How Do I Cook Meat Without It Smoking?

Emma Christensen
Emma Christensen
Emma is a former editor for The Kitchn and a graduate of the Cambridge School for Culinary Arts. She is the author of True Brews and Brew Better Beer. Check out her website for more cooking stories
updated May 2, 2019
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Q: I have the hardest time cooking meat on my stovetop! I use a cast iron skillet or an All-Clad skillet, and either way the pan starts smoking like crazy before meat is done to temperature. I’ve tried covering the pan at the beginning and the end, to no avail. This happens with thicker cuts, not surprisingly. What’s your advice?

Lower temperature and slower cooking time? Finishing in the oven? If you’re going to go low and slow, how do you estimate how long it’s going to take to cook, since so many recipes give you time estimates for a certain pan temperature?

Sent by Nina

Editor: With steaks and pork chops, I’m a big fan of searing them on both sides over high heat, then putting them in the oven to finish cooking:

Readers, what’s your advice?

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Cooking Methods
Ingredient
Meat