Contents Method 1: Prepare the steak 1. Choose the piece of meat you need. 2. Buy a thick steak—any cut, 1.5 inches to 2 inches thick. 3. Marinate steak (optional). 4. Defrost the steak. 5. If you are not using a marinade or dry marinade, now is the time to add salt. Method 2: Grill steak 1. In order to achieve the best grilling effect, it is recommended to use hardwood coals. 2. Place the hot coals on one side of the grill. This is the heating area of ??the grill. 3. Start heating the steak in the cooling area of ??the grill where no coals are placed. 4. Turn frequently so that both sides are crispy. 5. Use a thermometer to test for doneness. 6. In addition to a thermometer, alternately use the finger test to help estimate doneness. 7. When the temperature of the steak is about 15 degrees Fahrenheit away from your ideal temperature, you need to quickly grill both sides over high heat to brown it. 8. Remove the steak from the grill when it is about 5 degrees Fahrenheit away from your ideal temperature. 9. Season with pepper and let the steak rest for at least five minutes. 10. Enjoy. Method 3: Grilling Steak 1. You need to place the grill 4 to 6 inches from the top of the oven. 2. Turn on the oven, put in a large cast iron pan and let it preheat. 3. After the pan has been preheated, add the steak and grill for 3 minutes. 4. Flip the steak and grill for another 3 minutes. 5. After both sides have cooked for 3 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 500 degrees Fahrenheit (260 degrees Celsius). 6. Cook the steak according to the instructions in the table below. 7. Season with pepper and let the steak rest for at least five minutes. 8. Enjoy. Method 4: Pan-fry steak 1. Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into a long cast iron skillet and heat over high heat until thick smoke comes out. 2. Put the steak into the frying pan. If the frying pan has raised stripes, you also need to pay attention to the placement. 3. Turn frequently, about once every minute, for 6-12 minutes, until the inside reaches the ideal temperature. 4. Before reaching desired doneness, add 2 tablespoons of butter and some other spices. 5. After the steak is cooked (it will still heat up after taking it off the heat), let it rest for at least five minutes. 6. Enjoy. A perfectly cooked steak is tender, juicy and meaty. It's perfect whether it's reserved for a king's dinner party or a first meal for new friends. And there are many ways to cook a steak: you can sear it, grill it, pan-fry it, or even grill it inside the stove. Still, cooking the perfect steak is not easy for many people, especially when you want it to be browned on the outside and pink on the inside (medium-rare). If you'd like to learn the various techniques for cooking steak, we've got just the tips for you.

Method 1: Prepare the steak

1. Choose the piece of meat you need. When the word "steak" is mentioned, what do people usually think of? Of course, it is impossible for any piece of meat to be called "steak". It must refer to a specific part of beef. Choose a steak that suits your preferences. The texture, juiciness, and price are all factors you can consider. T-bone steak: T-bone steak is a combination of New Yorker steak and a small portion of filet mignon. One side is New Yorker, the other is Filet, separated by a T-shaped waist and spine. It is a favorite among steak lovers, but because it is taken from the loin of the cow - an extremely tender part of the meat - the price is naturally higher.

Porterhouse steak: Porterhouse steak is actually surprisingly similar to T-bone steak. It has tenderloin on one side and New Yorker on the other, separated by a thin wedge of bone in the middle, which brings richness. taste. The price is basically the same as T-bone steak.

Rib-eye steak: The rib-eye is taken from the rib muscle near the chest of the cow and is named after it. When most of us think of the word "steak," we think of the rib eye: perfectly marbled (a thin layer of fat in the center of the meat) and silky texture that tastes rich and juicy.

New Yorker steak: New Yorker steak is taken from the sirloin of beef. The muscles in this part do not move much, so it is very tender. While not quite as tender as the ribeye, the New Yorker also has great marbling.

Sirloin Steak: "Sirloin" can refer to either the top sirloin - a delicious and expensive steak - or the ordinary sirloin at the bottom - usually we just call it this. This type of steak is called sirloin steak, which is taken from the sirloin part of the beef, close to where the T-bone and porterhouse are selected.

2. Buy a thick steak - any cut, 1.5 inches to 2 inches thick. Why is a thicker steak better than a thinner one? Because it's almost impossible to cook a steak that's perfectly seared on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside with a thin steak, choosing a thicker steak will make it a lot easier. A 12- to 16-ounce steak is enough to share between two or more people, and it's always better to share a large steak with two people than to each enjoy a smaller steak.

3. Marinated steak (optional). Should you marinate your steak? This is a question worth thinking about. For steak lovers, adding anything other than salt and pepper to a good steak is a bad idea. The reason is simple: the original flavor of beef should be highlighted the most. But if you’re really determined to marinate your steak, let’s get started. The following two tips will teach you how to add extra seasoning to your steak.

Marinade: 1/3 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/3 cup lemon juice, 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1/2 cup chopped basil leaves, 1/4 cup cilantro. Marinate for 4-24 hours before cooking.

