American🥩 Meat

9 Techniques to Instantly Upgrade Your Steaks

Name: 9 Techniques to Instantly Upgrade Your Steaks
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 1 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: ~2 Steak (filet, ribeye, or New York strip); 8-10 g Salt; to taste Black pepper; ~2 tbsp Cooking oil

⏱ 45 min🍽 Serves 1

A chef shares nine key techniques for making steakhouse-quality steaks at home, covering meat grade selection, cut-specific cooking, steak thickness, tempering, high-heat searing, proper salting, drying the surface, cooking by temperature instead of time, and resting on a warm plate.

High-protein

Adapted from a video by Brian Lagerstrom

9 Techniques to INSTANTLY Upgrade Your Steaks

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Ingredients

Steak (filet, ribeye, or New York strip)Preferably upper 2/3 Choice or Prime grade, at least 1.5–2 inches thick~2est.
SaltAbout two strong pinches per side for a 12oz steak8-10 g
Black pepperto taste
Cooking oilA generous amount for pan searing~2 tbspest.

Steps

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1
Choose high-quality beef, ideally upper 2/3 Choice or Prime grade, which has more marbling for a richer, more tender result.
2
Cook each cut according to its character: filet benefits from medium-rare with a sauce; ribeye is best cooked to low-medium so the internal fat renders; New York strip needs its fat cap thoroughly rendered on the edge; sirloin should be tenderized with a jaccard tool or fork before cooking; avoid bone-in cuts like T-bone or porterhouse as they're harder to cook evenly.
3
Buy thicker steaks whenever possible—at least 1.5 inches, ideally closer to 2 inches—so it's easier to nail the right internal doneness while keeping the meat juicy.
4
Let the steak come to room temperature for about 20–30 minutes before cooking so the inside and outside cook more evenly.
5
Sear the steak in a high-quality multi-ply sauté pan over very high heat to achieve a deep, steakhouse-style crust; alternatively, sear hard on both sides first, then finish in a low oven or cooler zone of the grill.
6
Season generously with salt—much more than most home cooks use, around 2–2.5% of the steak's weight—and salt at least 20–30 minutes before cooking to help the meat stay juicy and flavorful. Use plenty of pepper too; it's hard to burn and adds great flavor.
7
Pat the steak completely dry with two layers of paper towel before cooking, so surface moisture doesn't create steam and prevent browning.
8
Use an instant-read thermometer to judge doneness rather than relying on cooking time: about 123–125°F for medium-rare, 128–132°F for medium, and 135–138°F for medium-well, allowing for 5–7 degrees of carryover cooking.
9
Rest the steak for at least 5 minutes, ideally 10, to let it finish cooking and settle. While it rests, warm your serving plate in a 300°F oven so the steak stays hot longer once served.

9 Techniques to Instantly Upgrade Your Steaks

Ingredients

Steps

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