Ohh. The perfect steak. Perfectly pink in the middle. A good sear and a caramelized surface.
Cooking the perfect steak is an art in itself – an art that needs to be learned and practiced before mastering it.
That being said, there are a few tricks that significantly increase your success rate with perfect steaks. So stay tuned, because in this article, I'll guide you through how to cook your steak absolutely perfectly every time.
Start with a good piece of meat
Before you even think about how hot your pan should be, when to salt the steak, or whether to add rosemary or thyme sprigs to the pan along with the steak, you need to get your hands on a good piece of meat.
Take a trip to your local butcher and have him cut some good pieces of meat for you. Preferably with a thickness of around 2 ½ - 3 centimeters each.
Steaks you buy at the supermarket are often too thin. And they certainly don't give you the best conditions for hitting the perfect steak. A wolf in sheep's clothing is still a wolf – and a steak of poor quality cannot be saved with a few good tips. A good steak requires a good piece of meat.
Take the meat out of the refrigerator an hour before cooking
You've now bought your delicious piece of meat, and you can hardly wait to cook your steak.
About an hour before you plan to throw the steak in the pan, take it out of the refrigerator so it reaches room temperature.
What happens when the steak is refrigerator-cold is that the pan cools down. And instead of getting a delicious sear, the steak ends up boiling in its own juices. We don't want that.
Now it's time to cook the steak: Here's how
Now we need to get the steak in the pan.
- Before it goes into the pan, season your steaks generously with good flaky salt.
- Get out your best pan. Preferably a good carbon steel frying pan or an enamelled cast iron pan, as they can reach significantly higher temperatures than the classic non-stick pans.
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When your pan is nice and hot, throw your steaks in. Let the steak sit and form a good sear.
It can be tempting to lift and move the pan – but just let it sit. The proteins caramelize and provide the good flavor.
- Once the sear has formed, you'll easily be able to flip the steak and get the sear on the other side.
- After that, you can add seasonings like butter, thyme, or rosemary, and maybe some garlic.
The absolutely perfect, medium-rare steak has a core temperature of 52 degrees Celsius. If you're completely new to red steaks, it's worth investing in a meat thermometer. When you're more experienced, you can feel for yourself whether the steak is done enough.
A good rule of thumb is to give the steak one minute on each side for every centimeter of thickness.
The most difficult step – let the steak rest
The steak is off the pan, and you can hardly wait to sink your teeth into it. But take a breath and maybe have a sip of the red wine you'll be drinking with it. The steak just needs to rest for about five minutes.
When the steak is allowed to rest, the juices distribute throughout the steak – and then you avoid the juices spilling out onto the plate and soaking the rest of the meal.
The recipe for perfect steaks:
- Take the steak out of the refrigerator an hour before cooking
- Heat a carbon steel frying pan, enamelled cast iron pan, or a carbon steel griddle.
- Season the steak with flaky salt on both sides
- When the pan is smoking hot, place the steak on the pan. A good sear will now form.
- After about 3 minutes, flip the steak and cook on the other side
- Add a good knob of butter, herbs, and garlic
- When the steak has had a total of 2-3 minutes on each side, remove it from the pan and place it on a rack. It should have a core temperature of about 52 degrees Celsius.
- Let the steak rest for about 5 minutes. Grind fresh pepper on both sides and serve immediately.
Bonus Tip: Choose this pan
Now you hopefully have complete mastery of the technique when cooking the perfect steak - but which pan should you choose?
When choosing which pan to use, it's important to have a pan that can withstand high temperatures - and that can retain heat.
If the pan drastically drops in temperature when you place the steak, you'll end up with a dull gray steak without a sear because the steak will be boiled in its own fat.
Avoid that at all costs!
Instead, choose a pan that can retain heat and give you a fantastic caramelized sear.
Our recommendation is to choose a carbon steel frying pan or an enamelled cast iron pan!
