Steak - how to cook and what to have with it {Mega Merge!}

The Hill Billy

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The link

Whats the proper way to cook steak. When I cook it, it turns out like I could sole my shoes with it. How do I get it like in a restaurant. I like it well done. How long should it take to cook ( I cook by time).
Any ideas.

rosie26

Hiya,

you need to use a fairly heavy frying pan and heat the oil to almost smoking point, fry for 1 minute each side to seal in the juicyness (don't get worried...just count to 60 and don't be tempted to turn it too early) then turn down to medium heat and cook for....??? depends on the thickness.... delia smith (not very cool but very very reliable) suggests 4-5mins each side for well done if it's a sirloin, 8 mins each side for a thick fillet.

But after the searing, which is most important, jsut experiment at the lower temperature and see what you like.

Rosie

antoniosicily

two points: time and beef cut.

The time depends on how you prefer your steak to be cooked, like rare, medium, well-done or something like that. In my opinion the real steak has to be cooked rare, and a well-done steak is a real blasphemy (you should see how the restaurants cook a well-done steak, even the best ones).

Anyway, beef-cut, as soon as your steak loses the fat it will become stronger so be careful, apart from the cooking bit, some beef cuts tend to be completely unusable for certain way of cooking, I mean, in a frying pan, without oil please, or, better, in a broiler, you should cook things like fillet or sirloin (the most tender ones, in this order), round cuts are good as well but, as all the rear cuts, they have better trained muscles, so they are stronger if you cook them over the rare-medium stage they will became unedible, based on my standards obviously.

That's pretty much it, anyway cooking meat is not so difficult, have a look here anyway:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beef#Cuts_of_beef

bonkey

antoniosicily wrote: »

two points: time and beef cut.

Five other points: Temperature, method of cooking, thickness of the piece of meat, rest-time, quality of beef.

On the cooker, I dry-gry steak in a griddle-pan, because I can reach higher temps than I can with oil. By preference, however, I'd use a charcoal grill (mostly incorrectly called a BBQ) to get *serious* temps. Then again, I like my steak blue-to-rare...for well done, I'd probably end up with a charcoal-coated piece of meat using those temps.

Method of cooking: Fying in oil, griddling, grilling, broiling, boiling (!)...they're all good but will take differing times.

Thickness of a cut of meat: Should go without saying, but a large, thin piece of meat will cook through faster than the same weight, smaller, but thicker.

Rest-time: After you've cooked it, take the meat out of the pan / off the grill, and let it sit and rest for 3-5 mins at least. You don't want it sitting on a cold plate, or it will go cold quickly, but you equally don't want to subject it to temps that will cook it more.

Quality: Most beef you'll see in supermarkets and the like is an almost-bright red in colour. Well-hung, well-aged, good-quality steak is not this colour. Its a lot darker...often looking like its just about to go off. It makes a difference.

Its also worth noting that while fillet is the most tender cut, its generally considered to have the least flavour. Personally, I'd go for sirloin or rump by choice, possibly even skirt.

bonkey

BTW, for any given method of cooknig, you can tell how well teh steak is done with the "thumb test".

For well done, close your hand into a tight fist. Feel the fleshy part of your hand that lies between the thumb and first finger. THats what well-done steak should feel like. The same point on a loose fist will be medium, and with an open hand will be rare.

Just careful you don't burn yourself

rubadub

I like mine medium-well done. I leave it get to room temp. Now put it on a flat surface like a chopping board. If it is a sirloin I would press it down with my hand and get a really sharp knife and cut it in 2 slowly. Now you have 2 really thin steaks. I heat a pan till smoking and cook it really quick. This way it remains juicy yet is cooked fully through very quickly.

nosmo-king

Thanks for all the advice. The meat will be Irish sirloin about finger thick. Should I Fry with anything for flavour. ( You've guessed by now my L plates are on ) .
Tks for all.

jdivision

Better to use a griddle pan. Let the steak speak for itself.

MREGAN

I always have chips and pepper sauce or beans and fried onions. What else is nice to have with steak?

ntlbell

I'd start of with buying a nicer cut.

Pigletlover

ntlbell wrote: »

I'd start of with buying a nicer cut.

+1, fillet ftw

It depends on my mood, but I think nearly anything tastes good with a steak. Sometimes I have baby potoates, other times creamy mash or potoato dauphinoise (sp?). I nearly always have onions, and peppers and mushrooms becuase they're my favourite veg but I think peas go well with steak too, as does baby veg or cherry tomatoes (halved and thrown on the pan for 2-3 mins with a dash of balsamic vinegar while the steaks are resting).

Minder

MREGAN wrote: »

I always have chips and pepper sauce or beans and fried onions. What else is nice to have with steak?

Forget Fillet - prone to being dry. A decent piece of well aged sirloin is a winner every time. For me, it has to be a greek salad. Tomato, cucumber, a small amount of sliced red onion, black olives, feta and a little green pepper. A couple of lashes of olive oil and some dried oregano. It is the oregano on the beef that really gets my taste buds singing. Side of chips, a good red wine (Malbec) and a dollop of english mustard.

jacko

fried potatoes (fried in the pan after the steak... yummy)

MREGAN

Some Good ideas to think about. Fillets are for woman and people with false teeth. Sure they are tendar and lean but there is not as much flavor as a sirloin. I would rather chew on a tastey sirloin than a melt in your mouth fillet with no taste.

I seen a few chefs coating steaks in coffee any one try this sort of thing?

olaola

I always go for a striploin or ribeye. I think they are much tastier.

My fave things to have with it: Bearnaise sauce, potato gratin and creamed corn.

ntlbell

I don't know where you're buying your fillets

I wouldn't give sirloin to a dog.

Well unless he did a poo on the carpet.

MREGAN

ribeye

I would normally eat ribeye this is a change.

Definitely a lot more taste with the ribeye. Then again it is the tail end of the sirloin. Ribeye on the bone is the tastiest meat you could get. I love it.

MREGAN

I don't know where you're buying your fillets

I wouldn't give sirloin to a dog.

Well unless he did a poo on the carpet.

I am buying the best of the best. I dont care what you say sirloin has more taste than fillet.

Cyrus

another vote for a nice sirloin here

MREGAN

Before this goes off on one. We can each have our own tastes and get on with it now back to what I am eating with the steak. ntlbell what would you have with your fillet?

Cyrus

the ol reliables are nice onion rings etc

however creamed spinach can be really good, creamy mushroom sauce also?

unionman

OK, a question for the sirloin people (sirloin is fine, it's just I think there are better cuts) - how do you prefer it? I have a sneaking suspicion that sirloin fans like it well done, which opens up a whole other area of prejudices!!

Personally, Ribeye is king, lovely when it's seared medium/rare with pan sauteed potatoes and a good glug of Burgundy.:pac:

But no-one has yet mention T-Bone. T-Bone rocks!! I do it pretty much the same way as I do the Ribeye. Though as rare as I can manage.:cool:

MREGAN

Maybe creamed potatoes with chopped streaky bacon and peas or some other greens sounds like a nice change.

olaola

unionman wrote: »

But no-one has yet mention T-Bone. T-Bone rocks!! I do it pretty much the same way as I do the Ribeye. Though as rare as I can manage.:cool:

Ahem! Striploin! I do like it on the bone too.
I like my ribeye med-rare (too tough for rare) and strip rare.

CTU_Agent

Nothing beats a nice:

Good grade nice cut of sirloin(must be thick) - cooked slowly, marinated in black pepper and basil prior to cooking in olive oil then pepper on plate.

Spicy Baby potatoes,(or normal potatoes cut into half pieces) cover them with parsley, chili, basil and black pepper with olive oil and stick them in the oven until tender....nice!!

Italian salad with tomato.

Serve piping hot with glass of red wine (malbec as suggested earlier ) or indeed a nice Merlot. (I can recommend luigi bosca 1994 malbec).

Beatiful. Finish with a banoffi desert.

Superb. (Man im hungary)

MREGAN

Good point unionman. Although I take my sirloin rare so I am not in that equation. As for TBONE I only get it if I know it is the best grade of beef. I think its a waste if it isnt top grade. But then again its just a sirloin and a fillet after all. But the bone definitely helps the flavor like any meat on the bone.

T Bone on a BBQ Now there is a steak to die for.

mildews

Striploin, Sirloin, boneless T-Bone ????

What does your butcher call it?? Because most supermarkets sell Rump steak and call it Sirloin.

My understanding is that SIRloin comes from Bullocks (yes that is the correct spelling) and STRIPloin is the same cut of meat but from an older Dairy Cow.

Any butchers out there that could clarify please?:cool:

DBIreland

If I'm wrong apologies for my ignorance but isn't striploin just a T-Bone without the bone?
Also, is it still possible to purchase T-Bones? Weren't they taken off the merket around the time of the mad cow disease problems? Due to the T-Bone containing parts of the spinal column?

I am a rib-eye fan myself, loads of taste and reasonable value too.

olaola

DBIreland wrote: »

If I'm wrong apologies for my ignorance but isn't striploin just a T-Bone without the bone?

Yes.