The Steak thread

[Skybird]

I launched a thread on how to do good pizza. I launched a thread on how to do a good espresso. You now know all my secrets. But I know none of yours. That is not fair! Now here is your opportunity to give some back.

Its time to give steaks the full treatment.

Problem is: different to pizza and espresso, I do not really know how to do a good steak. The recipes are many, and from own experience I got very different results.

I am not really happy with how I try to do good steak. The way I get it done is okay, one can eat it, but it is not special.

We do not talk grilling and barbecue here, but using a kitchen stove, gas or electric. We do talk steaks like you get in our restaurants here, 200-300 gr. And especially we talk aboput how to prepare them to achieve a "medium" to "well done" result". I personally prefer steak without much gimmicks, just salt and black pepper and herbed butter.

I read about baking steaks. Roasting steaks. Putting them in aluminium foil and let them rest. Roasting them twice. Turning them, or not turning them. Turning them several times, or not. Long roasting and short baking. Short roastign and long baking.

Well, what is it now, eh?

Whats the best way to get the perfect restaurant-style steak? Give your recipes, tell me all your secrets!

[nikimcbee]

Thread of the year.

[Skybird]

Not yet.

I give my verdict after having tasted the suggestions coming in.

[joegrundman]

Originally Posted by Skybird

Whats the best way to get the perfect restaurant-style steak? Give your recipes, tell me all your secrets!

it is not that common for restaurants to do very good steaks. you should aim higher!

most important thing: get good quality meat from the best cows and pieces should be fatty and well aged. **

sirloin tastes better than fillet, but fillet is nicer textured.

salt generously just before cooking

cook on high heat, 60 seconds per side if you like it rare like i do. longer for less rare

cooking on a grill is good, but the very high heats can mean it cooks through quickly. not a problem though. it's so quick it doesn't dry out.

rest for 5 mins.

nice with twice-fried chips and rocket salad.

** if you happen on Kobe or Wagyu beef, this is extremely well marbled with fat and very expensive. It does not make good steaks. It is too rich and fatty for this purpose. It's really intended for slicing very thinly and cooking in hot broth for the dish shabu-shabu. better you should aim for high quality beef that is marbled but not so much as the Japanese sort. British is best i think, but not necessarily easy to get and costs a lot. South American beef not so good, but pretty good for the price

[Skybird]

Kobe beef is extremely expensive (the most expensive there is), and I think the EU has a ban on it anyway. Never saw it in stores.

I also do not want to ruin my finances over just one dinner. I'm not a rich man - I just make myself sound like one.

[joegrundman]

Originally Posted by Skybird

Kobe beef is extremely expensive (the most expensive there is), and I think the EU has a ban on it anyway. Never saw it in stores.

I also do not want to ruin my finances over just one dinner. I'm not a rich man - I just make myself sound like one.

then south american is a good option. good value for money and easy to obtain in germany.

if not well marbled with fat, then it is a good idea to marinate the steaks in olive oil for a few hours before cooking.

also a useful tip for home aging.

take the meat out of the packing, and put it on a rack above a tray, as if for roasting. place it in the fridge for two days.

it may lose some of its beautiful redness, but this is a desirable thing in a steak!

you should take the steak out (and marinate it in olive oil for a couple of hours if necessary) and let it warm up to room temperature before cooking.

[krashkart]

I like plain ol' steak. Just grill it and eat it, sometimes slathered with A1 sauce. My stepdad though, he cooks up a steak from time to time with a dark beer gravy that is something to behold. Another proper use for Guinness in my estimation.

[Gargamel]

Steaks need to be grilled. Period.

Other ways of cooking dead cow is fine, but to disregard it out of hand? Sacrilege!

That said, a good meat rub of spices, or good marinate, then some light coating of a thick beer on the coals for vapor flavor. Cook it till just stops mooing, 30 seconds more...... Yum. Garnish with sautéed shrroms, onions and mixed peppers.

[frau kaleun]

Originally Posted by Skybird

Whats the best way to get the perfect restaurant-style steak?

I call it "going to my sister's house." Of all the nice things she's done for me over the years, marrying her husband was by far the nicest.

What I'm saying is, the man is a master when it comes to grilling meat. Restaurants wish they could serve a steak like what he puts on your plate.

He also does fried chicken to die for.

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by joegrundman

it is not that common for restaurants to do very good steaks. you should aim higher!

most important thing: get good quality meat from the best cows and pieces should be fatty and well aged. **

sirloin tastes better than fillet, but fillet is nicer textured.

salt generously just before cooking

cook on high heat, 60 seconds per side if you like it rare like i do. longer for less rare

cooking on a grill is good, but the very high heats can mean it cooks through quickly. not a problem though. it's so quick it doesn't dry out.

rest for 5 mins.

nice with twice-fried chips and rocket salad.

