Primitive people, frying meat on fire, did not assume that they were at the origins of the steak culture, because in those days it was the only way to cook meat. Later, the priests of Ancient Rome offered to the gods in the ritual of sacrifice thick pieces of meat, fried on both sides on a grate right in the temple. However, the first steak recipe officially published in a cookbook was born in Great Britain in the 15th century, and soon all of Europe was grilling steaks in different ways, depending on the culinary traditions of different countries. After Columbus imported high-quality cattle into America, steaks began to be cooked on the American continent, and in a short time this dish became part of the national cuisine of the New World. It was in America that steak cooking has become a real art, and every American chef knows how to fry a steak deliciously. There are certain subtleties that relate to the choice of meat and various culinary methods of toasting, the knowledge of which will help in mastering this virtuoso art. So, let's try to cook meat at home!

What are the steaks

There are many types of steaks. For example, a thick piece of beef without bones, with a layer of fat, cut from the rib eye, is a ribeye, and a thin layer of boneless meat from the back is a strip-loin, which has an almost triangular shape. The New York steak is similar to a strip-loin, but there is no fat in it. "Portehaus" is the largest steak from the lumbar part, and filet mignon is the most expensive, juicy, tender and delicious steak from the only round muscle in the body of a bull. T-Bon steak is T-shaped meat on the bone and combines two types of meat - fillet and thin rim. Angleterre is made with meat from the inside of a shoulder blade, and a Café de Paris steak is made from a piece of the softest meat from a shoulder blade. Quasimodo steak is cut from the lumbar region of the back, while Montevideo is a rump steak. Roundmba steak is made from the upper part of the hip, club steak from the back of the thick rim, sirloin from the thigh of the carcass, and rum steak is a very thin and well-beaten tenderloin. As they say, choose a steak for every taste!

Steak is made from only beef

The most important cooking rule is choosing the right meat. Initially, steaks were prepared from beef, so if they say "steak", then they mean exactly a dish of beef. For other meat, clarification is required, so in this case they write: pork, chicken, salmon steak, and so on. But true steak connoisseurs argue that steaks made from any meat other than beef are not steaks.

Naturally, select beef is needed - it is believed that for an ideal steak, you should take the meat of young bulls aged 1–1.5 years of the breed Hereford, Shorthorn, Angus and Longhorn, fed by grass, wheat and corn. Gobies that have grown on grain crops, and not just nibbled on the lawn, acquire an unusually delicate layer of fat, evenly distributed in the piece. This is how the elite marbled beef is obtained, from which the world's best steaks are prepared. Interestingly, for classic steaks, they usually take meat of gobies, and the same dish made from cow meat is called a steak.

How to choose meat for a steak

The method of carcass cutting is also important, since it is better to use meat fibers cut across, 2.5–4 cm thick for steaks. Such cutting allows the oil to penetrate into the pores of the meat pulp, so the steaks cook quickly and are more juicy. By and large, only up to 10% of the carcass is suitable for steaks, so the meat intended for this dish is considered elite and expensive. The dorsal muscles are most suitable for steaks - the fact is that pieces from the areas of the body where the muscles are at rest are better fried and are softer. It doesn't matter if the meat is on the bone or without it, the main thing is that the piece is finished and you don't have to cut off unnecessary pieces of fat or veins from it. And also the meat should be fresh, dry, rich dark shade, with a smooth and silky surface. They say that the most delicious steaks are obtained from slightly dried meat. The most important thing is that the meat is not steamed, otherwise the steak will turn out to be tough, and its taste, which just fermentation provides, will not be so rich and rich.

Cooking meat for frying

About an hour before cooking, the meat should be removed from the refrigerator to warm up to room temperature. This is necessary to evenly grill the steak. If you will be cooking frozen steaks, then in the evening they should be put from the freezer into the refrigerator so that they thaw gradually. But experts say that steaks made from previously frozen meat lose a lot in taste.

Some housewives marinate in lemon juice with salt and spices for softness and juiciness, although the choice of marinade is a matter of taste. Before frying, pieces of meat should be greased with olive oil and pepper, but when to salt the meat is a moot point. Some argue that you need to salt before frying, while others are sure that it is more correct to salt after the appearance of a golden brown crust, and even better - already in the plate. How best to do it is up to you, in accordance with personal taste preferences.

In what dishes is steak cooked

You can quickly and deliciously cook a steak in the oven, the Josper charcoal grill oven, on an open grill and on a grill pan in which the meat does not burn and acquires an appetizing pattern. Fat, flowing into the hollows of the frying pan, is not absorbed into the meat, and the dish turns out to be dietary. But after the oven, the meat is always juicier and softer, because it is cooked not only due to the high temperature emanating from the metal dishes or grate, but also due to the enveloping heat. If you are using a regular pan, it should be with a thick bottom, although it is believed that the steak is not cooked in ordinary pans and in a slow cooker - only grilling is suitable for this purpose.

The grill pan or oven should be as hot as possible at the start of frying, and you can use both butter and vegetable oil. However, if you are using butter, then you should not heat the pan too much. In this regard, frying in vegetable oil has its advantages, since it has a higher combustion temperature. Some cooks mix the two oils for the best result, but steaks are ideal in ghee that does not burn and is mild in flavor. By the way, ribeye steak is most suitable for frying in a pan, which is universal. The fat layer in the meat flesh melts quickly, soaking the steak and making it very juicy, tender and tasty.

How to make a delicious steak: fry quickly

The main rule for preparing a steak is that at first it is fried very quickly in a hot pan until crusty, and then it is brought to readiness over a slower heat. The fact is that the protein curls up under the influence of high temperature and does not allow the juice to flow out of the meat. Some cooks dry the steak for an hour in the oven at 60 ° C before frying, as the dried meat instantly gives a dense golden brown crust when frying. If you neglect this rule, the steak will be dry and tough. When doing this, do not forget to fry the sides of the steak as well, holding it for convenience with meat tongs. A steak covered with a dense crust on all sides will cook well and remain juicy. This is one of the main steak cooking tricks. Do not overdo it with the fire and do not bring the pan to the point that it starts to smoke, because if the steak burns, you will not be able to continue frying, and it will turn out raw.

