How to Cook Restaurant Style Steak
Perfectly cooked flavorful steak is something you just can’t resist and the best part is, by following the simple tips and tricks below, you can make your own restaurant style steak in the comfort of your own home.
If you’ve never made steak at home before, you may be overwhelmed by all the different cuts of steak that are out there. Lets break down the what is most important when picking out the perfect restaurant style steak.
The USDA grades the cuts by quality and the quality of the steak is based on the amount of fat that is in the meat. Ultimately, the higher fat content will give you the best flavor and the optimal tenderness. I recommend either choice or prime grade for this recipe.
- Prime Grade: highest quality with the highest fat content.
- Choice Grade: quality steak that most restaurants serve and what most grocery stores carry. This grade has medium fat content that is acceptable
- Select Grade: acceptable quality but the lowest of all because it has the least amount of fat that will not be the juiciest and the most tender of all.
If you’re standing in a grocery store and are just overwhelmed by the different kinds of steak, choose the one with the most marbling and is thick cut.
Tips for making the best Restaurant Style Steak:
- Choose a steak that is on the thicker side- about 1/2″-1″ inch thick. Having a thicker cut will almost ensure your steak is properly cooked. If your steak is too thin, it will very quickly cook all the way through and probably even dry out. Remember, steak continues to rise in temperature even after you remove it from heat so it’s much harder to control doneness of a thin slicked steak and a thicker cut.
- Let the steaks sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes (2 hours at most) prior to cooking. This will allow your steak to cook evenly and will give you a perfectly cooked outside layer. If you steak is cold when placed on high heat, the muscle fibers will tense up and you will be left with a hard to chew steak.
- Season just before you place it on heat. Do not season your steak long before you cook it. A common myth is that as the steak sits, it absorbs flavor from salt and seasons. False! Salt will suck out the moisture of the steak so you definitely don’t want it sitting on the steak if your steak is not being cooked.
- Let the steak rest 5-10 minutes after it has finished cooking before slicing it. This helps preserve the moisture and internal juices of the steak resulting in a juicier steak.
What is the best way to cook steak?
One of the most popular ways to cook steak is by pan-searing. Pan-searing is a technique in which you cook your meat at a very high temperature so that a nice crust forms. To do so, use a cast iron skillet or if you don’t have one, the next best choice is stainless steal. Cast iron skillets and stainless steal pans both stand very high temperatures and are great conductors of heat. Heat the pan until it’s very hot, once hot, add oil into your cast iron skillet or stainless steal pan and heat the oil but do not burn the oil. After the you add the oil, wait about a minute or until the oil easily moves around the pan. This means that it is hot.
Next, add your seasoned steak away from you. You should hear the pan sizzle. This means that the pan is very hot as it should be. Cook the steak for about 3 minutes on each side. Avoid over flipping the steak or flipping it early. You want high heat on each side of the steak for at least 3 minutes with no interruptions so that you get a nice crust to form. Three minutes on each side will give you a medium rare steak if it is thick cut. For a more cooked steak, cook it 4-5 minutes on each side.
Once your steak is flipped over to the second side, add butter, garlic, and a herb of choice into your pan. As soon as the the butter melts, using a spoon, scoop the flavorful melted butter over your the top of your steaks so that all the juicy flavors are spread soaked in by the steak.
What is the best doneness of a steak?
The good news is that there is no right or wrong. How done you want your steak on the inside is based on personal preference. A general rule of thumb in most restaurants is a medium done steak unless stated otherwise. Per the USDA, this will be about 145F of internal temperature of the steak, if you are using a food thermometer.
How to season steak?
The best answer is to season generously and to keep it simple. Steak is extremely flavorful so you don’t want to steal the flavor of a qualit steak with complicated seasonings. Stick to only salt and pepper. A good rule of thumb is 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper per 6 oz, thick cut steak. This is a generous amount but remember, if your steak is thick cut as recommended, you need a generous amount of seasoning. Season your steak right before you pan-sear it for best flavor.
Restaurant Style Steak
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 Ribeye Steaks
- 4-5 springs rosemary
- 2 tbs oil
- 4 tbs butter
- 5 cloves garlic
Instructions
- Leave steaks at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before preparing or cooking it. Use this time to prepare your cast iron skillet. Place it a hot oven to get it very very hot.
- Once steaks have come to room temperature, pat the steaks dry with paper towels.
- Generously, season the steaks on both sides with the salt and pepper.
- Place pan cast iron skillet or stainless steel pan, over medium-high heat until it’s VERY hot.
- Add the oil to the pan and heat until it begins to shimmer and move easily around the pan, about 1 minute or so.
- Carefully place the steaks in the pan away from you so oil doesn’t platter in your direction. If you hear sizzle after you place your steak in the pan, that’s a great thing. It means that your pan was hot enough for pan searing restaurant style steak.
- Avoid flipping steaks to early or fiddling with them. After about 3-4 minutes or until a deep golden crust forms, flip the steak over to the other side.
- During the last minute or two of cooking your steaks, add the butter , garlic, and rosemary sprigs to the pan with the steaks. Using a spoon, scoop melted butter over steaks.
- Once desired doneness is reached, transfer onto a place, cover with aluminum foil and let it sit 5-10 minutes before cutting. This will ensure the juices don’t leak out and dry out your steak.
