Back to the Strip Loin Steak

[dragnlaw]

Found my leave in thermometer - changed the battery - and actually remember how it works. So will attempt a reverse sear with the steak. Fished it out and it is ready to go.
At what temperature do I set the oven to roast it? 350? 375?
I've set the temperature for 150 and will put the probe into the thick end.
I've gotten out the hated induction burner and a cast iron pan. With a laser heat thermometer, at what temp do I preheat the pan? 355? 400?

Hopefully will cook it tonight if I get some answers in time.

 

[caseydog]

That internal temperature is higher than I would go, but I like medium rare steak. I cook my steaks to 135F internal.

That oven temperature is fine. Just watch your IT carefully.

For the reverse sear, I'd go HOT with the pan. I do that hot and fast to get that Maillard reaction working quickly. I cook my steaks sous vide, which pretty much requires a reverse sear. I usually use a kitchen torch to sear, but when I do pan sear, I use a cast iron pan at a pretty high temperature, so I'm not cooking the inside any more as I sear.

CD

 

[dragnlaw]

So setting the oven to 350 is good?? - I can lower the temp as I like medium rare as well, but this guy is pretty thick - so I'll change it to 140.

You've never taken the temp on the hot sear pan?

 

[caseydog]

So setting the oven to 350 is good?? - I can lower the temp as I like medium rare as well, but this guy is pretty thick - so I'll change it to 140.

You've never taken the temp on the hot sear pan?

I would not go over 140F IT.

I have not measured my pan temp for searing. I guess I could do that tonight, but don't know when I'll be cooking my steak. The goal is to get a nice, brown sear as quickly as possible, so you don't continue to cook the inside of the steak.

Using cast iron, I wipe my pan down with some avocado oil on a paper towel, then turn up the burner to high, and dial it back to about 7/10 when I add the steak. It takes about a minute per side.

Oh, it will make some smoke, which is another reason to get it done fast.

CD

 

[pacanis]

I don't want to confuse C v F, I'm not understanding your temps given, but for reverse sear on a grill I shoot for 108F internal temp on indirect heat. That's for a 1-1/2" to 2" steak. Indirect, I'm guessing, might be 300-350F. So that is what I would set my oven.

Then when I move it to direct heat, which is probably 450F, I pull it off at 125F internal. Which does not take long to reach. That will easily raise to a med/rare pink through and through around 135F like CD said.

But for steaks indoors I use this method.

Much simpler than bringing the oven into the picture.
But not indirect.

 

[dragnlaw]

Super tender.... very juicy but I should have done perhaps 138 as the pink is a little too red for me. Wish it showed more in the picture. But I'm good and happy.

My biggest mistake was to not cut off the tapered end. It was just not an even thickness. I thought about it and then forgot about it.

I set it for 140 but got nervous and pulled it at 135.
I cannot have the oven and induction burner going at the same time so I also figured for the little time the it took to heat the cast iron (was like a nano second) if the carry over took it higher than the 135 I would be OK with it.

I know I didn't follow all of your directions but I'm super happy with it. Thanks guys for the boot to my fence sitting on getting this done.

I have enough for a small sandwich tomorrow. Should have been a bigger piece leftover but it was very tasty.

 

[pictonguy]

Found my leave in thermometer - changed the battery - and actually remember how it works. So will attempt a reverse sear with the steak. Fished it out and it is ready to go.
At what temperature do I set the oven to roast it? 350? 375?
I've set the temperature for 150 and will put the probe into the thick end.
I've gotten out the hated induction burner and a cast iron pan. With a laser heat thermometer, at what temp do I preheat the pan? 355? 400?

Hopefully will cook it tonight if I get some answers in time.

Unless your steak is 1.5" or thicker the reverse sear is not a good idea. Most, almost all supermarket steaks are cut to 1" or less or at least that's been my experience in the 3 major supermarkets in my area.

A thinner steak doesn't have enough mass and it can go from raw to grey to overcooked in minutes even at low oven temps, basically reverse sear and a thin steak has no room for a thermal buffer where 1 minute your fine and then the next it's overcooked.

Another good reason a thin steak is not a good candidate for reverse sear is the crust to interior temp collapses. A properly cooked steak will have a certain amount of caramelization which translates into time management and by the time both sides have a good crust most times it will be cooked to at least medium rare or medium which compounds and makes that management time in the oven extremely tight basically it's an impossibility really where even something simple like resting for 5 minutes make the whole thing an experiment in precision cooking. Basically what I'm trying to say is reverse sear is for thick steaks only.

There's a reason why sear and then in the oven is the gold standard to cook any steak and for 1" or less it's the only reliable method. I wouldn't say reverse sear is a fad but it's been talked about lately in lots of social media and sites because it's mostly fashionable to talk about and you get clicks. Sear and then oven is faster, more controllable, and more consistent. Personally a streak that is 2.0 to 2.5 inches and thicker the reverse sear then makes sense otherwise, not a chance, in my opinion of course, and I have many of those.