How long to fry a steak, how to turn

A steak about 3 cm thick is fried on each side for 4-5 minutes, and if you have pieces of meat of a different size, add or subtract one minute for each centimeter. How to cook a steak correctly - turn it often or rarely? This is one of the most frequent questions for novice cooks. There are two options here - either turn over every 30 seconds (of course, after the initial frying), or change the position of the steak no more than 4 times at a time. In the first case, you will get an evenly fried and not overdried steak, in the second case, the steak will turn out to be very beautiful, with a pattern from a grill pan or wire rack.

It helps a lot in frying and cutting pieces across the fibers. Heat flows through the meat, continuing to heat it even after the steak is removed from the heat. That is why there is no need to fry the steak for a long time - it will come to readiness in your plate. However, if you are afraid to serve raw meat on the table, cook the steak for about 15 minutes, but not more, so that the beef does not lose its tenderness and juiciness.

Determine the degree of steak cooking

There are six degrees of roast, the choice of which depends solely on your personal tastes. When fried, blue steak is bloody, rar is a very lightly fried steak, but already without blood. Medium rare steak - lightly fried meat: outside there is a crust, inside the meat is only heated. Medium steak - medium rare, when the meat is pink in the middle, but still damp. Medium well steak - well done with pinkish meat and well done - very hard done, perfectly cooked.

Experienced chefs know how to determine the degree of roasting visually, but this method requires a lot of experience and skill. You can do it easier - slightly cut the meat and look at its color inside, or press on the piece with your finger - a damp steak is usually soft, and the finished piece acquires firmness and density. If you don't trust your sensations, you can cook on time - a steak with blood is fried for 2 minutes on each side, 2.5 minutes for light frying, 3 minutes for medium roasting, and a perfectly fried steak takes 4.5 minutes per side. each side.

If you have a needle-shaped cooking thermometer, the task is easier - just measure the temperature of the steak to understand at what stage of cooking the meat is. Blue steak is cooked at 46–49 ° C, rar - at 52–55 ° C, medium rare - at 55–60 ° C, medium - at 60–65 ° C, medium well - at 65–69 ° C, well done - at 71–100 ° C. If the meat is over 100 ° C, the steak is overcooked.

"Rest" and steak tasting

An important secret of steak preparation is to give it a "rest" and recover from intense frying. To do this, place a piece of butter on the steak, cover it loosely with foil and leave for 10 minutes. The longer the steak "rests", the tastier, more aromatic and tender it will turn out. Do not rush to taste, because when frying, the meat fibers tense and slightly shrink, but gradually they relax, and the juice is evenly distributed inside the steak. In other words, meat "rested" after heat treatment is always softer than freshly removed from the fire. The steak can be served whole or cut into slices, on a preheated plate with any sauce, vegetable stir-fry cooked in the same pan, with fried potatoes, vegetable salad and herbs.

Marinated steak with tequila and lime

This Latin American steak will add variety to your daily diet and cheer you up. Make a marinade with 3 tbsp. l. tequila, 3 tbsp. l. olive oil, 2 tbsp. l. lime juice, 2 drops tabasco sauce, 4 finely chopped garlic cloves and 1 small onion. Marinate the beef steaks for 2 hours, after placing the dishes with the marinade in the refrigerator, and after 1 hour the meat should be turned over.

Half an hour before frying, turn on the grill, remove the steaks from the marinade, dry them well, rub with pepper and salt. Fry the steaks for 3-4 minutes on each side and let them rest for 10 minutes, then cut the slices across the grain into thin slices.

Spices from the Eat Doma branded online store

Various recipes for meat steaks with photos and step-by-step instructions are published on the Eat Doma website. Once you have mastered the art of cooking meat steaks, you will learn how to choose beef on the market, and the degree of meat readiness will be determined by eye. Of course, up to this point there is a lot to learn, but the simplest recipes can be mastered right now, delighting loved ones with tender and juicy steaks, with which life seems more fun and tastier. Well, from the Eat Doma brand store they will add flavor to your dishes!

Seems like a steak? Meat simply fried in a pan or grilled on both sides. But no, it's not that simple. It is not enough just to fry the meat - you need to do everything right. From this article, you will not only learn about the recommendations for cooking meat, but also about the types of steak, how to choose the right meat, and much more.

How to choose meat for a steak

Types of steaks

It will be difficult for you to cook a delicious steak if you purchase low-quality meat. Therefore, choosing the right meat is one of your main tasks.

There are four main types of top quality steaks, each different from the others, and which you should be aware of if you decide to grill or pan your steak. Among them:

Tenderloin (or filet mignon) is considered the most tender meat. It has no fat and is not as aromatic as other types of steak.

Ribeye (or delmonico, or entrecote) - with a pronounced central part of soft meat, surrounded by a layer of fat and a cap of vertebral muscles.

Strip (or New York Strip Steak) - similar in structure to ribeye, as it contains the same muscles, but located slightly lower.

Ti bon - contains elements of strip and cut at the same time. This is a rather difficult type of steak in terms of preparation, since tender tenderloin meat, which makes up a layer of about 4 cm wide, will reach the desired condition much faster than a large strip part in volume. This means that while the strip is cooking, the tenderloin may already be overcooked.

Steak varieties

To see that even the type of steak you choose may differ in quality, take a look at the following photo.

Here, for example, two types of meat are presented: "Prime" and "Choice". Prime is the most expensive variety, which is supplied mostly to restaurants and elite supermarkets. It is softer and has a pronounced marble structure. Choice is a simpler variety that can be found in any supermarket.

So, in order to choose a higher quality steak, you need to pay attention to the degree of its "marbling". Why is this "marbling" so important? For two reasons: juiciness and taste. When preparing a marbled steak, the fat slowly melts and makes the dish juicy on the inside. If the meat is not marbled, that is, it has layers of fat on the outside, then it is no longer moistened from the inside.

