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Following my own advice - reverse seared steaks

BobS
BobS Posts: 2,485
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Earlier today, pjoe ask about doing steaks and PP on the same cook and I suggested doing a reverse sear on the steaks and finish them in the house. I decieded to take my own advice and ended up with a fine meal!

I picked up a couple of big NY strips and seasoned them with salt and cracked pepper.

21-11-10Steak1.jpg

I did a reverse sear and put them on at 250 with some mesquite. It took 48 minutes to get to between 110-115 in the center amd they still looked raw.

As I said, I decided to pan sear these inside and then make a pan sauce. Here they were at the turn.

21-11-10Steak3Searattheflip.jpg

I served the steak with some caramelized onion, a baked potato and the sauce, which was made by sauteing some shallots, deglazing with red wine, mounting a stick of butter and then adding the steak drippings.

21-11-10Steak5PlatedandCut.jpg

FYI that is all that was left of this mess of onions. Those bad boys were really sweet and good!

21-11-10Onion1.jpg

21-11-10Onion2.jpg

Comments

  • Bob, looks as if your advice was spot on.....the steaks look perfect! :)

    Can't beat carmelized onions with steak.
  • EAT
    EAT Posts: 39
    Hi BobS,
    Nice pics, Can you explain the reverse sear method ?
    Thanks
    Enrique
  • EAT
    EAT Posts: 39
    Hi BobS,
    Nice pics, Can you explain the reverse sear method ?
    Thanks
    Enrique
  • BobS
    BobS Posts: 2,485
    The procedure is basically explained by the pictures and the captions.

    Many people like to sear first, at a very high temp (T-Rex)and then finish at a lower temp.

    I get better and more predictable results if I reverse that and do a slow cook in the beginning and then sear at the end.

    You can do the final sear on your grill - either directly on the grate or in a pan/griddle. In this case, I did the final sear inside, because I did not want to wait to kick up the temp on the grill and to make it easier to make a pan sauce.

    With a reverse sear, you get steak that is warm in the center, red from edge to edge and a nice seared crust.

    The low temp at the beginning helps tenderize the steak.

    The whole thing is explained in the following article from Cooks Illustrated. There example is all indoors, but is easily adaptable.

    The goal is to get the best possible crust, with minimum, over cooked layer between the crust and the warm center.

    The process starts by putting the steaks in a low oven -- or in this case, your grill -- at 250-275F

    Leave for 20-25 minutes or until 90-95 degrees for rare or 25-30 minutes, to 100-105, for medium.

    This step does two things -- dries out the exterior and brings the center up to a warmer temperature.

    Heat a skillet, over high heat, until the oil is smoking. Place steaks in skillet and sear until well browned and crusty - 1 1/2 - 2 minutes, lifting once half way through to redistribute the fat underneath the steak. Reduce heat if fond begins to burn.

    It goes on to recommend searing on the sides, but that seams like overkill to me. Need to check the internal temp to get it to 125 for rare.

    Apparently there is some science to explain why this makes a better steak.

    These steaks spend a long time in a warm oven, yet taste more tender than traditionally prepared steaks, which can be tough and chewy. The explanation? Meat contains active enzymes called cathepsins, which break down connective tissues over time, increasing tenderness. (a fact that is demonstrated to great effect in dry-aged meat). As the temperature of the meat rises, these enzymes work faster and faster, until they reach 122 degrees, where all the action stops. While our steaks are slowly heating up, the cathepsins are working overtime, in effect "aging" and tenderizing the steaks within half an hour. When steaks are cooked by conventional methods, their final temperature is reached much more rapidly , denying the cathepsins the time they need to properly do their job.