Best Practices for Cooking Steak
There are lots of ways to cook steak. Here are some of our best practices no matter what cooking technique you’re using.
Season It
No matter how perfectly cooked the meat is, it will taste better if it’s been seasoned. Contrary to what many people may think, seasoning meat is as important before cooking as it is after. That’s why in the test kitchen we usually salt our steaks before cooking.
Check the Temp
You should always take the temperature of the area of the meat that’s last to finish cooking. That’s normally the thickest part or the center. Use an instant read thermometer for quick, accurate results.
Consider Carryover Cooking
The temperature of meat will continue to rise as it rests off the heat (depending on the size of the cut and the temperature and duration of the cooking), so we usually recommend removing meat from the pan when it’s slightly below the desired serving temperature.
Rest Before Slicing
If you cut the steak immediately after cooking, the liquid between the interior proteins will simply pool on the carving board or plate. A short rest on a carving board will decrease the amount of liquid lost during carving by 40 percent.
