Thursday, June 12, 2008

Pan-Seared Steak

What You'll Need: 
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 boneless rib-eye or New York strip (shell) steak, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds and 2 1/2 inches thick at room temperature
coarse salt and cracked pepper
steak butter (see below)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat oil in a large cast-iron (or non-stick skillet) over medium-high until it begins to smoke. Pat steak dry with paper towels. Season each side with 1 tsp coarse salt and 1 tsp cracked pepper.
2. Cook steak in skillet over medium-high heat until a dark crust has formed, 5 - 7 minutes per side (reduce heat if meat is browning too quickly). Holding steak with tongs, quickly brown all edges, turning as necessary; lay steak flat in skillet.
3. Transfer skillet to oven. Roast until an instant thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the steak registers desired doneness, 5 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a plate; spread with 1 tablespoon steak butter. Cover loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest 5 to 10 minutes (temperature will then rise another 5 to 10 degrees). Slice across the grain; serve with remaining steak butter. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers (great for salads) up to 2 days.

Internal temperatures (before resting): 
Rare: 115 degrees
Medium-rare: 125 degrees
Medium: 140 degrees
...I'm not giving you any more options because that's just blasphemy.

Steak butters: 
In a small bowl, mix the ingredient combination of your choice (below) with 4 tablespoons room temperature butter. Season with course salt and ground pepper.

Blue cheese: 
2 tbsp (1 ounce) crumbled blue cheese
1 scallion, minced

Garlic-herb: 
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 garlic clove, minced

Horseradish-Mustard (this is the one I've now made twice)
2 tbsp prepared-white horseradish (squeezed of excess liquid)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard

No comments: