THE STEAK THREAD, served a la Man
Discussion
number2 said:
Couple of Bavette steaks. Cooked at high temp on a cast iron griddle. Seasoned with salt & pepper.
Eventually served over rice with my interpretation of a 'weeping tiger' sauce.
I'm off to meet some clients for lunch in London today (for the last time before new rules apply Eventually served over rice with my interpretation of a 'weeping tiger' sauce.
) and I wasn't planning on having steak......this photo is changing my mind!! I see quite often people recommending very hot skillet, even as hot as possible, but when I try that the steak burns; i.e. black charring, not a nice brown crust. For me and my Lodge skillets high-medium heat works best. Am I missing something/doing something wrong?
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
LordGrover said:
I see quite often people recommending very hot skillet, even as hot as possible, but when I try that the steak burns; i.e. black charring, not a nice brown crust. For me and my Lodge skillets high-medium heat works best. Am I missing something/doing something wrong?
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
It's not just you. The whole American "black and blue" crap is awful. Charcoal is not a nice "flavour" to add.PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
Butter and medium/high is better.
LordGrover said:
I see quite often people recommending very hot skillet, even as hot as possible, but when I try that the steak burns; i.e. black charring, not a nice brown crust. For me and my Lodge skillets high-medium heat works best. Am I missing something/doing something wrong?
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
Guess they're all different.PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
Indoors I'm currently working with a 20 year old ceramic hob. I put my cast iron pan on, turn temp up to 9 (out of 9) and leave it till it smokes then put the steak on. No chance of it burning in a reasonable timeframe. I wouldn't mind mine coming off a bit darker, but that's about it for me.
Sounds like you might benefit from slowly cooking it to temp first (oven, sous vide etc) then hitting your skillet for less time.
grumbledoak said:
It's not just you. The whole American "black and blue" crap is awful. Charcoal is not a nice "flavour" to add.
Butter and medium/high is better.
That's a bit extreme - not seen anyone aiming for burnt/charcoal Butter and medium/high is better.
. High heat works well as it 'caramelises' without further cooking the steak inside. 
LordGrover said:
I see quite often people recommending very hot skillet, even as hot as possible, but when I try that the steak burns; i.e. black charring, not a nice brown crust. For me and my Lodge skillets high-medium heat works best. Am I missing something/doing something wrong?
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
If you have a thick steak, you can't cook it just on a hot skillet. For the middle to get to ~50deg (med-rare), you'll need to either start or finish it in an oven. PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
To get that from just a skillet with a thick (1"+) steak, you'd need to turn the outside to carbon.
HM-2 said:
What did this entail? I tend to make a Jaew and then cut it 50/50 with proper Thai sweet chilli sauce which works brilliantly as a balance.
Soy sauce, garlic and birds eye chillies. I would have thrown some fish sauce in but forgot I had any. I just threw it together and it worked well enough.
grumbledoak said:
LordGrover said:
I see quite often people recommending very hot skillet, even as hot as possible, but when I try that the steak burns; i.e. black charring, not a nice brown crust. For me and my Lodge skillets high-medium heat works best. Am I missing something/doing something wrong?
PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
It's not just you. The whole American "black and blue" crap is awful. Charcoal is not a nice "flavour" to add.PS I have leccy cooker, no gas.
Butter and medium/high is better.
But searing is all about something called the Maillard reaction which gets you that lovely caramelising goodness - that should not taste charred.
I find that cast iron is the key, and a steak that is not wet. Wet steaks (e.g. Sous vide) don't get seared properly and then you end up overheating and burning the outside (I find).
Dry your steaks uncovered in the fridge the night before for a better sear!
Harry Flashman said:
Butter means effectively frying the outside (delicious!).
But searing is all about something called the Maillard reaction which gets you that lovely caramelising goodness - that should not taste charred.
I find that cast iron is the key, and a steak that is not wet. Wet steaks (e.g. Sous vide) don't get seared properly and then you end up overheating and burning the outside (I find).
Dry your steaks uncovered in the fridge the night before for a better sear!
You get the Maillard reaction either way. It is a function of the temperature, not the cooking method. Water boils at 100°C, which is too low for the reaction. That is why we don't boil steaks. It is also why it is better not to move them around the pan - that releases water, lowering the temperature.But searing is all about something called the Maillard reaction which gets you that lovely caramelising goodness - that should not taste charred.
I find that cast iron is the key, and a steak that is not wet. Wet steaks (e.g. Sous vide) don't get seared properly and then you end up overheating and burning the outside (I find).
Dry your steaks uncovered in the fridge the night before for a better sear!
The butter in frying is plenty hot enough, but the heat transfer is better. So you get the Maillard "crust" at a slightly lower temperature setting. So you can get a nice thick crust without any charcoal flavour.
https://www.foodfirefriends.com/maillard-reaction/
Drying them uncovered in the fridge is a great idea.
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