Almost all of the flavor we experience when eating steak comes from fat. For example, if you wanted the beef to have a chicken flavor, you need to take a non-fatty piece and cook it in chicken fat.

So, if you love a flavorful steak, look for meat with lots of marbled patches.

Size matters

The thickness of the steak is adjustable not only due to the fact that you need to limit the size of the portion. If the thickness is not chosen correctly, there will be no desired contrast between the inside and outside of it. For example, while you create a really crispy crust on the outside, the meat will overcook on the inside (even though the cooking temperature is high).

Aged meat

There are two methods of aging meat: dry and wet. Wet means placing the beef in a vacuum package for several weeks. Compared to plain meat, aged meat has better taste, because enzymes have worked on it, which have destroyed tough veins in it. This must be considered before you decide to cook a steak.

With the dry method, meat is stored for ten weeks or more in special rooms in which the same temperature and humidity are maintained. During this time, three things happen:

Moisture is lost (major factor). Meat can lose about 30 percent moisture, which allows it to get a rich taste after cooking.

Softening - Thanks to the same enzymes naturally found in meat, tough tissues are destroyed.

The flavor of the meat is enriched due to the work of enzymes and bacteria.

Whether or not aged meat is used depends on your preference. Some people prefer dry-aged meat steak (although it costs 20-25 percent more), while others do not mind preparing a dish from fresh meat.

Note: Don't trust stories that you can age meat well at home. Keep in mind that an intact (uncut) piece of meat must be prepared for aging, as after aging the spoiled top layer is cut off and discarded. You can, of course, put the steak in the freezer for several days and soften the meat slightly, but you will not feel a noticeable difference from raw meat in the aroma.

Bone

Talk to the chefs and they will tell you that bones add flavor. But you should be aware that the outer part of the bone does not have a strong aroma, and dense muscle tissue usually does not let smell through itself. If you marinate the meat overnight, you will see that the marinade has penetrated only a few millimeters. Then how much flavor can a nearly dry bone add when you decide to cook a steak? To find out, check out a little experiment.

So there were four pieces of meat available.

One did not have the bone removed. In another, the bone was taken out and tied with thread. In the third, the bone is taken out and tied, but with a layer of foil that prevents the penetration of aroma. The fourth piece is just boneless.

Everything was prepared in the same way. The result is as follows. All three pieces with bones did not differ from each other either in texture or taste. This dispels the bone myth. But, on the other hand, the boneless piece turned out to be drier in the place where the bone was missing. So, the bone does not allow moisture to evaporate from the steak and at the same time does not allow this area to overcook (serves as an insulator).

Note: When cooking in a pan, the bone can cause some inconvenience. The meat twists slightly during cooking and it becomes difficult to fry the area near the bone. But there is an answer to this - see the paragraph below on watering.

How to cook a steak

Salt

Salt meat before cooking, during or after? This is also where opinions differ. In most steak houses, the chefs salt the steak just before grilling. You can do this at home. But in such establishments there is no time for the meat to stand salty for at least half an hour. The truth is, steak needs to be salted 40 minutes before grilling.

As soon as the meat is salted, the salt will concentrate on its surface and draw liquid out of it (small drops on the meat). As the droplets grow, the salt dissolves in the meat juice, creating a concentrated brine. At this stage, after 25-30 minutes, it is not recommended to grill the steak - this brine will immediately evaporate, creating a hard, stretching crust.

Let the salt finish before cooking the steak. The brine will break down the layer of muscle tissue, allowing the juice of the meat to draw in the salt. What does it do? The meat becomes better seasoned, softer and more juicy as it cooks.

Note: Instead of regular, it is better to use coarse salt or sea salt, or even better - kosher. It draws liquid out of meat well and dissolves in it.

For the rest, the meat can not be kept at room temperature for a long time so that it warms up after being in the refrigerator, as some advise. After all, a thick piece gets warm for a long time. After half an hour of inactivity on a plate in the kitchen, the internal temperature will rise by only 2.5 degrees, after another half hour - by another 2.5. Not a big difference. Whether the meat is cold, or warms up a little at room temperature, this will not significantly affect its taste.

Use a cast iron skillet

A good cast-iron skillet has thick walls, is heavy, and is designed to last for many, many years. Even if you are accustomed to frying meat only on, try cast iron. Alternatively, get a cast iron wok. When you fry your steak in a good quality cast iron skillet, you can be sure that the meat will develop a crust even when removed from the heat. Browning quickly is a must if you want a brown crisp without overcooking the inside.

First vegetable oil, then butter

What is better to fry on? Here, too, the debate continues. Some experts say that a mixture of vegetable and butter gives the best results, because if you use only one butter, it will burn at a lower temperature than is needed for cooking meat. The fact is that even with vegetable oil, the milk protein found in butter still burns at high temperatures.

What does this all mean? The best food for frying meat is regular vegetable oil in large quantities. This is the only way to cook the meat well and evenly. For example, for a frying pan 30 cm in diameter, you need at least a quarter of a glass of vegetable oil.

Try adding butter a few minutes before the end of cooking. Since the saturated fats it contains will give the meat its flavor and flavor during this time, making the steak this way is a great idea. You just need to be careful not to let the oil burn, otherwise acrid notes will appear in the aroma. Besides the aroma, the butter gives the meat a nice brown hue. After the main cooking in vegetable oil, the meat becomes browned, but after adding butter, it takes on a great color.

Rollover

They say that a grilled steak can only be turned over once. Nonsense! It's just that the steak house chefs don't have time to turn over large quantities of steaks several times. And at home there is such an opportunity, and it should be used.

It has been proven that by turning the steak a large number of times (about every 15 seconds), you can cook evenly browned meat, and the cooking time will be reduced by about a third. Plus, you'll end up with a perfectly baked crust. This happens due to the fact that both sides give in to strong heat. This is about the same as if you decide to fry the steak on both sides at the same time. But, if you are in no hurry, you can do something else while cooking, and turn the meat just once - you will not spoil your steak.

