Rich, warm, tender and slightly crispy around the grilled edges, there’s nothing quite like the perfect steak.
Learning how to cook steak at home is both a wonderful way to treat yourself to the occasional sumptuous meal, and to impress guests and loved ones.
Sourcing excellent quality beef
It all begins at the source. Because cooking the perfect steak starts with a quality cut of meat, so it’s important to search for a premium provider, and to know the difference between the available cuts.
It’s hard to make a good steak out of a poor cut of meat, so start by visiting your local butchery for a premium cut. Your butcher can help you find high quality beef, such as an Angus, English longhorn, or a Hereford.
As for the cut, opt for a rib-eye steak or sirloin. Either of these cuts are ideal for cooking at home and providing a decadent and delicious meal.
Bring the steak to room temperature
Assuming you have stored the steak in the fridge for a few hours or a day prior to cooking, the first step is to bring it to room temperature.
To do so, simply leave the steak on the bench and keep it covered for 20-30 minutes.
This step helps to ensure that it will cook evenly. Without bringing it to room temperature, the inside of the meat might be colder than the outside, so will take longer to cook internally than around the edges, and will result in an uneven final product.
Prepare the steak
A premium cut of steak should need very little in the way of flavouring or condiments. Generally speaking, you should only need to cover the steak in a little oil, salt, and pepper to taste.
Be sure to use an oil with a high smoke point to cook your steak. Steak is best cooked on high heat for the best tenderness, which means the oil needs to be able to withstand high temperatures without smoking or catching on fire.
Therefore aim to use grapeseed, avocado, peanut, or canola oil rather than a standard olive oil to cook your steak.
Once the steak is prepared and at room temperature, switch on your grill and bring it to a high heat.
Cooking the steak
When your grill is piping hot, you can add the steak. Keep in mind, there should already be an even layer of oil on the steak itself, so you do not need to add it to the grill.
How long you cook for will depend on how you like your steak. This is a personal choice, but keep in mind that most chefs recommend cooking premium cuts of beef as rare or medium rare to take full advantage of the natural flavours and tenderness in the steak.
Try these cooking times depending on how you like your steak:
- Blue: 1-1.5 minutes on each side
- Rare: 1.5-2 minutes on each side
- Medium-rare: 2-3 minutes on each side
- Medium: 3-4 minutes on each side
- Well-done: 4-5 minutes on each side
Be sure to take the thickness of the steak into account, adding a little time for a thicker steak, or cutting the time down for a thinner cut.
Flip the steak once per minute to help ensure an even finish.
Let the steak rest
One of the most important parts of properly cooking steak at home is letting it rest after you take it off the grill.
A rule of thumb is to rest the steak for as long as you cooked it, which is usually four to five minutes overall. This allows the fibres to relax and the juices to settle, so you won’t get juice all over your plate when you cut it open, but you will enjoy a more tender and juicy steak.
For a little extra juiciness and flavour, you can also rub a small pat of butter onto the steak to melt into the skin as it rests. Alternatively, you can add this butter to the pan within the final minute of cooking.
Take care to avoid resting the steak on a cold plate where it will cool down quickly. Instead, opt for a wooden cutting board or a slightly warm plate where it won’t lose too much heat
Serve
You have two options for serving the steak.
You can opt to serve the steak whole to allow the diner to enjoy the first cut into the meat. This allows the juices to rest for as long as possible before eating, and ensures the meat doesn’t cool down prematurely in the open air. However, you won’t know exactly how well the steak is cooked until this moment.
Alternatively, you can slice the steak on a cutting board and serve it in a fan style on the plate. This allows you to see exactly how well the steak is cooked prior to serving.
Take the easy route
Of course, cooking the perfect steak at home takes time – and usually some practice as you get your technique just right. If you don’t have the time or would rather enjoy a flawless steak every time (and without the clean up), make a booking for The Meat & Wine Co Steak restaurant to enjoy a sumptuous steak with us.
