How done is my steak?

[smurfblue40]

I was talking with a coworker today. He is a grilling noob and destroyed a filet the other night

I passed on a technique I was taught at my first real job, I figured I’d pass it on here

"

 

[Ebs]

thermometer is a must have

 

[TRINDU]

Usually 400°+, flip once, just long enough for grill marks on both sides. Always pull before you think (if you're a noob or use a thermometer) , as itll cook more as it rests.

 

[ThePanzerFuhrer]

thermometer is a must have

Lol never in my life have I used a thermometer on a steak. Then again I eat wildcat so that tells you where I stand on undercooked meat,

 

[Tin Roof]

Lol never in my life have I used a thermometer on a steak. Then again I eat wildcat so that tells you where I stand on undercooked meat,

I do on my wife's, just because her steaks have to be past well done.

Wildcat/rawdawg is delicious.

 

[HELL BOUND]

Usually 400°+, flip once, just long enough for grill marks on both sides. Always pull before you think (if you're a noob or use a thermometer) , as itll cook more as it rests.

This is the truth. I only flip them once usually about 5 min a side and done. Any longer than that and you might as well eat shoe leather.

 

[Ebs]

Oven/sear method is great if you like a crispy seared crust, still med/rare inside. I do one or two a week and they come out great everytime (with a thermometer )

Dinner the other night:

 

[Motorcharge]

Still my favorite way and the steak doesn't go on until the grill grate is glowing orange. Sears the outside and leaves the inside blue rare to rare but still melts all the fat. If you want it cooked beyond the rare side of medium rare you can figure it out yourself. I'm not ruining steaks voluntarily for anyone.

 

[welndmn]

I never understand why the it's not manly to use a thermometer.
Stop fucking up your meat and just use one.
You can started to learn at what temp you like your food, rather than pressing on your hand or cheek.

 

[WaterH]

One thing I can tell you when going to a restaurant for steak. Always order it the next level done to get it how you like it. Example, if you like it medium, order it medium well. The reason is almost all chefs cook it less then you ask for two reasons.

1. They like it less.
2. They can always cook it more, but they half to cook another if it's too done.

My wife and I have tested this many times.

 

[Weasel]

I never understand why the it's not manly to use a thermometer.
Stop fucking up your meat and just use one.
You can started to learn at what temp you like your food, rather than pressing on your hand or cheek.

cause it's hard to get a read on a piece of meat that is half inch thick?

One thing I can tell you when going to a restaurant for steak. Always order it the next level done to get it how you like it. Example, if you like it medium, order it medium well. The reason is almost all chefs cook it less then you ask for two reasons.

1. They like it less.
2. They can always cook it more, but they half to cook another if it's too done.

My wife and I have tested this many times.

yikes no way will be crap if I did that. Mine are nearly always overcooked.

 

[MigGunslinger]

cause it's hard to get a read on a piece of meat that is half inch thick?

If your steak is 1/2" thick it is already done by the time you get grill marks on it. Unless you pull it out of the freezer I guess.

 

[Dookey]

I've been stuck on sous vide to sear for over a year now and can't say I'd ever go back. Water bath is set to the temp you want your steak so it can't over cook. Then sear when you're ready to eat. No thermometer required. :)

 

[Wildcat]

Then again I eat wildcat ,

 

[Weasel]

If your steak is 1/2" thick it is already done by the time you get grill marks on it. Unless you pull it out of the freezer I guess.

Well yes. point was on thinner cuts of meats it's hard to get a good reading with a probe. Easier to jsut eyeball it and practice.

I've been stuck on sous vide to sear for over a year now and can't say I'd ever go back. Water bath is set to the temp you want your steak so it can't over cook. Then sear when you're ready to eat. No thermometer required. :)

Is the flavor still good? I have some friends that do this alot and had a few meals from it and the meat was sorta bla. Similar to what I've got cooking in a pressure cooker. Can't recall if they were seared afterwards or not.

 

[Dookey]

Is the flavor still good? I have some friends that do this alot and had a few meals from it and the meat was sorta bla. Similar to what I've got cooking in a pressure cooker. Can't recall if they were seared afterwards or not.

