How do you like your steak prepared?

[Greatwyrm]

I like mine medium or medium-well. My wife, on the other hand, just likes hers hurt really badly.

 

[The_Universe]

Medium Rare, if it's ACTUALLY medium rare, is how I prefer my steak. It's always tricky ordering it, as my stated preference can yield anything from practically uncooked to "lump of charcoal."

 

[Storm Raven]

Yup. I've never understood the fetish with undercooked meat.

Because some of us like to actually taste the meat, and not the burn. For me, I'd like the steak to know that heat exists somewhere in the world, but have very little actual familiarity with the reality of it.

 

[Sledge]

Black on the outside please.

 

[Dark Jezter]

Medium rare.

 

[Galethorn]

I'm surprised I haven't answered this one yet...

Ok, since I'm a cheapass (which isn't much of a surprise, being a teenager and all), I don't ever order steak...

I cook it myself.

I like to start with a sirloin or a tri-tip...

Now, whether it's on the grill or in a pan, I like to use a liberal sprinkling of McCormick 'season all' (salt, chili pepper, black pepper, celery seed, nutmeg, coriander, onion, and garlic) as the only seasoning.

If it's in a pan, I use some good virgin olive oil (it leeches a lot of the cholesterol out, without screwing with the meat's flavor). On the grill, well, it makes a good glaze on itself with its own juices when they combine with the seasonings.

Anyway, I like to cook it at a very high heat so that the outside is a nice dark brown (not black at all though...blech), and the inside is still juicy and pink--almost red at the center.

Serve with some pasta (in a parmesan and cream sauce; not cooked; just heated up by the pan after you've drained the pasta, so the cheese melts a bit), and some just-barely-crunchy-still steamed brocoli and you've got a perfect meal, as far as I'm concerned. Oh, and it isn't right unless you keep the knife in your right hand the whole time--anything else is barbaric...or else clumsy.

 

[LightPhoenix]

That's what I'm talking about, too. Just add a nice Bass ale to the main course.

Mmm, Bass. I'll just take that for my main course.

I'm about to be verbally assaulted by you all, but I haven't had steak in at least ten years. Somewhere between the time I was ten and fifteen my tastes changed drastically. And I stopped eating steak, most beef, most pork, and fish. I started liking shellfish though, and recently discovered I can tolerate bacon again. Anyway, the point I was going to make is that when I was younger, I definitely remember liking it between rare and medium-rare. Nothing fancy, just a good marinade to soften it and give it a little more complex flavor.

Here's the weird thing though... for the most part I looooove the smell of steak. And most meat that I don't eat anymore, except fish, which makes me gag.

 

[Shag]

Medium-well, the middle is still pink but not bleeding...I only get steak from really good places that actually know who to cook it.

 

[Devilkiller]

I very rarely order steak in restaurants since I enjoy grilling and can cook it so much more cheaply at home. When I do order at restaurants I've found that a request for "medium rare" can get you anything from slightly browned to incinerated. Thus it is hard for me to say what degree of doneness the steaks I cook really are, but I like my steak cooked on a grill for about 6-7 minutes. I suspect that my steaks are "rare". I buy mostly ribeyes or porterhouses and look for steaks that weigh about a pound. I'll sometimes buy filet mignon if it is on sale, especially if I'm expecting to serve guests who might not enjoy the fat and bones in the steaks I usually buy.

A Filet Mignon cooked a little rare, with gorgonzola (or bleu cheese) sprinkled on top with mushrooms cooked in butter layered over the filet.

I had a similar dish today, only with a ribeye and a light sauce made by cooking sauteed onions in a little marsala with a little garlic. The mushrooms were also criminis rather than the standard white mushrooms. Criminis can often be found in stores now days as a "baby portabellas". The side was sliced potatoes roasted until brown in olive oil with garlic and "italian seasoning".

I know some steak purists would protest at putting toppings on a steak. I really enjoy grilling though, so I eat a lot of steak during the summer. A little variety can be nice form time to time. My standard steak is salted, brushed with a little sesame or olive oil depending on my mood, and then salted again and dusted with black pepper and maybe just a little garlic. The side is generally baked potatoes with butter, salt, and black pepper.

Oh, and it isn't right unless you keep the knife in your right hand the whole time

Um, are you left handed or something? For a right handed person wouldn't the knife be held in the left hand at all times instead? Certainly switching hands seems odd though I've seen people do it. Actually, when I first fed my girlfriend steak she was so unskilled at cutting it up that she used to put down the fork and hold the steak down with her finger. I still can't understand what the heck her problem was, but she's getting over it.

 

[glass]

Me? Medium-Rare.

Me too.


glass.