 

[caseydog]

If you cook your steaks sous vide, and sear first, you will ruin your crust. If I am cooking over charcoal from start to finish, I sear first, and use two zones on my grill, but for sous vide, I reverse sear.

CD

 

[dragnlaw]

This steak was a good 1" and this method seemed to work just fine.

@pictonguy I fully understand what you are saying about thinner steaks. It is good to know, I will keep it in mind.
I think I've mentioned I rarely have steaks so I'm not too worried about me running out and buying up the cow.

But this one really worked well. I'm glad I did it this way.

 

[taxlady]

I was really pleased with the results of reverse searing. However, the instructions were to heat the oven to between 200 and 275°F (93 and 135°C). I don't remember how long it took in the oven, but it was a lot longer than ~20 minutes that dragn mentioned in the supper thread. I had a 1.5 inch thick steak. Instructions were here:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

The reverse sear is one of the easiest and arguably best methods of cooking a steak. Start it in a low oven, then quickly sear it in a hot pan or on the grill for a beautiful crust.

www.seriouseats.com

I actually prefer using "cold sear" (I think that name is stupid.)

 

[dragnlaw]

@pictonguy
p.s.
a steak that is 2 to 2.5" is a roast (to my way of thinking )

another lost post from 8pm last night

 

[dragnlaw]

Gosh, I'd completely forgotten that post taxy! IF, I should ever get another thick steak like that - I'll have to remember the lower heat setting.

 

[taxlady]

Gosh, I'd completely forgotten that post taxy! IF, I should ever get another thick steak like that - I'll have to remember the lower heat setting.

Hahaha, I was thinking I might increase the heat to speed up the process. OTOH, I will probably just use Lan Lam's method that starts on a cold non-stick pan.

 

[caseydog]

Gosh, I'd completely forgotten that post taxy! IF, I should ever get another thick steak like that - I'll have to remember the lower heat setting.

I haven't bought a steak in a couple of months. I see the price, and buy pork chops instead. When I found that vacuum sealed steak in the freezer two days ago, it was like finding a twenty dollar bill between the cushions of my sofa.

CD

 

[dragnlaw]

Honestly don't know which I would choose.
If I found a steak, pork chop or chicken. All equal weight and same price... not sure which I would choose.
But I don't think steak would be the top contender. I guess I've burnt myself too many times cooking them.

 

[jennyema]

So setting the oven to 350 is good?? - I can lower the temp as I like medium rare as well, but this guy is pretty thick - so I'll change it to 140.

You've never taken the temp on the hot sear pan?

You had your in-meat thermometer set to 150 which is well done, but you were nervous about lowering it because it was thick…

The point of that kind of thermometer is to alert you to when your meat reaches a particular temperature. Which should generally be maybe 8 degrees lower than it’s finished temp because the temp will rise while meat rests.

The time it takes to reach that internal temperature depends on cooking temp and meat thickness.

But nevertheless it will reach that internal temperature and you will be alerted. So if you kept it at 150, it would have alerted you when it got there. And the steak would have been really overcooked because it would have climbed more while resting.

So, my point is that you should always set that thermometer lower than what you want it to be when finished. Lower still if you are reverse searing, as the meat will be cooked again.

Reverse searing is generally done in a low — 275 or so — oven first until desired temp. Taken out and seared in a very hot pan on the stove.

I’m with pictonguy. I “sear and blast” steaks i cook inside. Sear on the stove and finish in a very hot oven.

 

[pictonguy]

My go to red meat is mostly tougher cuts and braised. When I do buy steak, which might be once a month then it's a mammoth cut of the prime section of the cow, not going to mess around spending money only to be disappointed. We eat a lot of rabbit and chicken thigh and pork belly normally prepared in the Asan style which is mostly braised then roasted. Fish is making it's way more on my plate especially sardines, cod, salmon and tuna. I'm embracing the new guidelines and not that I haven't been doing that for the last decade anyway.

 

[dragnlaw]

I set it for 140 but got nervous and pulled it at 135.

@jennyema even with the searing there was the initial cut that was a little too red for me. In the end by the time I had finished up it was not that noticeable.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed it. Gave me, myself, and I plus all you guys a pat on the back for getting me thru it!

 

[pictonguy]

This steak was a good 1" and this method seemed to work just fine.

@pictonguy I fully understand what you are saying about thinner steaks. It is good to know, I will keep it in mind.
I think I've mentioned I rarely have steaks so I'm not too worried about me running out and buying up the cow.

But this one really worked well. I'm glad I did it this way.

Yeah, glad it worked out for you, it looks good.

 

[pictonguy]

There's a product in Spain called Iberico pork which is a product that is fed acorns as the main diet and highly prized around the world and I have ordered some Iberico pork the pluma cut which is like a skirt steak in beef. In Canada Iberico only comes frozen and the pluma cuts are generally around 1 to 1.2 lbs and it cost 39.00 which is a lot, but it's really like the wagyu of pork and looking forward to it. if this ends up being a religious experience then there's a rack that weights around 5 lbs for 100.00, which would be on my bucket list for sure.