How Do You Like Your Steak?

[gnarlygninja]

Do you remember the name of the ketchup? Was it maybe curry ketchup? That stuff is great.

Hela Gewürzkethcup Schaschlik, I mistakenly grabbed it from a German market meaning to get the curry one. It's very good with meat, I'm not a huge fan of it on fries.

 

[Vael]

I've become a fan of Sous-Vide for steak preparation, then a very quick char on a cast iron pan. I can get a solid medium-rare/rare steak consistently.

 

[gnarlygninja]

I'll go with sous vide over reverse sear 90% of the time because I hate having the oven on for a big chunk of the year, and the latter has diminishing returns if the steak is too thin.

 

[Parmandur]

I've become a fan of Sous-Vide for steak preparation, then a very quick char on a cast iron pan. I can get a solid medium-rare/rare steak consistently.

Bringing sous-vide into the conversation...that is one way to cook a steak to well-done while retaining the desirable juiciness and tenderness of a more rare steak.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

You wouldn't, because it is against the fashion, which says that liking steak rare is more "sophisticated". Admitting liking well-done meats would be a signal that you are boorish or uncultured, which few celebrities are going to do. Calling it a "sin" is a similar signal, marking it an offense against "good taste", as defined by... well, food snobs (sorry, Scribe).

I don't think it's a case of not caring for a well-done being a fashion, or putting on airs. When you cook the meat to that point, you are objectively making it tough to chew (through protein denaturation) and cooking off the fat which is providing a lot of the flavour that you'll find in a rarer steak. It's science!

But judging people for what they like... ehhh. If you like a well-done steak with ketchup, have at it! So yes, someone who refers to well-done steaks as a 'crime against food', or a 'sin'... that's a ponce.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

Honestly, I don't eat steak very often, but when I do, I prefer them in the Pittsburgh to medium-rare range. Sometimes I'll buy a cheaper/tougher cut, like a round or flank. Medium-rare with that kind of cut is not a pleasant chew, so for those I'll first marinade overnight with something that'll help break down the muscle fibers: might have a base of apple cider or red wine vinegar, maybe lemon juice. I used to boil my ribs for an hour in pineapple juice before putting them on the bbq... that's a great tenderiser as well.

 

[Blue]

Medium-rare is preferred. I prefer Rare to Medium, but won't go down to bleu or black & blue.

If I need to eat it well done, I want sauce or gravy even if it's just A1 or a pan gravy. For any cook piled high with mushrooms makes me happy. Horseradish is also quite yummy, especially with prime rib.

 

[ART!]

I will literally get physically sick unless it's well done. I didn't have the enzymes or whatever to digest beef that isn't thoroughly cooked all the way through. No pink. Anywhere.