You have to sear for the flavor and appearance. You can get whatever flavor you want that way. We do SPG with a butter wash at the end if it is freezing cold outside. Or we do the grill.

I don't really care to go anywhere else anymore for steak. It is kind of a process though. I set my steaks out 1.5-2 hours in advance before they go in the bag. I use salt only before sealing it up with the food saver bags and sous vide for 2 hours before the sear. Once it comes out of the bag I season with salt again then pepper and garlic. I reallllllly dry the steak before it goes in the pan with a little olive oil. Then can the heat and butter wash with your favorite butter.

It is extremely good and tender.

The grill is the same way. Charcoal or hickory. 6-700 degrees and just sear it. Salt to flavor and serve.

I feel like both ways produce a great end result. Just depends on what you want to taste.

 

[Dookey]

I see what you did there.

 

[MigGunslinger]

Well yes. point was on thinner cuts of meats it's hard to get a good reading with a probe. Easier to jsut eyeball it and practice.

I agree but being a gun guy in california makes a man pedantic, I also like to use both the feel method and a thermometer when possible to help me learn, I might cook myself a steak every 2-3 weeks the learning curve is long and drawn out.

Since you asked about sous vide, I just did my first sous vide tri tip the other day. If they had not seared you would know, the outside would have looked grey and unappetising like it was boiled.

In comparison to a grilled Tri tip the meat was more wiggly / gelatinous if that makes sense, and it did not seem to leak as much juice when I carved into it. Overall the flavor was really good and the meat was really juicy but I feel like my gas grill did not give me the heat that I wanted to really sear the meat quick after cooking. I was afraid of over cooking it after it spending all that time trying to get it just right. Maybe a weed burner or the oven broiler would get it done better.

 

[welndmn]

I agree but being a gun guy in california makes a man pedantic, I also like to use both the feel method and a thermometer when possible to help me learn, I might cook myself a steak every 2-3 weeks the learning curve is long and drawn out.

Since you asked about sous vide, I just did my first sous vide tri tip the other day. If they had not seared you would know, the outside would have looked grey and unappetising like it was boiled.

In comparison to a grilled Tri tip the meat was more wiggly / gelatinous if that makes sense, and it did not seem to leak as much juice when I carved into it. Overall the flavor was really good and the meat was really juicy but I feel like my gas grill did not give me the heat that I wanted to really sear the meat quick after cooking. I was afraid of over cooking it after it spending all that time trying to get it just right. Maybe a weed burner or the oven broiler would get it done better.

I recently went up in temp on my tri tip to Sous vide at 137. I know, bare with me it sounds like a lot, but it does really make a difference.
Read about it, try it, who know you might be impressed as well.

 

[MigGunslinger]

I recently went up in temp on my tri tip to Sous vide at 137. I know, bare with me it sounds like a lot, but it does really make a difference.
Read about it, try it, who know you might be impressed as well.

I went 131F for 6 hours. I would trim it better next time, the fat cap did not break down.

 

[Dookey]

I went 131F for 6 hours. I would trim it better next time, the fat cap did not break down.

It never will. Sous vide doesn't render fat. Letting it sit out prior to the bag will really help.

 

[Ebs]

Reverse sear tutorial. I haven't not done a steak this way since trying it a few years ago, and like mentioned above, pretty much keeps me from going anywhere but home for a steak dinner:






I wouldn't mind playing with a sous vide though.

 

[Dookey]

Reverse sear tutorial. I haven't not done a steak this way since trying it a few years ago, and like mentioned above, pretty much keeps me from going anywhere but home for a steak.

I wouldn't mind playing with a sous vide though.

I was doing the reverse sear method for awhile. It was tough to hit my target temps because the steak would keep climbing after you stopped baking it. Depending on the steak it would go all over the place during the rest. So I swapped over to the sous vide. Won't go back now.

 

[Lurker]

In comparison to a grilled Tri tip the meat was more wiggly / gelatinous if that makes sense, and it did not seem to leak as much juice when I carved into it. Overall the flavor was really good and the meat was really juicy but I feel like my gas grill did not give me the heat that I wanted to really sear the meat quick after cooking. I was afraid of over cooking it after it spending all that time trying to get it just right. Maybe a weed burner or the oven broiler would get it done better.