Do you need a plug?

Using a fork to turn the steak will also do no harm. Do not be afraid that from the puncture of the meat all the juice will flow out of it, and the taste will deteriorate. Meat is not a ball of liquid. This is a thousand straws with juice, when piercing several of which there will be no noticeable change in the taste of the whole piece. But if you are worried about this, use a cooking tong or two turning spatulas.

Water, water, water

Now you have reached the place where you will learn how to fry a rather thick piece of meat. If you cook meat in a pan traditionally (without turning it over or pouring it), during the frying of the middle of a rather thick piece, its outer part will be baked to black. It is the juicing that allows you to prepare the perfect dish.

During watering and turning, two things happen. Meat cooks faster (as mentioned, 30 percent time savings). It also creates an excellent crust in the desired color.

The easiest way to collect juice from a skillet is to tilt it so that the liquid collects near the handle, where you can easily spoon it into a spoon and pour it over the steak.

Adding flavor

As noted, a steak tastes better if it is cooked with regular watering over the resulting juice. But you can also add. After the butter, add dry thyme or rosemary and onion or garlic to the pan. They release their aroma very quickly, charging them with fat. During the pouring, with each spoon, an additional portion of the aroma is "infused".

Thermometer

Don't be afraid to look like a lab technician running around a piece of cooking meat, sticking a thermometer into it. Trust me, praise for a well-prepared dish will make you forget about these inconveniences.

Below you can see the classification of the degree of roast and heating temperature.

In the right corner of the photo, you can see meat cooked with an internal temperature of about 50 degrees. Fat at this temperature does not melt, remains solid. You get an excess of calories and a lack of taste. It may not be worth cooking expensive marbled meat at this temperature. Better to add a little heat (up to 55 degrees) and let the marbled meat melt its fat slightly so that it moisturizes the meat and adds flavor and juiciness.

On the left side of the photo, you can see meat cooked at a temperature of 60 to 70 degrees. At this temperature on the grill, not only does the juice come out, as if squeezed out of a sponge, but it immediately flows down irrevocably onto the charcoal.

Note: Remember that on a grill, even when you remove a thick piece of meat from the heat, its temperature continues to rise. Therefore, remove the meat from the heat when its temperature has not reached the required 5 degrees.

If there is no thermometer

Since it is not always possible to cook a steak using a thermometer, you can try to do without it. It is clear that not everyone wants to buy an expensive temperature measuring device if the meat is cooked infrequently. Fortunately, there is another, "old-fashioned" way to control readiness. Just make a cut and look inside.

Do not be afraid that the meat will lose a lot of juice. There is another problem here. The cut looks more moist than it actually is. By the time the meat looks ready on the cut and you remove it from the heat, the temperature inside the thick piece will rise for a while. As a result, the meat will be overcooked. Consider this.

Conclusion: Cut meat when there is no thermometer at hand. Otherwise, it's best to look for an inexpensive cooking thermometer.

Let the meat "reach"

Why is it so important? There is an explanation here. During cooking, the outer tissues of the meat become tight and force the juice out. There is an imbalance in the middle of a piece of meat - most of the juice is concentrated in its center. If you cut the cooked piece as soon as you remove it from the heat, the juice from the center will simply flow out onto the plate. On the other hand, if you allow the meat to cool down a little, to normalize the pressure and temperature inside, the juice will be evenly distributed over the tissues. If you cut a piece that has cooled down a little, the juice will remain where it should be - in the meat. In addition, when it cools, the juice becomes a little thicker, which also contributes to its retention in the meat tissues.

Steaks are now made from pork, fish, and sometimes even vegetables. But all this comes from the crafty one: a classic steak is a decent piece of grilled beef.

Until recently, they preferred to call only pieces from premium cuts, but now so-called alternative steaks from cheaper parts of carcasses are gaining more and more popularity.

We have compiled a guide to 18 steaks, classic and alternative - their psychological portraits, characteristics, as well as tips on how to better handle them: using a frying pan, charcoal grill - and a contact grill (for example, Tefal Optigrill +).

The general rules for preparing steaks are the same. First of all, remove the meat from the refrigerator and wait until it warms up to room temperature - it will take from half an hour (for portioned pieces) to two hours (if we are talking about a whole cut). It is also necessary to dry the steaks with paper or cloth towels: excess moisture will prevent the meat from roasting and acquire a golden brown crust. After frying, you need to let the steak rest in the heat for five minutes - so that the meat juices, displaced by the compressed proteins into the center of the piece, spread evenly over it. Can the steak be cooked in the oven after quick frying? Yes of course. Should the steak be salted before or after? Opinions on this matter are different, so the answer is this: try this and that - and choose the end result that you personally liked.

Many people in our country still do not trust low-roasted meat - as they say, with blood. So, there is no blood in the steaks, almost all of it comes out of the carcass after slaughter before cutting at the meat processing plant. If you like well done - fry like this; But remember: all recommendations for optimal roasting are based on many years of experience of chefs and butchers - and there are steaks that, when cooked well done, turn into a real sole.

The difference between the degrees of doneness is determined by the temperature at the very center of the steak. Blue (very low roast) - 46-49 degrees, rare (low roast) - 50-55 degrees, medium rare (medium-low roast) - 55-60 degrees, medium (medium roast) - 60-65 degrees, medium well (medium-high roast) - 65-70 degrees, well done (full roast) - above 71 degrees. These are average values. Meticulous chefs insist on narrower ranges and believe that, for example, medium rare is 54 degrees (plus or minus degrees), medium is 56 degrees, medium well is 60 degrees, and a steak is completely fried at 64 degrees.

It is important to remember that it is best to remove the steak from the heat at the moment when it does not reach two degrees to the required temperature: it will reach the required degree of roasting during rest.

And here's how to properly fry steaks on a contact grill, a handy modern device that makes frying large pieces of meat extremely easy. Chef Konstantin Ivlev talks - using Tefal Optigrill as an example. This device automatically measures the thickness of the steak in the "Red Meat" mode and builds the temperature program in accordance with the required degree of roasting.

