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It’s all in the prep, cooking and resting.
First get your meat to room temperature. When people talk about the meat being relaxed they’re talking about not rapidly expanding and contracting the muscle fibres.
Next if you’re cooking in butter use some sunflower oil first (helps minimise burning of butter). And get your pan hot. Really hot.
Sear the meat on all sides.
Cool for an equal amount of time on both sides or all sides if evenly cut.
Rest for as long as your total cooking time.
The tougher the cut of meat the longer cooking time it needs in which case the low and slow hot water method is ace.
Similar to above, salt, sous vide at 55C, pat dry, blast with a blow torch to get crust.
The method I was told and still use is having got the meat to near room temperature, use kitchen roll or similar to take the surface moisture off, salt and pepper each side then cook at a high heat in a dry pan. I originally used to turn regularly, including on the sides but don't bother now to no ill effects. For medium/rare as I like it I cook for around 3 mins each side depending on meat thickness. My wife likes medium so I add another min or so each side. Obviously depends how thick the steak is though. After cooking I wrap in foil and rest while I finish the other food so usually for 5 to 10 mins.
Cut wise I usually go for Rib Eye, my wife Fillet but Sirloin also works if it's a decent bit. I don't tend to buy Rump and usually purchase from the Morrisons butcher counter.
Don't get me wrong, more expensive cuts are lovely but for a reasonably priced, tender and tasty steak I find this method works well every time.
Which direction were the steaks facing when you cooked them?
It's the speaker cable of the culinary world 🙂
Similar to above, salt, sous vide at 55C, pat dry, blast with a blow torch to get crust.
Or flash on the BBQ instead of using the blow torch. Had Tasmanian beef this way in Melbourne one Christmas day and it was fantastic.
The best ever was the A5 Miyazaki sirloin Wagyu, but at £98 for 160g I'm glad I wasn't paying.
Pissed at an EU soiree in Brussels with my Irish counterparts (always a complete scream), the waiters came round with the food and we dived in. This tomato salady thing is weird we thought. Still, needs must. Waiter then confirmed to the food philistines that it was steak tartare. Veggie colleague horrified.
For a great, scientific, view on a lot of what has been suggested, this is a very worthwhile read:
https://www.seriouseats.com/the-food-lab-complete-guide-to-pan-seared-steaks
And an accompanying article:
https://www.seriouseats.com/old-wives-tales-about-cooking-steak
(Edited for 2nd link)
singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/can-you-cook-a-tender-tasty-steak-without-spending-a-lot/page/2/#post-11922997
If you are cooking a huge bit of steak - say the 1.6kg Picanha I’ve got in the freezer, using your index fingers on your thumb is not going to be helpful if you want to understand the internal temp. And reverse searing with a probe is key.
At no point is the probe causing the meat to piss juice everywhere at the beginning nor the end. 😉
Oops the quote didn’t work. But the article Speed12 links to nails it for pretty much everything I’ve said I’d say.
Bbq’ing meat in the rain this weekend it seems 🤗
having a sous vide expt later.
RT start, salt, bag, 55C but how long for? Couple of hours enough?