"Baking" A Steak

[Vern1961]

Bought a couple of @ 3/4 inch steaks for a celebration dinner later in the week.

Neither of us like barbecue and cooking under the normal grill seems to leave them tough on the outside but rare in the middle - prefer to be cooked through.

Read somewhere that, sacrilege though it may be, you can bake steak in the oven after searing in the frying pan to seal in the juices. We do a similar thing with plain fish, marinate with a little low cal oil, wrap in foil and bake on a sheet for @30 mins at 180C (electric fan oven).

So question is, preparing the steaks in a similar manner and cooking at a similar temperature, how long to ensure they are cooked to perfection, i.e. not burned on the outside but properly cooked tender and succulent all the way through. As they are thicker and denser than fish, I was figuring 50 - 60 mins, but would be interested in a wider view.

 

[pitchfork]

How are you cooking them? Rare? Medium? Medium Rare?

 

[FrenchTart]

Ignoring the sacrilege part for a moment....

Couple of things:

* Searing doesn't "seal in the juices" or anything like that. It just causes the maillard reaction to occur on the outside of the steak, which makes it taste awesome.

* It is probably worth you trying to identify exactly how done you like your steak. Try looking at this image: http://cdn.amazingribs.com/images/pix/magnet-2-2014.jpg

* I have cooked steak in the oven before and have simply set it to about 1C above the target temperature of the steak. For example, 55C for rare. You can then leave the steak in the oven for a few hours and should be okay, though be careful of it drying out. The issue with this is that you need an accurate temperature gauge for the oven.

* Getting a thermapen or digital temperature probe will work wonders for you finding out how done your steak is in the middle.

 

[Rich_L]

Don't like barbecue? Steak 'cooked through' - just gonna grab some popcorn brb

 

[K1LLSW1TCH]

Don't like barbecue? Steak 'cooked through' - just gonna grab some popcorn brb

 

[Vern1961]

How are you cooking them? Rare? Medium? Medium Rare?

Medium.

I have cooked steak in the oven before and have simply set it to about 1C above the target temperature of the steak. For example, 55C for rare. You can then leave the steak in the oven for a few hours and should be okay, though be careful of it drying out. The issue with this is that you need an accurate temperature gauge for the oven.

Haven't got that much time, so looking to get it done in an hour or so.

 

[hughtrimble]

Sous vide is going to be your way forward if you want it cooked through to the degree that you seem to like.

Then pan sear the outside once done.

 

[blues_r_best]

Why not just cook the steak in the frying pan?

 

[Rich_L]

I find the 'sear-roasting' on here (http://whatscookingamerica.net/Beef/CookingPerfectSteak.htm) to give pretty consistent results and is how I always cook mine.

Might need to buy a cast-iron skillet but for 20 quid or whatever consider it a lifetime investment that you can hand down to your grandchildren

 

[FrenchTart]

Don't like barbecue? Steak 'cooked through' - just gonna grab some popcorn brb

I'm trying to hard not to rise to it tbh

I think I'm going to bow out here.

 

[ttaskmaster]

I regard South Africans as generally knowing best how to cook most meats.

Now - Half of South Africa will actually (probably) kill you if you DARE cook a steak using a method other than a braai (call it a barbecue if you want to die really slowly) and have it anything other than Rare or Medium Rare...

The other half of SA will usually either grill it... or pan-fry it to sear it off, before finishing it in the oven!!!

 

[FrenchTart]

Plenty of people outside of SA know how to cook steak perfectly well. As much as I am a fan of braai and the culture the idea that one country knows best by virtue of that country being...that country is a little old fashioned.

 

[Scam]

..prefer to be cooked through.

I stopped reading here






(Obviously, I didn't actually stop reading there..)

OP you need a bit of practice with a heavy bottom frying-pan or even better a cast-iron skillet (e.g. Le Creuset). Cooking a steak without searing it is going to be fairly flavourless and nasty. You can easily cook steaks to 'medium' in a pan, as I say it's just practice. Or, er.. just leave it in the pan for longer. The one benefit of cooking a steak more towards well-done is that you get more caramelisation on the outside.

There must be a million tips on these forums and around the web, give it a whirl!

 

[Participant]

(call it a barbecue if you want to die really slowly)

Sounds about right, forward-thinking and sophisticated lot that they are .

 

[f00b4r]

I think the op is looking for this.

 

[HazardO]

I regard South Africans as generally knowing best how to cook most meats.

Now - Half of South Africa will actually (probably) kill you if you DARE cook a steak using a method other than a braai (call it a barbecue if you want to die really slowly) and have it anything other than Rare or Medium Rare...

The other half of SA will usually either grill it... or pan-fry it to sear it off, before finishing it in the oven!!!

I met a SA woman once who told me that a braai was a special type of BBQ made by a SA company she called "weeeeeeber". I laughed.

 

[monkeyspank]

I regard South Africans as generally knowing best how to cook most meats.

Now - Half of South Africa will actually (probably) kill you if you DARE cook a steak using a method other than a braai (call it a barbecue if you want to die really slowly) and have it anything other than Rare or Medium Rare...

The other half of SA will usually either grill it... or pan-fry it to sear it off, before finishing it in the oven!!!

And that is why there is a well known song about South Africans but no well known South African chefs

 

[FrenchTart]

Well, you guys all said what I was thinking

 

[jcr]

I still say steak tastes just fine done in a g forman grill

 

[pitchfork]

Well without a meat themometer (best way to do steaks is with one but you can do it by feel, almost as good).

Salt the steak the morning before cooking and leave on the counter top all day - you want it to

A. Come up to room temp

B. Draw out moisture and then reabsorb it (known as dry brining)

Next you heat up a griddle pan or heavy frying pan as hot as possible - 10 minutes on full whack should be enough. Give the steaks a a minute and a half to two minutes on each side for that thickness. Don't flip more than once - you want to develop the nice caramelized lines on the outside.

Then baste with melted butter, melted butter for days, coat them in in for 30 seconds spooning it over and transfer to a baking tray.

Put them in the oven for about 5 minutes or so at 60 degrees. What you're looking for is just a bit of give in the steak when pressed, like it shouldn't spring back straight away. Or if you have a meat thermometer and internal temp of 51 degrees (it will rise to 56 over the next few minutes while it is resting).

Bring the steaks out of the oven and allow them to rest for a minute before plating.