Classic steaks

The steaks are made from the best parts of the carcass, which account for only 10-12 percent, and that is why they are so expensive - and of course, because they are considered the most delicious. Ribeye, cowboy steak (the same ribeye, only with bone), tomahawk (ribeye with a long bone), striploin, filet mignon, chateaubriand, tibon, porterhouse - marinate them? In no case, this meat will tell all the most interesting about itself, without outside help. The main thing is just not to spoil the steak. The Optigrill contact grill, for example, finds out the thickness of the piece itself and, depending on this, builds the optimal temperature regime: you just need to select the desired degree of roast - and wait for the corresponding sound or color signal.

Ribeye

Perhaps the most famous and popular steak in the world. It is taken from the thick edge of the dorsal part of the rib cage of the bull - from the 6th to the 12th rib. In the United States, rib eye is often called rib steak, and boneless is called spencer steak, or rib eye itself. In Australia, on the other hand, ribeye is called a steak with bone, and the boneless version is scotch fillet ("Scottish fillet").

Ribeye consists of muscles, which have a minimal load during the life of the animal, so the meat fibers are soft and tender. This steak has four muscles - spinalis dorsi (the top of the steak is very fatty, with loose meat fibers, it is considered the most delicious part, it is separated from the rest of the steak by a large fat layer) , multifidus dorsi, longissimus dorsi and longissimus costarum.The closer a part of the carcass was in the head, the more spinalis dorsi will be in the steak, respectively, the tastier and more valuable it will be.

Due to the significant fat content and its even distribution throughout the whole piece of meat, this is the easiest to prepare and guaranteed to be tasty, juicy and soft steak. The fat is also responsible for the pleasant buttery nutty flavor in the finished steak. When heated, it melts and permeates the already soft fibers, making them even more juicy and melt in the mouth.

Ideal doneness of ribeye - medium rare, amateurs appreciate and rare, but medium will be fine too... Cooking this steak is very simple: season with salt, fry each side and sides of the ribeye in a very hot skillet or charcoal grill for a minute. The entire frying process will take approximately four to six minutes for a medium 300 g steak, during which time the steak will reach a medium rare state. If you want to cook the meat better, reduce the heat, or transfer the steak to the colder section of the grill and bring to the desired level of doneness.

Cowboy steak

This is the same ribeye, only on a short rib (in Russia, a cowboy steak is often called simply ribeye on the bone). Average weight - 600 g. If you cook a cowboy steak on a charcoal grill, then first it is better to darken it for fifteen to twenty minutes in the cold zone, turning it every five minutes, and then quickly fry it on both sides over high heat until an appetizing crust is formed. If you cook in a skillet, then you need to quickly fry it over high heat from all sides, including the edges, and then send it to the oven, preheated to 200 degrees (the time he has to spend there depends on the desired degree of roasting; the easiest way is to control it with using a temperature probe). The recommended doneness is medium.

This steak is similar to a tomahawk - a ribeye on a long smoothed rib about 15 centimeters long: it resembles an Indian battle hatchet, hence the name. In part, the tomahawk is a marketing gimmick that helps sell bone at the price of marbled beef. Many vendors and chefs, however, argue that the meaning of the bone is not only in the visual wow effect - but in the rich aroma that it gives to the meat. The claim is controversial: she will pass it on to broth with much more success than fried steak. In addition, a tomahawk will need either a grill or a decent sized frying pan. Handle a tomahawk in the same way as a cowboy steak.

Striploin

It is a New York steak (it got its name because it was a specialty of New York restaurant Delmonico "s). Cut from a thin fillet edge located in the lumbar region of the carcass after the 13th rib. There is a strip around the perimeter of the steak fat, sometimes it is cut off.

Striploin is distinguished by large and dense meat fibers and a low content of intermuscular fat. It is more aromatic than ribeye, with a pronounced meaty taste - but you need an eye and an eye for stripe. It is very easy to dry it out; you must first cook striploin over high heat, then over low heat (in the case of a charcoal grill, first over high heat, then in a colder zone). The ideal degree of doneness is medium rare. It is best to season this steak with only salt and pepper so that nothing interrupts the taste of the meat.

Filet mignon

Steak from the tenderloin, that is, the psoas major muscle. This muscle is practically not involved in the life of animals, there are almost no connective tissues in it, so it remains very soft. The whole tenderloin is a long piece of meat that resembles a pencil, thickened on one side and sharpened on the other. For filet mignon, the second part is used - a narrow one, it is believed that it is the most delicate in taste. It is cut into small cylinders - the thickness varies from 3 to 6 cm.

On average, one animal can only provide 500 grams of meat for a filet mignon, which is why this steak is so expensive. But at the same time, many connoisseurs of fried beef do not like it too much. Filet mignon contains almost no intramuscular fat, its taste is distinguished by a creamy velvety tenderness, but not meaty expressiveness. It is appreciated for its juiciness and softness, but not for the taste and aroma of meat, and that is why it is conventionally called a "female" steak (as opposed to a "male", brutal "New York" or tibon).

When cooking fillet mignon, you need to fry for four minutes on all sides, and then leave to rest for five minutes, wrapped in foil, or fry on all sides until a good crust and send to the oven for 10 minutes. The recommended doneness is medium, it is almost never cooked with blood. To make the filet mignon juicier, it is often wrapped in bacon when cooking; it also protects the surface of the steak from drying out. The second option to achieve a firm but not dry crust is to periodically coat the steak with oil as it cooks. Due to its mild taste and leanness, filet mignon goes well with aromatic compound sauces.

Konstantin Ivlev tells how to cook filet mignon in a contact grill.

Chateaubriand

Chateaubriand is also made from the tenderloin - only from the wider part of it. Unlike fillet mignon, it is cooked whole, not cut into pieces - so this is a portion for two, unless, of course, there is a person for whom half a kilogram of beef, even lean, does not pose any digestive problem. Probably, such was the viscount and the writer François-René de Chateaubriand, after whom, according to one version, this steak was named. However, there is another version - about the city of Chateaubriand, where high quality cattle were raised.

