This is a summary of Kenji’s video where he is slowly cooking a really thick steak (4cm+) in the pan. I tried it several times and it is fantastic. The key is seasoning a day (or min 45 min before) and making sure you cook dry steaks only. Also check how to slowly fry salmon.
Here are some pointers:
☝️Cooking steaks slowly on mild heat only works with thicker steaks. If you do a thinner one you will need more heat. The rest is the same.
👨🏻🍳It is easier to cook one big steak than many smaller ones, because it gives you a lot of room for error. Thermometer is almost a must. After I got mine I realised I was eating super rare steaks before!
👉🏻 Poking your hand, cheek, forehead will not work, unless you work in a restaurant and know your meat. (starts at 12:40)
🔬Taste testing shows people actually prefer a level above what they think, eg. medium instead of rare. (15:00)
🥩 If your steak is nicely marbled/has higher fat content, cook it longer to higher temperature so that the fat renders more. Color your steak as dark as possible, but do not burn it black.
NO GOs: - do not salt your steak 10-15min before cooking it, because salt will make it wet - do not wrap salted meat so you do not trap moisture around it - do not put your steak on the pan wet (dry it off with a paper towel), it will not develop a sear/crust Salting also possible JUST OR 45 min before cooking. Tap dry if not dry.
Summary of the video Pre-cooking: - salt your steak generously, put on a rack so the air can circulate around - elevating and salting the steak will extend its life - the longer you leave your steak salted, the more tender it becomes (6:30), Kenji even says you could leave it in the fridge for a week or so (7:00) Cooking (8:00 and onward) a THICK (4 cm+) steak: - thick pan - mild heat, (olive) oil and butter, wait until it sizzles - DRY steak in - flipping your steak is fine, it will cook 30% faster (11:00), Kenji is flipping it each 15-30 sec - baste with a spoon to speed up the cooking and browning - control with thermometer (48 °C for rare, 52-56 °C medium-rare) and remember that the temperature will rise after you stop cooking it for a degree or two - rest before serving so juices stay in (other opinions at 19:00) Optional meat flavouring (17:45) with smashed garlic, thyme, rosemary and shallots. Put on top and baste with oil and butter. Cooking a THINNER steak: - you will need higher temperature for the crust, the rest the same
More theory in this article by Kenji on Serious Eats
J. Kenji López-Alt or youtube