Dry Marinade: 4 1/2 cups kosher salt, 2 tablespoons freshly ground pepper, 2 tablespoons bell pepper, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves, 2 tablespoons cumin powder.

4. Thaw the steak. If you bought a steak that was refrigerated and needs to be defrosted to reach optimal grilling temperature, now is the time to take it out. Waiting until the steak reaches room temperature before cooking has two benefits: It speeds up the cooking process. Meat cooked at room temperature takes less time.

Make the internal and external cooked tenderness of the steak more coordinated. If the steak has been refrigerated for a day, it will take more time to warm the inside, which means you're more likely to sear or burn the outside if you want to cook the inside to just right doneness.

5. If no marinade or dry marinade is used, salt should be added now. The bigger the piece of meat, the more generous you should be with salt. Keep this in mind when adding salt: A 16-ounce T-bone steak has twice as much meat as an 8-ounce rib-eye steak. Add salt in advance. Although some people who add salt four days in advance are exaggerating, strictly speaking, it is necessary to add salt 40 minutes or more in advance. You can add salt to taste and wait 40 minutes, which is the necessary amount of time for the steak to come to room temperature.

Why not add pepper now? This is because pepper burns during cooking but salt does not. Burnt peppers don't taste very good, so it's better to add them later in the cooking process.

Method 2: Grill steak

1. In order to achieve the best barbecue effect, it is recommended to use hardwood coals. If hardwood coal (such as mesquite coal) is not available, ordinary coal can also be considered. But you have to know that hardwood coals burn faster and hotter, resulting in better grilled food. Of course, if you only have a gas grill, it’s not impossible to use it—just be prepared that the final steak will taste different. Never use ignition fluid to ignite coals. The ignition fluid will create a lot of smoke, giving the steak a smoky flavor. You may consider spending some money to buy a suitable barbecue smoke extractor.

2. Place the hot coals on one side of the grill. This is the heating area of ??the grill. On the other side is the cooling zone (even though it's actually hot!) To start, you'll use the cooling zone first, followed by the heating zone. This will ensure your barbecue experiment is more successful in the end.

3. Start heating the steak in the cooling area of ??the grill where no coals are placed. Close the lid and let your steak begin to "slowly" warm over indirect heat. In fact, this goes against common practice: many people will choose to grill over high fire at the beginning to "lock in the original flavor." But in fact this so-called common practice has no basis at all. If you start grilling in the cool zone, you'll leave enough time for the entire steak—not just the outside of the steak—to heat up. Beyond that, by the time it's almost done cooking, you'll have enough time to get a nice, crispy crust - all you need to do then is quickly move it to a very hot setting. district.

4. Turn frequently so that both sides are crispy. Place the steak on the cooling area of ??the grill and turn with tongs about every 1 minute. A common misconception about grilling is that "you can only flip the steak once before serving it." In fact, turning the steak multiple times over an indirect heat source results in more evenly cooked, tender, juicy steaks. Don’t forget to add a lid to the grill when you’re not flipping.

5. Use a thermometer to test doneness. This may sound too tacky, but you can't deny that it's more scientific. Moreover, there is no doubt about its feasibility: relying solely on one's own feelings is much more error-prone than using a thermometer. We should all record it like this. The following breakdown record is a comparison table of internal temperature and doneness of steak: 120 degrees Fahrenheit (48.8 degrees Celsius) = medium rare

130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4° degrees Celsius) = medium rare Medium rare

140 degrees Fahrenheit (60° degrees Celsius) = medium rare

150 degrees Fahrenheit (65.5° degrees Celsius) = medium rare

160 degrees Fahrenheit Degree (71.1° Celsius) = Well done

6. In addition to a thermometer, alternately use the finger test to help estimate doneness. The finger test uses the softness and hardness of the tiger's mouth as a reference to estimate the doneness of the meat. Open your hand and relax your palm, and touch the tiger's mouth with your other hand in the following states to feel the different degrees of softness and hardness: Fingers not pinched (palm open): This is the feeling of raw meat.

Pinch your thumb and index finger together: This is the feeling of well-done beef.

Pinch between thumb and middle finger: This is the feel of medium-rare beef.

Pinch your thumb and ring finger together: This is the feeling of medium- to medium-rare beef.

Pinch between thumb and little finger: This is the feeling of well-cooked beef.

7. When the temperature of the steak is about 15 degrees Fahrenheit away from your ideal temperature, you need to quickly grill both sides over high heat to brown it. If both sides are already browning, you need to place the steak in the cooling area of ??the grill, as grilling it over high heat will only drain the juices.

8. Remove the steak from the grill when it is about 5 degrees Fahrenheit away from your ideal temperature. Why do this? This is because the steak will continue to heat up about 5 degrees Fahrenheit internally after it is removed from the grill.

9. Season with pepper and let the steak rest for at least five minutes. As you cook, the juices will concentrate inside the meat due to the contraction of the muscle tissue. If you cut the steak as soon as you take it off the grill, the meat juices will flow out from the middle; if you let it sit for more than five minutes, the muscle tissue will relax, and the meat juices will gradually and evenly spread throughout the steak. middle.

