The Secret to a Juicy, Tender Steak
Nobody likes a hard, dry, and chewy piece of protein, whether you are serving chicken breast, beef tenderloin, or a fish filet. In this article, you’ll learn the most important secrets to making a tender and juicy steak that you can practice to get it exactly the way you want it every time.
Spoiler alert: it involves meticulously monitoring the pre-cooking temperature of the meat. This minor (but critical) detail influences the preheating temperature. Before putting the meat on the heat, check its temperature and adjust the heat to match it. This one tip is the real game-changer.
THE SECRET TO TENDER MEAT
Before you start cooking, allow the meat to come to room temperature. When we say “room temperature,” we’re being very specific, which means 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Second, some people use their fingers to check the temperature of the meat to see if it is cold. They’re attempting to match it with their body temperature, which is incorrect. Always use a food thermometer to accurately check the temperature of the meat. The outer layer of the meat should reach room temperature in about 30 minutes. If you check the temperature on the inside of the steak, it’ll still be cold, which is okay. If you leave it at room temperature for too long, bacteria will grow and ruin it.
Slow braising the meat is the most popular method of making steaks at home, but melt-in-mouth textures can only be achieved if the meat is first allowed to come to room temperature. Heat travels faster from the outermost surface at room temperature to the thawed inside than from the four-degree Fahrenheit outer layer to the frozen inside. This means less overcooked top layer, balanced cooking, and boiling juices inside. This ensures a succulent, light pink inner layer that successfully banishes the dreadful “where’s the sauce?” comments.
Secondly, the meat can be marinated to perfection when it is thawed. Nothing penetrates the crystallized, hardened outer layer and if you apply marination to it, it will be diluted when the thawing meat loses frozen water. When the meat has thawed at least on the outside, its texture changes, allowing marination to seep in.
And lastly, tenderizing tools work better when meat is thawed, but more on this in the next section.
IMPORTANCE OF MEAT TENDERIZER TOOLS
Red meat will tenderize more nicely when the outer is seared, while the inside would still be almost frozen. Thawed meat is more tender than fresh meat because the muscle fibers rupture during freezing. When thawed and hammered gently with the meat mallet, those fibers smoothly break down, making the steak tender like butter.
Meat tenderizers improve the texture and flavor of filets. They flatten the steak surface, which helps in achieving an even cooking temperature. Some meat tenderizer tools have a toothed side that pierces the meat slightly, which helps absorb the marinade.
THE SECRET TO A JUICY STEAK
The hammering motion of every meat tenderizer tool softens the meat to the level that it takes very little time to cook it, keeping the steak juice intact. You don’t need only tenderizer tools, however, to help you get tender and juicy steak. Another important step is to let your steak rest on a steak rack for some time when you are done cooking it. If you cut the steak right after cooking it, the juices spill out on the plate underneath. If you let it rest for five minutes, the juices will remain in the steak and will not spill out. The juices in the cells of the steak contract and squeeze into the center of the heat. When you allow the steak to rest for some time, these juices revert, and the cells return to their former shape, keeping it juicy without spilling. The juices redistribute evenly in the steak when you allow the steak to rest for five minutes after cooking. You need to cool down the hot steak from 120 to 125 degrees Fahrenheit to let the juices migrate back. If you have a piece of steak thicker than one inch, the rule is to give five minutes to each inch of the steak thickness.
We’re sure that our simple and effective tips will assist you in your quest for the perfect steak.