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"The secret of a great meal ain't what's on the table. It's what's on the chairs." Meathead
The cuts The prime steakhouses, like my fave, David Burke 's Primehouse in Chicago (that's Chef Rick Gresh at right), specialize in the best cuts which all come from the rib and loin area, along the back of the cow, the most tender, most flavorful steaks on the steer. They are also the most expensive: Ribeyes, porterhouses, T-bones, strip steaks, and cuts from the tenderloin. You can make darn tasty meals from the sirloin, round, flank, and chuck, but they are just not not as tender. Most serious steak students agree that the ribeye is the best all round cut for flavor and tenderness combined. A lot of folks like meat from the tenderloin like chateaubriand and filet mignon because they are the more tender, but, because they are also leaner than ribeyes, filets don't have the flavor fat brings to the party. Read this to learn more about . The grades Notice I refer to the best steakhouses as prime steakhouses. Prime is the top grade of meat and you won't find it in discount steakhouses in mall parking lots or in your grocery. Prime beef is selected because it has a lot of marbling, thin hairline grains of fat that weave weblike through the fibers of protein. You can see it. Most of it goes to restaurants. The thickness The cuts they sell at prime steakhouses are usually 1.5" to 2" thick. This allows them to sear the exterior as dark as possible, a chemical transformation, called the Maillard reaction, that develops complex flavors and makes steaks crisp while leaving the interior red to pink. Skinny steaks are well done inside by the time the exterior is seared properly. If you have someone who likes their steaks medium or well done, use a thinner steak so you don't burn the exterior. Prep Trim off excess hunks of fat down to about 1/8" thick. Too much fat can melt and cause flareups. Those flames can deposit soot on the meat and char the surface. Research has indicated that charred black carbonized meat can be a carcinogen . Besides, it tastes bad. Dry brining Unless your doctor forbids you from using salt, use it. It really brings out the flavors. Salt is an amplifier. It is also an annihilator. Adding the right amount will amplify the meats flavor. Add too much and it will make it inedible. It also holds in the moisture and denatures the proteins making the meat more tender and juicy. Cooking method Most prime steakhouses broil their meat with open flames from above, not below, fueled by gas, not charcoal or wood, and they can hit temps from 800 to 1000F. To the right, you'll see the broiler at my favorite steakhouse, David Burke 's Primehouse in Chicago. They have a talented team, a purebred Angus bull in Kentucky who sires all their meat, and a impressive aging locker lined with what they say are 800 year old salt blocks from the Himalayas. I want all of you charcoal diehards who swear that you cannot grill with gas to note that almost all prime steakhouses broil from above at very high temps with gas, so clearly the secret of searing great steaks is the temp not the tool. The lesson is, if you can get a gas grill hot enough, you can sear steaks just as well with charcoal. Problem is, most gas grills cannot reach charcoal temps. And that's why I cook all my steaks over charcoal. Below is a ribeye on my good ol' Weber Kettle charcoal grill. That is the color of a perfect sear with just a little char on the fat. Read . The vineyard method When visiting wineries in Bordeaux, the French region that makes wine perfectly designed for steaks, I saw a cooking method that blew me away. Wait about three minutes. The meat may stick at first, but it will release as it browns. You can flip the steak as often as you want. I know you have read not to do this, but flipping is a subject of much debate among steakheads. One theory is that the juices migrate to the cool side, and flipping keeps them evenly distributed. Another theory holds that flipping replicates the action of a rotisserie, a system that works well because a side is hot, then cool, then hot, then cool, etc. Another theory holds that if you flip the top side gets wet from juices and that prevents browning and softens the surface. Me? I flip once. I wait til one side is perfectly dark mahogany brown, about 5 minutes into the cook on a very hot charcoal Weber Kettle. Then I flip with tongs, not a fork. Don't poke any holes in your steaks and lose valuable juices. By the way, those juices are myoglobin, a protein liquid found in the muscles, and they are not blood. The blood is drained during slaughter. Tell that to your squeamish teenagers. Doneness Prime steakhouses know that beef is most tender, flavorful, and juicy when cooked to rare or medium rare, from red to pink, from 125 to 135F. Click here for a chart of steak doneness . Any lower and it is almost raw. It is chewy, stringy, the fats and collagens haven't melted yet, and the flavors haven't begun to develop. Any warmer and the proteins begin to knot up, the juices are squeezed out and evaporate, and things get tough and stringy. Resting When steaks cook, the heat inside builds and pressure plumps the meat. Juices move away from the hot side and try to escape. If you cut into a steak right off the grill, juices will come gushing out. Prime steakhouses let the meat rest at least 5 minutes to allow pressure to go down and for the juices to distribute themselves. I put the steaks on a wire rack or the clean grates of a cold grill to rest. If you put them on a plate the bottom will get soggy. Serve simple Prime steakhouses like to let the meat speak for itself. You don't see prime steakhouses putting A1 on the table, and if you ask for it, listen for cursing in the kitchen. Accompaniments Let the steak be the center of the show. Meat and potatoes are unbeatable, although rice is nice and couscous is cool. Try my really simple . Keep the veggies simple, like my , or, since the grill is primed and ready, go for .
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