** if you happen on Kobe or Wagyu beef, this is extremely well marbled with fat and very expensive. It does not make good steaks. It is too rich and fatty for this purpose. It's really intended for slicing very thinly and cooking in hot broth for the dish shabu-shabu. better you should aim for high quality beef that is marbled but not so much as the Japanese sort. British is best i think, but not necessarily easy to get and costs a lot. South American beef not so good, but pretty good for the price

I have a very, very precise way of doing steaks. I've gotten rave reviews from everyone I've ever made a steak for, and I think if you try it my way, you'll be happy with the results. It requires an oven, a rimmed baking sheet, a cast iron pan, and since we're being precise here, a probe thermometer. A rack that fits inside the baking sheet is a nice thing to have, but optional.

joegrundman has good advice. The best steaks are going to start with a nice, well-marbled piece of meat. You want a good amount of fat marbled in with your meat, but not something too fatty, or else it's going to be greasy. I like my steaks to be at least an inch thick.

Now, once you've got your steak of choice (I prefer the New York Strip steak as I think Ribeyes tend to be a little too fatty for my taste), the next question is how to season it. Again, this is going to be your choice. I prefer to keep it simple, as if you've got good meat, you want the taste of it to speak for itself and not cover it up with a bunch of seasoning. Your seasoning choice is up to you, so long as it's dry. Wet marinades are completely out of the question. They're going to give you a mushy and gray steak. I go with a simple seasoning of equal parts salt, pepper and garlic powder. Season both sides of your steak liberally.

When you're ready to cook, take your meat out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Let it sit out for about an hour. Next, set your oven to 275 degrees (that's 135 C for our non-American friends). Line your baking sheet with foil to make cleanup easier, and then set your steak on it, or on the rack if you're using it. Throw it in the oven.

Now it should take about 20 minutes or so for your steak to get up to temp. What temp? Well it depends on how you like your steak. This is where the probe thermometer comes in. If you don't have one, you can fudge it a bit, but I strive for precision.

I like my steaks on the rare side of medium rare, so I cook mine to an internal temp of 88-90 degrees (31-32 C). This usually takes about 20-25 minutes. If you like it medium to medium rare, cook it to around 95 degrees (35 C). Usually takes about 25 minutes to 30 minutes. If you like it done more than that, go eat some jerky instead.

Wait a minute, I hear you saying. Medium rare means an internal temp of 130-140 degrees F. Yeah yeah, I know, but I'm not done yet!

Now once your steak is almost to temp, put your cast iron skillet over high heat. As hot of a heat as your stove's burner will allow. Get it screaming hot. Add about a teaspoon of oil to the pan, and it's going to start smoking. (This is a good recipe to do with the doors and windows open unless you like hearing your smoke detector go off). Once you pull your steak out of the oven, slap it in that pan and DON'T TOUCH IT. Don't move it, don't fiddle with it, don't lift it up, don't anything. Let it sit for 2 minutes. Then flip. Do the other side for about a minute and a half.

Now it's time to eat!

I LIED! NO, IT IS NOT TIME TO EAT! You must let a steak rest before cutting into it. If you don't let it rest, you're going to end up with a flood of juices on your plate when you cut into the steak, and juice on your plate means that juice isn't in your meat, which means you've got a dry steak. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes, tented loosely with foil (I usually just use the foil I used to line the baking sheet with). This is necessary to let the steak reabsorb all that internal moisture.

After you've let your steak rest, dig in. I guarantee if you do a steak this way, it will rival anything that you can get in any steakhouse anywhere.

[the_tyrant]

You will need a good griddle, preferably the kind with grooves.

otherwise, I have no more tips for steaks on a stove top, after all, I get my steaks from M&M meat shops already marinated.

[razark]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

I have a very, very precise way of doing steaks. I've gotten rave reviews from everyone I've ever made a steak for, and I think if you try it my way, you'll be happy with the results.

That method sounds pretty good. I might have to try it, since the grill is out right now. Instead of the garlic powder, have you ever tried rubbing the steak with a clove of garlic cut in half?

Location: Houston, TX

[Oberon]

A lot of it is down to the quality of the beef I'd say, having a good palette to start off with and all that. I used to live on a cattle farm, didn't actually run it (although did help out from time to time) but lived next door to the guy that did. Well, at one point we had a cow go down off the list, so to speak, so she went to the slicers and we got a portion of the meat...and when I say a portion, I mean enough to fill up our freezer. We were eating beef for weeks after! But damn, if that wasn't the nicest beef I've had in a long time, it was just right.
So it makes you wonder what goes on between the farm and the supermarket/butchers.

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by razark

That method sounds pretty good. I might have to try it, since the grill is out right now. Instead of the garlic powder, have you ever tried rubbing the steak with a clove of garlic cut in half?

I've done that when I made bruschetta, and that turned out well. Never thought about doing it with steak. Good idea!

Texans know meat! If you're referring to the fact that there's no grill involved in my method, it's because I live in an apartment, so I don't get to grill as often as I like.

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

it's because I live in an apartment, so I don't get to grill as often as I like.

Convert a window-garden box into a grill. Problem solved!