Being stuck at home can be pretty dull, and you’re bound to miss your favorite steak joint. However, it also gives you enough time to experiment with your taste buds. Making the perfect steak is an art and can take a lot of patience and practice to master.
Before you get started, keep in mind a few pointers that play a crucial role in making a savory steak at home, and we’re here to help.
The Steak Cut
Different cuts will have different procedures for cooking, have different tastes, tenderness, and flavors. Depending on your likes, you can choose among several varieties. Sirloin being the prime category, is among the costliest along with the fillet that is tender and fat. Other options include a t-bone, bavette, and rib-eye.
Cooking Pan
A heavy girdle pan or a cast-iron skillet is considered the best for frying your steak indoors. It’s also the best pan to use to reheat steak. These pans are ideal as they retain a lot of heat and help in fast and non-stick cooking. You can also barbecue or grill the meat.
The Seasoning and the Fat
Take time to season the meat for at least 2 hours before cooking. This will help it absorb flavors and make it tender. Other than salt and pepper, whole garlic cloves, rosemary, or a coat of honey and mustard will enrich the taste of the juicy steak.
Steak is ideally cooked in flavorless oils such as sunflower or groundnut oil. However, halfway through the cooking, add butter to enhance the flavors.
Photo by Edson Saldaña
Searing
Sear the steak until a golden caramelized crust is formed on one side and keep flipping it every minute.
Timing
Depending on the type of meat, you can expect a blue, rare, medium-rare, medium, or well-done steak. The weight of the meat is essential in calculating the cooking time. However, if you’re unsure, ask your butcher about the timing.
Rest the Steak
Rest the steak for 5 minutes at room temperature and up to half the cooking time. This is to allow the meat to reabsorb all the free-running juices. Pour any deposited juices over the steak while serving to result in moist and tender meat.
1. Garlic Butter Steak
In the Oven: What could go wrong with a steak that has garlic butter? Although there are innumerable ways to cook and enjoy steak, garlic butter steak is the most popular. It’s also a popular item on the menus of many food delivery companies. Prepare the garlic compound butter beforehand and refrigerate until firm. Preheat your oven and pan to broil, then place pat dried steak in the middle.
Season the steak and drizzle it with olive oil before cooking until a brown crust is formed over medium heat. Place the skillet in the oven and cook the steak for 4-5 minutes, flipping halfway. Rest the steak for 3-4 minutes and serve with previously readied butter.
Photo by Nanxi Wei
2. Steak with Mushroom Gravy
On the Stove: Fry the steak until dark on a cast iron skillet and let it sit. Meanwhile, roast 2-3 tablespoons of flour in a pan of melted butter. Wait till they start browning and add chopped mushrooms, followed by beef broth or stock.
Whisk the gravy continuously to ensure that no lumps are formed. Cook it for 4-5 minutes and add the steaks. You can also serve the steak separately with mushroom gravy on the side.
Photo by Alex Pavlyuk
3. Cumin and Onion Marinated Steak
On the Grill: Season and cover the chunks of meat with marinade. Refrigerate for a day and bring it to room temperature an hour before cooking.
Heat the grill or pan until smoking hot, dry, and oil the meat before threading on metal skewers. Grill for 3-4 minutes and let the steaks rest for 10 minutes under foil before serving sliced, with sauce. This is one of the best ways to make steak at home.
About the Author/s
Tom is a lifelong New Jersey resident, Rutgers and FDU alumni and the publisher of The Digest.