When cooking, shatborian must first be sealed on all sides over high heat, and then brought to the desired degree of roasting on a quieter fire - or sent to the oven, preheated to 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes, depending on the desired degree of roasting. Then you need to give the steak a rest in a warm place. A classic chateaubriand is a well-done crust, a thin layer of well done, then medium and finally soft flesh with blood in the center.

Chateaubriand, like filet mignon, is traditionally served with sauce. At the beginning of the 19th century, it was a sauce of the same name made of white wine, shallots, thyme, mushrooms, bay leaves, tarragon, beef broth and butter with parsley. Nowadays, most often chateaubriand is accompanied by sauce.

Tibon

The name (T-Bone Steak) is completely consistent with the appearance - it is a steak made of two pieces of muscle, separated by a T-shaped bone. On the one hand - a tender lean tenderloin, on the other - a brutal strip-loin with a rich meaty taste. The further from the head the steak was cut, the larger it is and the more tenderloin (filet mignon) it contains. The largest steaks in which the diameter of a portion of the tenderloin exceeds the size of a golf ball is called a porterhouse. Florentine steak is also a tibon or porterhouse, only, as a rule, from beef of the Italian Chianina and Marremana breeds. The Kuban steak, invented by Takhir Kholkiberdiev, is a porterhouse made from the meat of Kuban bulls and cows. Close to tibon club steak: a steak on the bone taken from the end of a thin edge, where the proportion of tenderloin is negligible.

Since tibon is essentially two different steaks in one, you need to cook it carefully so as not to dry out the tenderloin, while the striploin is not ready yet. You need to fry it in a frying pan over moderate heat - for 15-20 minutes, turning every 2-3 minutes, and it is better to keep the part with the tenderloin away from the epicenter of the heat. Or, do this: quickly fry over high heat until crusty, turning every 30 seconds, and then bring the tenderloin over moderate heat, placing the tenderloin portion in a colder zone. Then - by all means give the steak a rest. The same recommendations apply with a charcoal grill. The ideal degree of doneness is medium rare. However, the same degree in different parts of the tibone is not always achieved, and if the cut is medium rare, then the strip is medium.

Alternative steaks

This is the name for steaks from those parts of the carcass that the majority did not even consider for steaks and that were previously intended for baking, stewing - or for minced meat.But it turns out that when handled correctly, alternative steaks are excellent in the pan or on the grill. This meat is m may seem harshbut it has a rich beef flavor and is significantly cheaper than premium cuts (the price difference reaches three times) ... Alternative steaks can also be marinated to soften the meat and add flavor to the meat. The recommendations for pan or charcoal grilling are below, and for a contact grill, simply decide what degree of cooking you want and wait for the corresponding signal in the Red Meat mode.

Skirt steak

Steak made from the diaphragm, the unpaired girdle that separates the chest and abdomen. One of the so-called alternative, that is, steaks from non-premium parts of the carcass.

Skirt steak is usually called only that part of the softer (inside skirt), which refers to the edge, but sometimes - and the part cut from the flank (this steak is also called the outside skirt, but more often it is sold under the name of machete steak).

This steak has coarse fibers with layers of fat and when cooked properly is very juicy, albeit stiffer than premium thick or thin rim cuts. To soften the meat, it is recommended to pre-strip it from numerous films and lightly pre-marinate it (pickles made from onions or citrus fruits, as well as with the addition of soy or Worcestershire sauce and vinegar like balsamic). Another way to soften the skirt steak is to make small mesh cuts on both sides before marinating. The marinated steak is grilled quickly, 3 minutes on each side.

However, you can do without the marinade, just season the skirt steak with salt and pepper and grease with vegetable oil - and now the main thing is not to dry it out: the steak is very thin, so fry it over moderate heat. 10-15 minutes, turning every 2-3 minutes, optimal roast - medium rare.

Machete

About the machete steak (aka outside skirt), in principle, everything is said a little higher: this is a thin and long steak from the diaphragm, so named because it resembles a Latin American agricultural knife in shape. You need to handle a machete in the same spirit as with a skirt.

And here are Konstantin Ivlev's advice on how to cook steak with a machete in a contact grill.

Flank steak

Flank steak, that is, from the inside meat of the carcass, located between the ribs and the thigh closer to the groin of the animal. This cut makes quite tough and lean steaks, but they taste very bright, with a distinct meaty aroma. It is most reasonable to marinate the flank steak - for at least a couple of hours, and preferably overnight. Marinade options - chimichurri sauce; a combination of vegetable oil, wine vinegar, garlic and soy sauce and honey; a combination of onions, soy sauce, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and sugar. Fry the marinated steak on a charcoal grill or frying pan for about ten minutes, turning regularly - medium rare, medium rare, maximum. (Of course, you do not need to turn it over in a contact grill.)

Butcher steak

Steak from the meaty part of the diaphragm. In English, it is also called a hanger steak or hanging tender, in both cases the word "hanging" is important: it describes the position of a muscle, as if suspended inside the animal between the lungs and the abdominal cavity. This part is called butcher steak because butchers often did not let it go for sale, but kept it for themselves - both because of its not too tasty appearance, and because of the rich meat taste and aroma with which it resembles a flank steak. Some argue that the butcher's steak tastes like liver, but you can also call it a blood taste.

A vein runs along the center of the steak, to which large meat fibers are attached at an angle of 30-40 degrees. It is usually removed before frying, dividing the piece into narrow two parts.

This part of the diaphragm is one of the least working muscles during the life of an animal, so the main thing is not to dry out its tenderness. So you can fry it with minimal seasonings such as salt and pepper and a branch of thyme in vegetable oil with a small addition of butter - 5-6 minutes, often turning it over, before frying medium rare, maximum medium. But you can first marinate the butcher's steak in a spicy and acidic environment (the base is citrus fruits, wine, wine vinegar), and fry it just for a short time, constantly turning it over.