Use a charcoal chimney and throw a grate over it to sear after the bath. Lump charcoal is prefect for this. Since the outside of the meat is already up to temp, you will get a very large even sear. It will go fast. If you dont want to waste the coals cook up some chicken thighs to use later, they are good in a ton of different things from salads to quesadilla, tacos, etc.

 

[Lurker]

I was doing the reverse sear method for awhile. It was tough to hit my target temps because the steak would keep climbing after you stopped baking it. Depending on the steak it would go all over the place during the rest. So I swapped over to the sous vide. Won't go back now.

Have you messed with freezing them yet? I pulled one out of the freezer after a year, thawed then left in the sink with hot tap water for a while to bring temp up then seared on stainless pan and lots of butter. I couldnt tell it had been frozen, it was good. I always write the temp it was cooked to, the date and what seasining was used with a Sharpie.

I go in phases with kitchen tools. This summer I went through 10 big bags of charcoal after buying a fancy charcoal grill. I also got the green mountain dusted off for thanksgiving. I do have a nice oven with convection roast, which can turn out legit food inside. I need to grab the suis vide out and cook up a bunch of stuff for the freezer again.

 

[Seubs070]

It never will. Sous vide doesn't render fat. Letting it sit out prior to the bag will really help.

What's the point of letting it sit out before sous vide? If your cooking with high heat I get the point of getting it to room temp before grilling but seems pointless if you're going to through it into a water bath for a few hours.

Try bumping up the temp for fatty cuts like ribeye. 135-137. It will still be medium rare, but the higher temp renders the fat. I was reluctant to try it thinking it would be overcooked, but it was perfectly pink all the way through and the fat nicely rendered.

 

[dnsfailure]

I never understand why the it's not manly to use a thermometer.
Stop fucking up your meat and just use one.
You can started to learn at what temp you like your food, rather than pressing on your hand or cheek.

yep! nothing wrong with using a thermometer. I use a torque wrench on nuts and bolts too, if there's a spec.


I've been recently cooking steaks on a small cast iron pan. Get it good and hot, as hot as I can and sear both sides then let it sit in a medium temp oven or grill and baste with butter a few times until the inside is the temp I want. Perfect every time. The only time I've had crunchier more flavorful crust on the outside is when I grilled on top of a chimney starter, that was fantastic

 

[Dookey]

What's the point of letting it sit out before sous vide? If your cooking with high heat I get the point of getting it to room temp before grilling but seems pointless if you're going to through it into a water bath for a few hours.

Try bumping up the temp for fatty cuts like ribeye. 135-137. It will still be medium rare, but the higher temp renders the fat. I was reluctant to try it thinking it would be overcooked, but it was perfectly pink all the way through and the fat nicely rendered.

Tenderness. If the steak is frozen it is a brick. If it is room temp is tender. I've tried fresh out of the fridge and letting it sit out. Sous Vide doesn't render fat. I cook at 120 then sear up to the temp I want. If you go up in temp you're still cooking during the sear and that goes beyond my desired doneness. That's the beauty of cooking. You get to do what you like.

 

[Seubs070]

Tenderness. If the steak is frozen it is a brick. If it is room temp is tender. I've tried fresh out of the fridge and letting it sit out. Sous Vide doesn't render fat. I cook at 120 then sear up to the temp I want. If you go up in temp you're still cooking during the sear and that goes beyond my desired doneness. That's the beauty of cooking. You get to do what you like.

If you're putting it into a 120 water bath it doesn't matter if its frozen or room temp. It will get up to 120 and then just sit there. Yeah the frozen one will take longer to get to 120 but it won't go past 120 so getting it to room temp before sous vide is a waste of time.

Heat renders fat not cooking style. Fat renders around 134 degrees. So sous vide at 120-130 won't render fat. Next time you do a ribeye do it at 135-137, it will be much better than anything sous vide at a lower temp and it won't be overcooked. Just let it sit out for 30 mins or so after taking out of the bath and before searing. Or even put in the fridge uncovered for a bit. The fridge is super dry and will dry the surface for a good sear.

 

[Dookey]

I'm going to waste all my own time tomorrow with a 2 pound bone in ribeye. It will be delicious. 😁