Marinated steak: Wipe off marinade before cooking?

[Greg Who Cooks]

This is probably a silly question from an amateur chef like me who has probably been contributing to beef mortality rates for many decades with just my home cooking alone.

Tonight I'm marinating my ribeye steak in a couple cloves of minced garlic (pressed with my Zyliss garlic press), a splash of EVOO and a splash of Trader Joe's balsamic vinegar.

I'm going to pan fry my steak. (And yes I will turn it only once.)

I've never thought of this before. I always just go straight from marinade to pan. It steams and spits and smokes a lot.

I'm wondering if that's the best way to go. Maybe I should wipe it off slightly with a paper towel, not to totally scour the marinade off but just to remove the most liquid parts. There's still be a bit of marinade moisture since I'm not going to be a zealot about it, but I'm thinking of removing most of the marinade before I cook it.

Then I intend to give it a light sprinkling of coarse salt just before I toss it on the pan. Or sometimes I just throw my sea salt in the pan and then throw the steak on top of it, and sprinkle the top side a bit more to prepare it for turning. (The pan will of course be cooking hot before I throw the steak on.)

What is your advice? I'm marinating right now and I know forums aren't the place to get a 30 minute answer but DC is pretty active and DC is pretty active this time of day (US EST-PST dinner time) and I'll be pleased to get some advice before I commit.

Or I'll do it and tell you how it came out. Even an old dog (me) can learn new tricks. Particularly if food rewards are involved.

 

[Andy M.]

Meat to be seared in a pan should always be dry. You'll get a better crust and avoid all that sputtering.

Also, the garlic will burn in high heat and become bitter.

So, blot it dry with paper towels and brush off the garlic before hitting the hot pan.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Thank you so much Andy! I've had Internet connection problems most of the last 40 minutes and just now was able to access your reply. You seem to support my logic. I'll do that.

As a follow up, dry pan or apply a little oil? (I think I'll try dry, ETA about 20 minutes or so, 6 PM PST as point of no return....)

(I hate my flaky Internet connection.)

 

[Andy M.]

Thank you so much Andy! I've had Internet connection problems most of the last 40 minutes and just now was able to access your reply. You seem to support my logic. I'll do that.

As a follow up, dry pan or apply a little oil? (I think I'll try dry, ETA about 20 minutes or so, 6 PM PST as point of no return....)

(I hate my flaky Internet connection.)

A light coating of oil.

 

[taxlady]

How did it turn out?

I prefer to grease the pan with a chunk of fat cut off the steak.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

It turned out better. I did everything I said and got Andy's advice before or while I was cooking, just a light coating of oil on the skillet.

Unfortunately I was typing and fussing with my unreliable Internet connection and forgot about my steak for a few important moments, and burned the first side. I cut most of that off while eating.

There's a topic for this. Perhaps I'll post there. But anyway this was a good way to cook a steak. If only you don't try to communicate on the forum or maybe turn off your computer. My bad.

 

[HistoricFoodie]

I prefer to grease the pan with a chunk of fat cut off the steak

Although it seems to have fallen out of favor, Taxlady, cookbooks from the 18th and early 19th centuries often specify using rendered beef fat for frying.

It only makes sense that if you use fat from the animal you're frying that you'd intensify the flavor. Nice to know there are folks who continue that tradition.

 

[Bolas De Fraile]

HF the tradition is alive and well in Yorkshire Fish and Chip shops.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I like the idea of greasing the pan with a piece of fat.

 

[Andy M.]

Beef fat has a low smoke point so you could be facing a smoky kitchen if you pan fry steaks at a high temp as is recommended.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Beef fat has a low smoke point so you could be facing a smoky kitchen if you pan fry steaks at a high temp as is recommended.

I often have a smoky kitchen, which drives my wife crazy.

I use chicken fat if I'm stir frying chicken, pork fat if I'm pan frying pork, etc.

I use veggie oil if I'm stir-frying veggies. Go figure.

I use butter for eggs, lard for making pie crusts.

Oh, and bacon fat can be substitued for all of the above, except for the pie crust.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

(I'm just waking up...)

I put a small amount of EVOO on a paper towel and gave the pan a very light swipe, threw on some sea salt and then the steak.

My smoking problem was much less than the previous time that I didn't wipe off the marinade.

My steak would have come out fine if I hadn't been fussing with the computer instead of watching my steak. It was okay even with that, one side having gotten a little too much crust (slightly burned in appearance but not much burn taste).

So resolved: It works better to wipe off most of the marinade before cooking a marinated steak.

 

[FrankZ]

Beef fat has a low smoke point so you could be facing a smoky kitchen if you pan fry steaks at a high temp as is recommended.

Beef tallow seems to have a smoke point around 420F. That looks like (from charts) to be in the lower end of the middle but higher than some oils that people might use like canola.

Now unrendered beef fat I don't know about.

 

[taxlady]

Beef fat has a low smoke point so you could be facing a smoky kitchen if you pan fry steaks at a high temp as is recommended.

I figure it's not worse than leaving that piece of fat on the steak when I fry it.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

That's what I was thinking too.

 

[Steve Kroll]

I realize my two cents is far too late but, yes, I would wipe off the marinade, too.

Now as far as oiling the pan, I don't do that. I read a tip many years back that suggested rubbing oil on the steak and not the pan, so that's how I've done it. And if you want to know the whole truth, I rub my steaks with lard. Yes, lard. I realize it's not from the same family as cow, but it's animal fat and it tastes good.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Steve, I wish you had been here early enough to tell me to quit fiddling with the Internet and pay attention to cooking my steak! But anyway it was a clear winner over recent steak cooking on my substandard temporary cookware, the slightly rubbed steak came out much better than the marinade dripping steak, and it was also a good idea to get the garlic rubbed off, or most of it, because the garlic burned before.

I ran a quick smear of EVOO on the pan and threw the steak on before it had any chance to burn, just to prevent sticking. It probably didn't need that. Even with the mild burn it lifted right up. I think my previous sticking problem was caused by excess marinade.

Really, I hope to get back to grilling soon but unfortunately the grill didn't make my move so I'll have to get a new one. In fact I'm planning on a charcoal grill, a gas grill and a smoker too (maybe two, a vertical one and a smoke box one). I have big plans for my next home. A guy cannot have too many grills, barbecues and smokers. It's like being too rich, too thin or too good looking!

 

[Caslon]

I wipe off the marinade simply so it doesn't overpower the taste of the beef after cooking.

 

[iamjumbo]

what happened??
i followed the insructions, wiped off, mostly, the marinade even poked holes through the steak with a fork, so i wouldn't have to stab so many times and it STILL turned out tough. it tasted great, what we could chew

 

[CraigC]

Did you use a rib-eye and if so what grade? Rib-eye both choice and prime should melt in your mouth, unless you over cook it. I don't understand why it needs marinade unless someone is trying to add flavor. For me it is S&P and on the grill, cooked to rare or medium rare.

Whats with the stabbing? poking wholes in cooking steak lets the juices run out. That also could lead to a tough steak.