Chuck roll

Neck fillet, part of the long back muscle between the shoulder blade and ribs. The chuck roll tastes like ribeye (these are cuts-neighbors), but it is rather stringy meat, and the steak from it is unlikely to melt in your mouth. This cut is ideal for stewing and - after pre-marinating - for kebabs. For steaks, you can also pickle it. Or, by adding salt and pepper and cutting in several places the vein passing through the steak (thanks to this, it will become somewhat softer during cooking), fry for a couple of minutes on each side over high heat, finish cooking on a slow one, also turning over every couple of minutes. The recommended doneness is medium.

Top blade

Outside shoulder steak, a wide, long piece of meat. The second in tenderness and softness (after cutting) part of the mascara, moreover, it costs two times cheaper.

The top blade is split in two by connective tissue - and this creates problems when frying: the high temperature turns it into rubber. The way out is just to gently avoid it with the knife on the plate. Or pre-marinate the steak - the base options are the same: onions, citrus fruits, wine, vinegar, choose the taste (sugar and honey are optional, they are needed not so much for sweetness, but for the Maillard reaction, which provides a beautiful crust, into which sugars and amino acids).

Flat iron

This is the same outside of the shoulder blade as the top blade, only cut differently. If you cut a cut across, so that the connective tissue runs down the middle of each piece, this is the top blade. If long and flat ribbons of meat are removed from the core, then you get two flat irons. They are fried either in whole pieces, or by dividing them into two halves. Recommended cooking levels are medium rare or medium, it is important not to overdry, so you need to fry quickly. You can marinate the flat iron if you like, but it's good with minimal spices - like a ribeye.

In addition - Konstantin Ivlev's story about how best to fry this steak in a contact grill, having previously marinated the meat in honey-mustard-oyster sauce.

Denver

A steak made from a small muscle located between the cervical spine and the shoulder blade. This is the most tender part of the neck cut: in contrast to the chuck roll, denver is a relatively soft steak. A relatively new cut - it was first presented to the market in 2009 (the industry does not stand still, and butchers still isolate interesting pieces from the carcass that are suitable for steaks). The best steaks are obtained from a seasoned cut, will not interfere with denver and marinade. The optimum degree of roasting for Denver is medium

The youngest steak - American meat expert Tony Mata singled it out in 2012 (by the way, it was he who invented the flat iron in 2003) - from the part of the shoulder blade that was previously used for minced meat. Mata's proposal was to cut off all the unnecessary things like connective tissue, and proclaim the rest as a new steak. The Vegas Strip tastes like New York, except that it has a tougher structure, but it is softer than many other alternative steaks and does not require marinating. The ideal doneness is medium.

Picking

Triangular steak from the rump, from the upper thigh, covered with a uniform fat layer on top. In English this part is called the top sirloin cap.

This is a favorite cut of the Brazilians, who cannot imagine without it Churrasceria, establishments specializing in meat. In Brazil, the picana is divided into three parts perpendicular to the fibers, seasoned with salt and pepper, folded in a semicircle with fat outward, strung on skewers, pressing the pieces closely together - and fried over an open fire, continuously turning, and then cut into thin pieces - again - so across the fibers.

It is better to cook a whole picana in the oven, but in Russia it is often sold already in the form of chopped steaks. They must first be salted and left to marinate for half an hour, and you need to fry, remembering the main thing: do not dry out. First, over high heat for two minutes on each side (then on low for another 2-4 minutes on each side; in the case of a charcoal grill, over indirect heat). The meat is lean, but due to the fatty strip, it is given the necessary juiciness during this time. The ideal doneness is medium. Pikan is appreciated not for tenderness, but for exactly the opposite: for its brutal texture and rich meaty taste. If you want to pre-marinate the pican, we will not dissuade you: it will turn out to be very tasty too.

Sirloin

Also cut from the sacrum. Cut from the loin close to the widest part of the tenderloin. The meat is quite soft, but at the same time fragrant. Whole sirloin is best baked: rub it with salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme and oregano (or other herbs of your choice) and put it in the oven, preheated to 160 degrees, for an hour and a half. Sirloin steaks are easy to dry out, especially if you focus on the part where the fat strip is located: the optimal degree of frying is medium, or better - medium rare. Fry it for a couple of minutes on each side on a charcoal grill - or in a frying pan in a little vegetable oil (at the end add a slice of butter, a couple of cloves of garlic and a branch of rosemary to the pan). If you are grilling on a contact grill, simply press the button and wait for the desired cooking level. And be sure to let the steak rest after cooking.

Rump steak

Rear steak, with rather tough meat: the muscles in this part of the animal are constantly working during its life. The main advantages of ramp are the low price compared to premium steaks and a bright, rich beef flavor. Before frying this steak, it is better to marinate it thoroughly (4–8 hours) (basics are traditional, according to your taste: citrus fruits, wine, good vinegar, it turns out very well with teriyaki). Fry over moderate heat for 2-3 minutes on each side, and then let it rest - it will be medium rare. If the steaks are not marinated, cook for 4-5 minutes on each side, turning regularly, also over moderate heat.

There can be no good nutrition without meat. And, if we talk about something tasty - it's of course a steak! In this article, we are going to talk about more than just beef steak. And about which piece is better to choose and how to cook.

Choosing the right meat

Cooking a classic steak is impossible without good beef. First you need to figure out how to choose the right meat.

Don't buy frozen meat for steaks. Even at a temperature of 0 0 C during freezing, changes in the properties of this product occur. The meat is juicier after freezing. This is certainly not bad.

But there are also negative aspects of freezing - when the liquid in the meat freezes, it forms crystals that disrupt the structure of the meat, cutting its fibers.

When choosing meat, look at its color, which will determine its freshness. Fresh beef has a deep red color. The fat should only be white, without any shades. If the meat is fresh, then the fat should crumble (this applies to beef fat).

Go to the market to buy meat. Since the meat is checked on the market every day. This happens less often in the store. Especially if it is packaged and packaged meat.

