The Steak thread

[joegrundman]

salt will draw out moisture, which is why i say salt just before cooking. this way the salt can dissolve into the skin of the meat. if you just sprinkle salt on afterward then you still have granules of salt on the steak, which is unattractive.

there is also a modern approach called sous vide. very interesting results can be obtained with this.

the technique is as follows:

seal your meat with any flavourings you desire in a vacuum bag.

immerse the bag with the meat in water at the exact temperature you require - e.g. 60 degrees C for a rare steak

leave for 7 hours or so

then remove from bag and quickly season and fry at high temperature to brown the outside

it produces extremely good results, but it is not so easy to manage at home

the long cooking allows the proteins to set and any toughness to loosen, but it doesn't overcook because it never gets hot enough

here's a link to an article on sous vide steak
http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/03/h...ide-steak.html

and here are some photos showing how a sous vide setup can be arranged at home for not much money

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandsty...998339&index=0

if you are of an experimental frame of mind, you will have fun with this!

btw - the steak guy 's claim that browning the meat seals it and prevents loss of moisture is only partially true, as i'm sure you realise. if even that. High heat causes water to evaporate directly, leaving a dryer pan. a low heat causes water to exit the meat into the pan making it appear wet.