Kiawe Lump Charcoal + 2-3 Kiawe Chunks on the coals. Full charcoal grill setup
• Kamado / Ceramic — Kiawe Lump Charcoal + Kiawe Chunks buried in the lump. Full kamado setup
• Offset Smoker — Kiawe Chunks over a lump bed. Full offset smoker setup
• Pellet Grill — Kiawe Pellets. Full pellet grill setup

On the Side

• Hawaiian Mac Salad — the plate-lunch essential
• Grilled Sweet Onions — onto the coals beside the steak
• Guava-Glazed Steak — the same cut, the opposite philosophy

Build this cook on the Kiawe Cook Matrix — pick your protein, cut, and rig for exact temps and fuel loads.