There is also an opportunity to purchase homemade meat with good qualities on the market. And if you get to know the owner of this meat and become a regular customer, then no one will deceive you for sure.

Check the firmness of the meat to determine if it is fresh. Press your finger on the piece you like, if the dent formed quickly disappears, then you have chosen fresh meat, your steak will turn out to be tender. And when, when pressed, you feel how it springs, it means that it is not the first freshness and the steak from it wakes up rubbery.

Pay attention to the layers of fat. They make the meat juicy. Choose a piece that has layers of fat. When you cook, they will melt and the steak will turn out to be very juicy and very tender.

Types of steak

The best cuts of beef are used to prepare the steak. It's just that the pulp is not suitable for this dish. The type of steak depends on which part of the beef it is cooked from. There are about a hundred types of preparation of this dish.

Let's consider the most popular ones.

1. Marbled steak - the second name of Ribeye... For him, meat is used, which is cut from the subscapular part of the beef. It contains many layers of fat, which makes it look like marble. It is considered best when these veins are thin and there are a lot of them.
2. Ti-bon - it was so named because of the bone, which looks like the letter "T". It is cut at the edge of the dorsal and lumbar at the site of the formation of the thin borders of the longest muscle and notch. The beef carcass is specially chopped so that there is a bone with meat. Such steaks can be bought ready-made - pieces of meat on a T-shaped bone.
3. Filet mignon, the kind of steak made from the most tender piece. It looks like a stump, cleaned of all veins and veins, slightly beaten off, in the form of a steak. If you are hitting yourself, then do not use the hammer. Fight back with a knife handle.
4. Roundrumb - meat for this species is cut from the upper hip part of the carcass.
5. Tornedos - cut pieces of meat from the thin edge of the main body of the tenderloin.
6. Porterhouse steak - meat from the thick edge of the lumbar tenderloin is used here.
7. Club steak - This steak has a small rib bone with meat from the back at the border of the thick edge of the long muscle.
8. Chateaubriand - for a given steak, take a rather thick piece from the central part of the beef carcass.
9. Rum - steak prepared from tenderloin, which is cut into thin pieces and beaten well.

Whichever type of steak you choose, keep in mind that the pieces of meat must be cut to a thickness of 3 or 5 centimeters. Cross-grain for even browning.

Preparation

Once you have selected the meat in the market and brought it home, it needs to be cleaned well before cooking. It is necessary to cut off all films and external tendons from it. Rinse thoroughly under running water. Then put the meat in a colander to glass all the liquid, or on a towel for 15 minutes.

After that, you need to properly cut the meat. Steak portions should only be cut across the grain. Due to this cutting, the fat evenly passes through the meat fibers during frying. The meat is heated quickly and evenly.

As mentioned earlier, the thickness of the pieces should be from three to five centimeters in thickness. If you decide to cook in a pan, three centimeters are enough. On coals - the thickness must be at least five centimeters.

Attention! Remember, a steak is not a chop. It is impossible to beat off the prepared pieces, as the meat loses its juices and its structure.

Prepare spices for use in cooking meat. The steaks need to be marinated. To do this, take a ceramic or glass container. Make a marinade with olive oil, salt, spices and vinegar, or add some soy sauce.

Mix everything and pour the prepared meat with this marinade. Mix the marinade and meat well so that it is covered with it. Cover and marinate for 10 hours.

After the indicated time, start cooking.

I won't be mistaken if I say that every man, apart from scrambled eggs and fried potatoes, should be able to cook. At least there is such a legend. I didn’t know how until recently. However, even now, if you show my steak to a knowledgeable person, he will most likely take a photo of it and post it on his Instagram with the hashtags # lol, # what is, # think about this steak.

Despite the fact that my experience in cooking steaks is still small, I try to learn everything new diligently, and therefore I started with a theory - how to choose the right meat for a steak.

Types of steaks

None of the types of steaks have a Russian translation. In addition, if in the presence of a knowledgeable person you order a pork or chicken steak, you will most likely be looked at with condescension. It is believed that the steak is made only from beef.

Depending on which one is used for cutting, there are several (up to ten) types of steaks:

1. Ribeye-the subscapular part of the carcass. Contains a lot of fat, so the meat is juicy.
2. Club steak - the back of the carcass is used as a cut. The steak has a small bone.
3. Filet mignon- considered the most tender meat, it is not cooked with blood.
4. Chateaubriand- the same filet mignon, but laid out on a plate in length.
5. Tornedos- small pieces of cut, from which medallions are made.
6. Skirt steak - beef flank meat. It is considered quite hard, but tasty.
7. Porterhouse steak-separated by a T-shaped bone, contains a large amount of fat, which makes the meat juicy.
8. Roundrumb steak- a round piece of tenderloin from the hip part.
9. Striploin steak - a tenderloin that looks more like a sirloin than a steak.

How to choose

Despite the variety, each steak suits different situations. Ribeye, for example, is considered the most unpretentious in cooking and at the same time very tasty. The tenderloin is high in fat. Striploin steak is a softer meat than ribeye and is the steak most commonly served in steakhouses. Filet mignon is the most tender, almost "buttery" meat, but it does not have such a rich taste due to the small amount of fat.

Randy Irion, Marketing Director of the National Association of Beef Breeders, gave some tips on how to choose and cook the right steak:

1. Buy thick pieces that are at least 2 centimeters thick.
2. Do not avoid fatty cuts: fat gives the steak flavor, makes it juicy, and retains its shape during frying.
3. If you want to cook the perfect steak, you have to buy a thermometer. The required temperature for a steak with blood is 51 ° C.
4. Ignore the labels “organic”, “non-GMO”, “natural product”.
5. Ideally, you should buy meat from a butcher shop, not from a supermarket.
6. If the meat emits a slight smell of ammonia, it is stale.
7. When you get home, taste the steak. If your fingers stick to the meat, then it is close to disappearing.
8. Ribeye is the best choice if you don't want to choose for a long time. Almost any butcher or chef will tell you that ribeye is his favorite type of steak, according to Irion. It is not the most delicate, but it has the most intense taste.