10. Enjoy. You might consider serving it with a little cheese, potatoes and garlic spinach to enjoy your wonderful steak dinner.

Method 3: Grilling Steak

1. You need to place the grill 4 to 6 inches from the upper shelf of the oven. If you want to grill your steak medium-rare or medium-rare, this may be the ideal placement. Specifically, if you want your steak to be rare, place the grill six inches below the top; if you want it to be rare, place it 4 inches below.

2. Open the oven, put in a large cast iron pot and preheat it. Cast iron pans are great for searing food because they transfer heat so well. If you don't have a cast iron pan, you can use a griddle or frying pan. Preheat for 15-20 minutes to heat the pan for optimal cooking.

3. After the pan has been preheated, add the steak and grill for 3 minutes. If you're using a grill pan with raised stripes, placing the steak at an angle along the stripes will give you nice texture. If the pan is hot enough, the steak will sizzle as soon as it's placed on it.

4. Turn the steak over and grill for another 3 minutes. Use tongs rather than a fork to turn the meat, as using the latter can cause the juices to dry out prematurely.

5. After baking both sides for 3 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 500 degrees Fahrenheit (260 degrees Celsius).

6. Cook steak according to the instructions in the table below. This table lists the approximate times it takes to cook steaks of different thicknesses at 500 degrees Fahrenheit: Medium Rare (120-130 degrees Fahrenheit)

1 inch — 0-1 minute

< p>1 and 1/4 inches - 2-3 minutes

1 and 3/4 inches - 4-5 minutes

Medium rare (140-150 degrees Fahrenheit)

p>

1 inch — 2-3 minutes

1 and 1/4 inches — 4-5 minutes

1 and 3/4 inches — 6-7 minutes

p>

Medium-medium rare (150-160 degrees F)

1 inch - 4-5 minutes

1 1/4 inch - 6-7 minutes

1 3/4 inches — 8-9 minutes

7. Season with pepper and let the steak rest for at least five minutes. As you cook, the juices will concentrate inside the meat due to the contraction of the muscle tissue. If you cut the steak as soon as you take it off the grill, the meat juices will flow out from the middle; if you let it sit for more than five minutes, the muscle tissue will relax, and the meat juices will gradually and evenly spread throughout the steak. middle.

8. Enjoy. You might consider serving it with some green beans and baked potatoes to enjoy your wonderful steak dinner.

Method 4: Pan-fry steak

1. Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into a long cast iron skillet and heat over high heat until thick smoke comes out. Cast iron skillets conduct heat very well, which means the entire surface of the food you want to cook is evenly heated. Use a good quality neutral oil to cook the steak. Olive oil is great for cooking pasta and eggplant, but not for searing steak. Canola or other vegetable oil may be a better choice.

2. Put the steak into the frying pan. If the frying pan has raised stripes, you also need to pay attention to the placement position.

3. Turn over frequently, about once every minute, for 6-12 minutes, until the inside reaches the ideal temperature. For best results, use a thermometer to help check the internal temperature of your steak. The following is a table corresponding to the internal temperature and doneness of a steak: 120 degrees Fahrenheit (48.8 degrees Celsius) = medium rare

130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4 degrees Celsius) = medium rare

140 degrees Fahrenheit Degree (60 degrees Celsius) = medium rare

150 degrees Fahrenheit (65.5 degrees Celsius) = medium rare

160 degrees Fahrenheit (71.1 degrees Celsius) = well done

< p>4. Before reaching desired doneness, add 2 tablespoons of butter and some other spices.

Spices you may use when pan-frying steaks include: rosemary

thyme

sweet oregano

garlic

sage Grass

5. After the steak is cooked (it will still heat up after taking it off the fire), let it rest for at least five minutes. As you cook, the juices will concentrate inside the meat due to the contraction of the muscle tissue. If you cut the steak as soon as you take it off the grill, the meat juices will flow out from the middle; if you let it sit for more than five minutes, the muscle tissue will relax, and the meat juices will gradually and evenly spread throughout the steak. middle.

6. Enjoy. You might consider serving it with a little German potato salad and kale and enjoying your wonderful steak dinner.

Tips Season, season, season. If you season it properly, you won't need any steak sauce at all.

It is recommended to use non-stick pan spray frequently.

A clean grill is a good grill. Not only does grilling food on a clean grill go faster, it also tastes better.

You can use a knife to make a small slit on the steak to see if it is done. Just make sure to put the slit side down when serving.

Fresh vegetables and fruits are the best, but beef will taste better and be more tender if left for a few more days. You can save some money by buying steaks on sale that are closer to (or even past) their sell-by date.

Warning: The grill is very hot, do not touch it with your hands!

The oil spray on the non-stick pan can make the open flame burn more vigorously. If you have your own hair, be sure to keep your distance when spraying.