Cooking is a part of daily human life, but to some, it is a religious experience.
There are a set of rules that need to be followed and hence never question about them.
Cooking steak is no different either because there are some set of rules you need to follow.
If you go to google and search “how to cook steak,” you will find many pro tips that you already have from chefs on television.
But to your surprise, there is much advice out there that are turned out to be wrong. So with that being said, let us look at the eight most common myths about cooking steak.
Want to know interesting things in this whole review?
In this review, you will be able to know all the aspects of cooking a delicious steak to its extent.
There are many myths about cooking steaks that can lead you in the wrong direction.
These myths can result in ruining your steak if you don't know them while you are making and cooking steaks.
We have listed eight myths about cooking steaks that you should ignore if you want your steak to be tender and delicious.
We are pretty sure that everything will stay amazing from every aspect. You will enjoy a great steak if you do not pay heed on these myths about cooking steak.
So, let's get started with the good stuff, shall we?
Without taking more of your time we will head straight towards the collection of the best information about cooking steak.
It has all the things that you need to know for mastering the art of cooking steaks perfectly.
You must know what type of steaks you want to make because it allows you to keep it easy and tender.
The good thing is that we have gathered all the information about cooking steaks here for you.
Different Ways to Cook a Steak:
Steaks are something that is not only delicious but also a direct source of pure protein.
They come with different seasoning and side dishes. But still, steaks can be one of the best choices you can make for eating out.
It is also a good choice while you are having a home barbeque or whatsoever.
The steaks can be cooked in various ways but there are three of the states in which it is usually done.
We have listed those three states and the reason why people love having steaks in those states of cooked meat.
1- Medium Raw Steak:
This is a state of the steak in which the outer layer of the meat is cooked properly. The heat fro the outside cooks the inner part too but some of it is left raw.
Some people like their steaks to be half raw because harsh cooking can sometimes lower the nutritional value of the steak.
People also like medium raw steak because it is juicier than a well-done steak.
2- Mild Done Steak:
A mild done steak is something which you can place between a well some and medium raw steak.
It is taken out when the steak is about to reach the well-done state. This has only the inner part of it mild raw and the rest is finely cooked.
3- Well Done Steak:
When it comes to good old fashioned steak dining then nothing can beat a well-done steak.
This means that you can enjoy a completely cooked meat steak with all the goodness of taste and deliciousness that you can find in any dish.
Myth#1: Don’t Salt Steak Before It’s Cooked:
No doubt, seasoning before cooking steak is a brilliant idea as salt adds a flavor to your meat and also reduces the moistures present on its surface, giving a better browning.
The best option to season your steak is around 40 minutes to two hours beforehand. It depends upon the thickness of the meat.
Adding salt on your meat or, in other words, dry brining before cooking steak will cause a certain reaction in the first few minutes of seasoning where it will drain all the moisture from the meat.
Eventually, adding salt will make the surface harder to get a good sear in the exception if you do not have to wait too long.
If left your meat for a few longer after seasoning, the moisture will be mixed with salt and will become a brine. As a result, the moisture will be absorbed back into the meat.
Here is what you need to do, salt it before cooking steak and leave them for at least one to two hours inside a fridge uncovered.
What it does is that it will give you a well-seasoned steak which you can get a good sear without having a chance to lose any juiciness from it.
Myth#2: Steak is Best When Cooked at Room Temperature:
From many advisors, this one turns out o be a sensible one. Leaving your steak for about twenty minutes at room temperature is supposedly a good idea and a better result in cooking steak evenly.
The theory says that leaving a steak at room temperature will not cause any waste of thermal energy.
If your meat is already at room temperature, then the heat goes right into getting you the perfect sear.
But here is what happened when the chef “J.Kenji Lopez-alt” tested this theory out, and to his surprise, it was a fail. The meat started to fall apart quickly.
When he kept the meat sitting at room temperature for 20 minutes, he noticed that the center of the meat has risen to 1.8F, and after a complete two hours, he about 13% closer to the required temperature for a medium-rare cook.
“It takes five times more energy to convert a single gram of water into steam than it does to raise the temperature of that water from ice cold to boiling.”
- Kenji Lopez-Alt – Serious Eats
Here is what you should do, Kenji suggests you remove all the moisture as you can from the meat by using a paper towel.
Another thing you can do is by seasoning it before cooking steak and placing it in a fridge for one to two hours uncovered.
This will drain all the moisture from the meat.
Myth#3: Searing Meat Locks in the Juices:
The whole purpose of the searing or, in other words browning your meat is to remove moisture from the surface of the meat and allowing the high temperature of your pan or a grill to make a Maillard Reaction.
What exactly does the Maillard reaction do? You must be wondering, well, it rearranges the amino acids and sugar to give a whole new exciting flavor.
On the condition, if it is done correctly and also not to worry about how juicy the steak will be.
It has been noticed by food scientists that searing meat later in the process will retain moisture rather than the searing before. That is why it is said to sear before cooking steak.
Here is what you need to do is to sear your meat in the right way, forget the juiciness of the meat.
Myth#4: Don’t Flip Your Steak More than Once:
Fliping your meat as less as possible is a key to obtain a lump of good juicy meat. Cooking steak one side thoroughly before doing it on the other side helps the moisture to seal.
