Oh, you molecular gastronomists. There you go again, up-ending everything we think is right and proper in the kitchen. Here's the latest strange yet wholly practical concept imported to home kitchens from the labs of Nathan Myhrvold, gentleman scientist and chef: A method for cooking the absolute perfect steak, demonstrated here by Brandon Matzek of Kitchen Konfidence.
What do we usually do with steak? Cook it fast, hot, and high, right? Wouldn't want it to turn into a grey and rubbery piece of meat. Well, here's another way to think about steak, one that gives you a beautifully tender piece of meat (and more margin for error): Freeze it solid, then sear it to give it a crust, and then bake at a very, very low oven temperature for up to an hour.
Myhrvold, author and developer of the multi-volume "Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking," demonstrated this technique in a recent dinner session with Melissa Clark at The New York Times. It goes against everything we've ever learned about steak, but you don't need to be a scientist to experiment with it. It sounds like it just works well.
Brandon gave the method a try and describes the results like this: "The contrast of the salty, golden crust and the smooth, buttery center is just pure heaven." Um, yes. Let's do that.
• Read more about this technique: Frozen Seared Steak at Kitchen Konfidence
Have you ever tried this, or another technique inspired by those zany molecular gastronomists?
More advice & tutorials on steak:
• How To Cook a Steak in the Oven
• Recipe: Steak With Drunken Mushrooms & Roasted Blue Cheese Potatoes
• Cast Iron Skillet Recipe: Mediterranean Tri-Tip Steak
• 8 Tips for Grilling Perfect Steak
• Steak & Crème Brûlée: A Rich Yet Easy Valentine's Menu
(Image: Brandon Matzek of Kitchen Konfidence)
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Why not freeze, sear, and then Sous vide? I assume the freeze/sear step is helping you ensure that only the very top of the meat is seared, without affecting the done-ness of the rest of the meat.
Thanks for the feature!
Roberto, you are totally correct. This process allows you to get a great sear without the worry of overdoing the meat. You could Sous vide the steak to finish, but it's not necessary in this application. And I find cooking in a low oven much, much easier.
Brandon @ Kitchen Konfidence
I'm trying this over the weekend - if it works as advertised, it will be absolutely life-changing. Thanks, Brandon!
I use the ATK method of a low temp pre-bake to gently bring the center close to the proper final temperature, followed by an short, intense pan sear to develop a nice crust while bringing the interior up the rest of the way.
Geek factor: the slow bake gives protolytic enzymes a chance to work, so the meat self-tenderizes during this step.
I *just* bought the ATK "best of 2011" mag and saw that they, too, recommend a freeze, a sear (with cornstarch?!) and then some time in the oven-- I can't remember how hot or how long the oven was... but the freezing and the cornstarch were brand new to me! I'm terrified of cooking steak and don't each much meat but my partner loves a good steak and I was thinking of making it for Valentine's Day. Will be sure to report back!
"Cook until done to taste (30 minutes – 1 hour). An internal temperature of 125 for rare, 145 for medium and 165 for well done." is not easier than sous vide for me! sticking a thermometer into a 1-inch piece of meat and getting an accurate reading is tricky, and knowing when to do it is guesswork. The equivalent sous vide recipe is "set sous vide cooker to 125 for rare, 145 for medium and 165 for well done, and cook for 30 minutes to an hour."
I think I'm with DWhitman on this. I would start low and slow, and only when the right internal temperature was close, would I sear the exterior to get a nice crust. I used this method a few years ago, cooking Prime Rib for Christmas, and folks raved about it. Thank Alton Brown! It was the first time I made Prime Rib, and it was easier than I thought.
Saw this in the NYT a couple weeks ago -- such a novel idea! I love it when methods from the molecular gastronomy crowd are easily adaptable in a home kitchen.
@Roberto -- Sous-vide always skeeves me out a little, since you're letting stuff sit in a hot plastic bag for so long. I actually love how this method ensures an evenly pink piece of protein and avoids the plastic-in-hot-water + extra-stuff-to-throw-away set-up that puts me off of sous-vide cooking!
This recipe freezes fresh steak for one hour, which doesn't seem long enough to freeze solid. How would it work with steak that's frozen solid already? I have tons of steaks in my chest freezer, and remembering to thaw them ahead of time is the SINGLE biggest impediment to eating them. Collective wisdom?
Never mind: in the comments of the linked site, the poster says that frozen-solid steaks will work as long as they're frozen flat. They'll probably just take longer in the oven.
Basically the same concept as with sous vide but since most folks don't have immersion circulators, it's easier to apply. However, sous vide would allow less guess work, no temperature checks involving probing a steak with a thermometer (which will release juices!), ability to leave the steak inside the bath until service time (obviously anything over 2-3 hours in there for a steak would bad though) and benefits from cooking in a vacuum sealed bag which keeps all the flavor and juice inside while cooking where as a dry oven could cook it out.
On the topic however - does anyone know pro/cons of searing then sous vide vs sous vide and finishing with a sear?
TIL everyone has a sous vide cooker but me.
I want to share this story with others.... is there a way to share it through e-mail, facebook, twitter???? Thanks
look at the top of where the comments start there is a google+ facebook and twitter links