Perfect steak

[SpiritWolf]

Hey Guys, Thanks 4 all your help, I have never come across so many different ways of cooking the perfect steak, some of the ideas are very close to what i do, and some are very different, but I must state, that I still prefer med-med well, I cant stand rare, but everyone to their likeing though ay!, and Michael in FTW, yes I agree, all cuts of meat are different, and should be cooked appropiatly to there cut, and how u like it, BUT, I love Med-- Med Well Done, we all have our preferences and I dont class it as ruining it or screwing it up as you say, your preference is yours, I would NEVER eat a rare steak, like some other people on here wouldnt, and some other people LOVE it, your choice and mine, all is different, PLUS I live in Australia, and we do have different cuts of meat from each other, so we cant comment on each others way or choice of "THE PERFECT STEAK " just be thankful and greatful that so many people want to help and have so many different ideas. I love trying ideas from all over the place, I love trying new foods and new ways of cooking. I thank everyone for helping out, it gives me heaps of different ways to cook. In Australia I love Porterhouse,Rump,Rib-eye ( very tender ), Rib fillet, all thick cut of coarse, but you dont get it thick cut unless you ask for it, plus lamb and pork are in this equation as well, I LOVE pork, and a good cut of lamb, no fat though. So please keep the ideas coming everyone, i LOVE THEM ALL, THANKS HEAPS From SpiritWolf in Aussie land.

 

[SpiritWolf]

Anne, thank you so much for your comments, I love to try all things different, and everybody has a different way of cooking that "Perfect Steak", so hey why not everyone start the perfect Pasta,Rice,Chicken,Pork Lamb, Salad, anything really, we are all on here for the same thing.
Talk shop on different ways to cook, cook anything that is.
Thanks everyone, will talk again soon.
Love SpiritWolf.

 

[naivin]

Choose your favorite cut and follow this method. It creates quite a bit of smoke in your kitchen, but comparisons to steak houses will be made. I have done this with filte, NY Strip, and Ribeye. All are excellent.


I have a related question for anyone who may know. I would like to use the same method on my outdoor grill to save th3 smoke in the house and actually get up closer to 600 degrees or higher. If so I would like to use olive oil instead of canola oil. Since I will be outside, i don't care about the lower smoke point of olive oil, but is there any other problem with using olive oil at such high heat?

 

[thymeless]

Unhealthy compounds form when an oil exceeds its smokepoint.

And you destroy any flavor the olive oil would have at that temp too.

Don't bother with the olive oil for this application.

thymeless

 

[black chef]

for me, the perfect cut of steak is the bone-in ribeye cut. there's nothing more tasty than the meat near the bone.

i season with a salt & pepper/garlic powder & brown sugar combination, and i cook in a combination of olive oil + clarified butter on a med to med high temperature. follow-up with a quick roasting in a 375 F pre-heated oven for 3-5 minutes.

let sit for about 5 min... and have at it.

 

[silentmeow]

Hope I'm not being disloyal but this method works great every time. My son makes them this way when they can afford steak,(college boy)! Go to recipezaar and type in #164780 in the search box. I could retype the recipe but his notations are great. This man knows how to cook steaks!

 

[Constance]

"Mine is rub a little oil on both sides and slap onto a screaming hot grill - but...cooked rare, then sprinkle with s&P - so mine perfect would certainly not be yours. [/QUOTE]

But it sure would be mine, cjs! I like mine burnt on the outside and rare on the inside...what they call "Philidelphia style". As for seasoning? Salt, pepper and a little garlic is all I need.
If you see me reaching for the Heinz 57 sauce, it means you've over-cooked my steak.

 

[Half Baked]

Is Philadelphia Style what they call Black and Blue?

I haven't been able to eat rare rare steak since I was pregnant 30some years ago. Now I eat them MR and also prefer a ribeye on the bone, seasoned with salt and pepper and grilled 5 min on one side 3 on the other.

 

[RPCookin]

Well, what cut, how thick, and are you really sure you want to screw up a good piece of meat cooking it to medium well done?

I cook different cuts in different ways - appropriate to the cut ... some thin cuts get slapped over hot coals ... some are cooked via "indirect" heat ....

This echoes my feelings exactly. There is a good reason why many good steakhouses will not guarantee the results if steaks are ordered cooked more than medium rare. It tends to make the meat tougher when you cook it longer and it starts to dry it out.

Order "Bistecca alla Fiorentina" ( a huge porterhouse intended to feed 4) in Florence or Tuscany (Italy) and you will get it medium rare. They don't even ask how you want it...

 

[bandonjan]

My favorite steak is also a rib-eye black chef, I use the Montreal
seasoning, sear both sides and put it in a 400 degree oven for
about 7 mins. Ummmm

 

[donnatran123]

Although I love cooking, I'm afraid of steak because of fat & cholesterol. Do any of you ever notice that influence from red meat?

 

[Andy M.]

Although I love cooking, I'm afraid of steak because of fat & cholesterol. Do any of you ever notice that influence from red meat?

Fat and cholesterol are present in steak, some cuts more than others. That's not a reason to cut it out of your diet completely. Eat it in moderation.

 

[smallfry]

Personally i would beat my 1 1/2inch steak down to about 1cm and them rub pink peppercorns on both sides and slap it into a hot pan, cook untill i can't see no blood.easy enough but it's the tenderising that gives it nice flavour
yours
The Boy

 

[Andy M.]

Welcome to DC, smallfry.

Most people prefer their steaks thicker rather than thinner as you can see from the other posts. I'll have to try it with pink peppercorns.

Beating the steaks down to 1cm thickness can tenderize it but I don't think tenderizing adds flavor.

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

My favorite cut is a two-rib thick prime loin-end boneless ribeye that has been nicely trimmed. I let it rest inside a perforated container in my 'fridge for 3-4 days to reduce it's water content some (concentrating flavor), and also to let the natural processes of tissue decomposition begin to break it down (making it even more tender). Then I trim any leathery spots and let it rest at room temp for a couple hours which helps it cook evenly. I like it boneless because I find that by the time the meat at the bone is Medium-Rare/Medium, the meat at the outter edge is medium-well. I like it to finish reddish-pink throughout as much of the meat as possible (ie. minimal well-done outter band).

I lightly salt it and hit it with some ground black pepper before rubbing it down with some vegetable oil.

Next it gets thrown onto an extremely hot charcoal grill where I sear it. Then it's off to the side (and covered) to finish away from the direct heat of the coals (I usually lift the grate and shovel most of them out into my starter, pushing the remaining ones to one side - I have a cheap weber).

But I rarely buy prime grade rib eye (maybe twice a year). The place I buy from is $10/lb bone in for prime rib-eye, so a two-rib cut usually runs 4lbs or $40 (About 3lb trimmed - or thereabouts). It'll feed a couple hungry carnivores with a settled bottle of cabernet and light side salad. You could probably feed four if you included a heartier starter like a big bowl of French Onion Soup or served it with a pile of good homemade fries.

Normal week-to-week I buy Choice New York Strip. I still age/s&p as above, but then I pan sear in cast iron (w/butter) and then finish in the oven. I'll also make a pan sauce with the fond.

Sometimes I buy a whole beef tenderloin as well (vac-packed). I cut steaks from the fat end, a Chateaubriand roast from the middle, and then cut the tip into chunks (which I lightly sautee and have on a salad with a warm pan-vinaigrette). I usually only do this when it's on sale.