Another thing said is that flipping your meat too much will cause the meat to cook unevenly.
According to food scientists, flipping your meat multiple times is a good way to avoid your meat from getting dry and thus helps it in cooking steak evenly.
Flipping your meat over and over again prevents one side from absorbing a certain amount of heat. Moreover, it increases the rate of speed of cooking by about 30%.
Here is what you want to do, feel free to flip your meat or steak once in 30 seconds.
Eventually, you will begin to get the browning you want, and also, the more you rotate, the more evenly the meat or steak is good.
Myth#5: Use the Poke Test to Tell When Your Steak is Done:
No doubt, the cooking steak will sometimes take time, depending on how well you want your steak to be.
But this habit is the most common one, poking your finger in a lump of meat to check whether the meat or the steak you are cooking is done or not.
It is a silly move because you would not get the idea just by poking a stick or your finger. The temperature that you might change will be as small as 5F.
So stop doing this foolish way of checking the meat and do it the right way.
Here is what you need to do, take an instant-read meat thermometer to check the temperature of the meat because the temperature is the only way by which you can determine whether the meat is ready to eat or not.
Poking your finger won’t do the job. Cooking steak is not an easy job as you think it is.
Myth#6: You can tell steak doneness by cutting into it:
Here is two way by which you can tell the two flavors of the meat;
- “You can tell how well your steak is done by cutting it and looking at the color.”
- “Don’t ever cut your steak to tell how well done it is, or all the moisture will flow out.”
Don’t do that; both of them are not the right way to check it. As we may know, they will continue to after it has been taking off the heat.
As a result, its color changes, peaking into the meat by cutting is not accurate to measure how cooked it is.
It is as same as taking a random picture and looking at it and thinking what time it is. Your steak is not a ballon; cutting into it will cause the juice to flow out, which believe me you do not want to do that.
So here is what you need to do take an instant-read meat thermometer to check the temperature of the cooking steak because the temperature is the only way by which you can determine whether the meat is ready to eat or not.
Do not slice or cut the meat to peak and determine whether the meat is cooked or not.
Myth#7: You need to rest your steak after it’s cooked:
Cooking steak and then keeping it for a Rest is one of the most important things that television chefs and the recipes have told us to do.
The common reason was given for resting a steak is that it reabsorb the juice, or in other words, it becomes juicier.
But when tested by Heston Blumenthal, J. Kenji López-alt, and Prof Blonder, they were unable to prove whether resting causes the meat to be juicier or not.
Here is what you need to do according to Kenji method;
- Firstly, sear your steak in hot fat.
- Then, rest the meat on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
- Before serving, reheat the fat and juices left over until they’re smoking-hot
- Then pour them over the steaks.
When you follow this method it will allow the meat to soak in all the juices and become more tender while you are eating it.
You must know the right method because it will lead towards you having a great steak for yourself.
When you rest your steak after it is cooked it makes sure that the ingredients that you put on the steak to enhance the flavor get settled in properly.
It will also allow you to keep the meat tender and ready to eat at all times.
Myth#8: Steak with the bone-in has a better flavor:
We come down to our final myth, and this one is a lot different than the rest of them.
I really can not say about this one because it involves two different opinions. Meaning that some people prefer steak with bones while others prefer boneless.
There is no correct answer to it as some people love to tear the meat out of the bone while others leave it as it is.
Some people think that it acts as an insulator as the meat attached to the bone cooks more than the rest of them.
Here is what you to do, if you enjoy eating meat with a bone then go-ahead and cook.
On the other hand, if you are the complete opposite and like meat without bone, then fear no more, you can get the same exciting flavor as well.
The meat near the bone is more delicious because of its form. As it is neat the bones it is more tender and allows a decent texture after it is cooked properly.
It also contains some of the bone juice that increases the level of taste in the meat near the bone.
This is the reason why steak with the bone-in has a better flavor than a normal piece of steak.
Conclusion:
Well, there you have the eight myths about cooking steak. So next, when you cook a steak for yourself or your family or friends, you know the rule and way to do it so.
Don not be hasty and think that steak with bone will taste different than the steak without a bone, that is complete nonsense. Both the meat will have the same exciting flavor.
I am pretty sure that you will love all the content of this review. The reason behind it is that everything in here helps cook the best steak.
All the information in this review is organized properly. This helps the reader to look out for the accurate information needed in this whole review.
Everything here is authentic which makes it useful for everyone who wants to cook the best steak.
We hope that after you have gained all the information regarding the myths of cooking steak you will be able to cook better steaks.
This will also remove any kind of doubts that are in your head. But if there is still something which is left unclear then there is no need to worry about it at all. The reason behind it is that we are here for your assistance.
Another thing that I would like to mention is that never poke your finger or cut the steak to check whether or whether not the meat has been cooked.
Because we can fell the temperature of up to 5F and cutting the meat will cause the juice to flow so don’t use that trick.
What you need is a thermometer to check the precise temperature of your steak. Because with the temperature you can determine whether the steak is cooked medium rare or well done.
You can ask us anything which you find difficult to understand. We will analyze all the facts and provide you better solutions for the problems.