Cast Iron Ribeyes on the Grill

By James Kimble July 12, 2025 6 mins read 4 Views

Ribeye steaks simply seasoned with black garlic and salt, and grilled on a 600F degree cast iron griddle over charcoal in my kamado grill. I used the just keep flipping method to grill these cast iron ribeyes. The older I get, the more I realize that cast iron is just plain magic.

Cast Iron Ribeyes

While these ribeyes were cooked on a cast iron griddle insert in my Primo Oval Kamado, I’ve also got a recipe for cooking a steak on one of those cast iron flat top grills.

On top of that, I’ve got a blackened cast iron steak that will blow your mind and smoke your taste buds.

But if you don’t have a griddle/flat top or one of these griddle inserts, you can do this with a cast iron pan. But if you are doing a tomahawk, you have to get a little creative and the bone will keep the steak from getting that coast to coast flavor crust. That’s why we cook the tomahawk ON a cast iron pan, rather than IN the pan.

If you want to take this to another level, check out these cast iron steaks cooked with beef tallow.

Cast Iron Ribeyes Ingredients

Ribeyes
Salt
Your favorite beef seasoning (we highly recommend black garlic or SPG Seasoning)

I picked these up at the local club store. Nothing fancy here. Choice grade steaks:

I simply seasoned them with salt and some fantastic black garlic seasoning that I’m a huge fan of:

My friends at Prime4BBQ went from black and gold labels to gold and black labels after I got my last shipment. So the bottle in the pic above looks a little different from what is on their website.

Set the steaks aside:

Then, let’s get that fire going and get the griddle hot.

Time to Kick the Tires and Light the Fires, Big Daddy

(Bonus points if you know what the above line comes from without googling)

We need a rager here. We aren’t looking for kinda hot.

Then drop in the cast iron insert over the hot coals that I have banked to one side:

I can’t stress enough that we aren’t going for a little hot. 400F+ will do it, but 500F is better. And 600F is even better:

That little IR temp gauge from Thermoworks is a life saver.

If you are using one of the flat top grills 600F might not be possible. Max it out to whatever temp it can hit. 400F+ is enough. 500F is better.

Time to Grill some Cast Iron Steaks

Seasoned Ribeye ready for the Cast Iron — Seasoned Ribeye ready for the some heat

What is the ‘Just Keep Flipping’ Method for Cooking Steaks?

Simply put, the JKF method involves searing as steak on one side and waiting for some nice crust to form. Then, flip and repeat on the other side. Keep flipping the steak as more crust forms, but before it burns until the steak reaches the desired doneness. The JKF method is truly foolproof which is why we love it so much

We have been using the just keep flipping (JKF) method more and more here. Like on these Denver Steaks. And this Flat Iron Steak.

You don’t get the pretty, cross hatch grill lines but where it lacks in beauty, it makes up in flavor.

My steaks are on the cast iron griddle

Once I get some char on the bottom side, flip them:

That’s just the first flip. We aren’t done with the browning yet.

Here’s one of the other steaks after a second go on the heat on that side:

Pro Tip ~ If the steak is gripping the cast iron when you go to flip, leave it. It hasn’t browned enough to release the wicked hot cast iron. This is more common if the steaks are cold on the outside when they hit the cast iron. Set the steaks out for an hour or so so the surface temp of the steak comes up a few degrees so they aren’t in the mid 30’s.

And keep flipping until you get the internal temp you prefer:

You or your guests might want them a little more done:

Never guess about steak temps. Always use a probe thermometer and cook to temp, not time:

Steak Temps for the Cast Iron Ribeyes

Rare Steak Temp: 120F-125F
Medium Rare Steak Temp: 130F-135F
Medium Steak Temp: 140F-145F
Med. Well Steak Temp: 150F-155F
Well Done Steak Temp: 160F or more, but seriously, just order the chicken

Here are two of the steaks sliced.

Cast Iron vs Grill Grates

Some of you are going to say you want that smoke from the charcoal instead of coast to coast browning or char. Ask yourself this, how long does it take to cook a steak? 15, 20 minutes? How much smoke is penetrating in that much time. This ain’t a brisket. And browning from edge to edge is a lot tastier than some skinny grill marks with a bunch of grey in between.

This is better:

Than this:

And those are some FAT grill marks because the American Made Primo Oval has some really great, thick grill grates. But give me this all day long:

Now let’s slice into that one with the edge to edge char above the one with the grill lines:

If that’s too rare for you, I cooked one a little longer:

Time to serve the fam:

And that steak on the front is my wife’s who digs blue cheese crumbles on hers:

One final shot (other than the extras of these cast iron ribeyes I dropped below the recipe card):

Cast Iron Ribeyes Recap

This really is my go-to method. Wicked hot cast iron, simply seasoned with an almost crunchy flavor crust. That’s all I need. And as a guy who loves rare steak, I’m willing to go medium rare to get a better crust because that browning hits so hard.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below or send me an email.

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Recipe Card:

Cast Iron Ribeyes

Cast Iron Ribeyes simply seasoned with black garlic and cooked on a griddle insert using the just keep flipping method to form a coast-to-coast flavor crust

Course Entree, Main Course, Steak, Steaks

Cuisine American, American Fare, Steak, Steaks

Keyword Black Garlic, Browning, cast iron, Cast Iron Griddle, Cast Iron Ribeyes, Char, Coulotte Steaks, Flat Top Griddle, Flavor Crust, Griddle, Grill, Grilled Steaks, Grilling, JKF, Just Keep Flipping, Just Keep Flipping Method, Kamado, Kamado Grill, Primo Grill, Primo Kamado, Primo Kamado Grill, Primo Oval, Ribeye, Ribeyes, Steak

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Resting Time 5

Servings People

Ingredients

Ribeyes
Salt
Beef seasoning

Instructions

Season the steaks with salt and the beef seasoning and set aside to allow for the outside of the steak to come up a few degrees in temperature
While the steaks warm up a bit, light the grill and allow the cast iron griddle to get hot. 400F+ at a minimum. 500F is better. 600F is even better.
Place the steaks on the flat top and allow to brown. Do not flip the steaks if the meat is gripping the hot metal. Once some browning happens, flip the steaks over and char on the other side. Just keep flipping as the steaks char until the internal temp reaches your desired doneness.
Steak Temps
Rare Steak Temp: 120F-125F
Medium Rare Steak Temp: 130F-135F
Medium Steak Temp: 140F-145F
Med. Well Steak Temp: 150F-155F
Well Done Steak Temp: 160F or more
Remove from the heat and allow to rest for 3-5 minutes and serve