Cooking the Perfect Steak

OK, OK..

Everybody who loves red meat, would love a fat, juicy, piece of steak. Now, I know most of my Hindu friends would not share the same enthusiasm, but for the rest of the meat eating world, this prime beef dish is usually the single most expensive (gram per gram) order you would have in the local restaurant, up there with lobsters, I suppose.

Now, I've given up eating steak at the local restaurants way long time ago, because I found out that they were overpriced and not really nice. I don't really know about the newer, swankier steak houses in town, but so far, I had only two really good experiences with this dish out of maybe 50 visits.

Which is not really encouraging, by the way.

So one day, I thought, "Why don't I cook it myself?". Which is what I'd normally do when I'd like to eat something really, really bad out of the blue. Well, in all honesty, eating out in a nice, posh steakhouse is really an experience in itself. There's the service, the ambience to savour, plus you get to impress your relatives and friends. But a really nice meal?

So, as per my lasagna tips, I'm giving you a really condensed and concise version on how to cook a really good steak.

STEP 1: Cooking Utilities

Now, if you spend as much time in the kitchen as myself, you would naturally understand in spending good money on really quality kitchenware and cookware. In this case, a really heavy piece of copper or cast iron skillet, or grill pan. This would last you for ages, and the really good ones start at about RM300. Make sure you season it (never wash it with detergent) and cure it (vinegar would do just fine).

STEP 2: The Meat

If you don't know the difference between a sirloin and a brisket, then by all means please go and google up the difference between the common cuts. And while doing that, you might also want to know the difference in the grading of the meat, and cooking techniques for the different cuts.

STEP 3: The Seasoning

Salt and Pepper only. Period.

STEP 4: The Sauce

None, if you get the best meat. Normally the Bearnaises of this world are only there to mask the inadequacies of the quality of your meat. But if you really like a particular reduction of your favourite liquer, then by all means.

Marinades, did you say? Well, this is again another point of debate which can go on and on. Ask yourself this question - "Why am I marinating this RM40 piece of ribeye?" If you don't know the reason for that, then, don't do it! For flavour, perhaps? Tenderness? Come on, buying the best quality of cuts for a steak negates those reasons. Marinates are for meats with tougher muscle tissue fibre, or cuts cooked for a long time and if they are, then you are not putting that on your steak plate.

BTW, if I wanted a garlic & basil infused striploin, I would've fed it to the steer in the first place.

TECHNIQUE:

A nice crisp outside is a combination between the caramelization of the proteins on the outer layer of your meat, and a dry environment which allows it to stay crisp. Thus, you would need a really hot pan, or if you like a charcoal/gas grill which allows all the moisture from the cooked side of your meat to escape. No overcrowding of your pan, and no flipping of the meat over and over.

Tip 1: Meat at room temperature

I sometimes cook my steak straight out of the chiller, because I know my grill pan well, and how it cooks. I normally want my steak between rare and medium, which means I can cook it longer to get a nice crust if the meat starts off colder. Confused? Try it out.

Tip 2: Your pan needs to be smokin'

A really heavy griddle or skillet retains heat evenly and conduts heat more thoroughly. Putting a piece of cold meat on your pan reduces the temperature of the cooking surface. If it does not come up back to the original temperature fast, then any moisture left will steam your meat, and the heat will not penetrate your meat enough, which will leave you with a mushy/charred outside, raw inside scenario.

Tip 3: Season well

Pepper you meat well on the side to be seared first. Not all the pepper would stick, so freshly cracked black pepper on just one side is just fine. Once on the grill, sprinkle your salt. Putting salt while the meat is not on the grill will only suck the juices out via osmosis and your steak would be drier as a result.

Tip 4: Leave it as it is

Now, depending on your preference, a medium cooked steak, 1 inch in thickness should take 4 minutes on the first side, and 2 and a half on the other. Play around with your skillet to know more. The colour on the inside of the meat determines the doneness. Red is definitely raw, pink with red in the middle is rare, a slither of redness in the middle is medium, pink line in the middle is medium well, and brown in the centre is for missing door stoppers.

You can also press gently with your fingers and measure it against the forepart of your palm, near your thumb. Make a number five with your right palm. Now poke the 'belly' of your palm, at the base of your thumb. See how soft it is? Now that's raw meat.

For rare, touch the tip of your forefinger with your thumb. Poke the base of your thumb again. That is now how rare cooked meat should feel. Go on touching different fingers and you should get the whole doneness scale sorted. Simple.

While on the grill, you shouldn't even touch the steak. Never flip it until you are really sure it's cooked as you want to seal the 'pores' of the meat with the heat in order to lock in the juices. Heaven-forbid, never-ever-EVER poke it with a fork or anything else for that matter.

Tip 5: Rest it

Now I know how most people love piping hot food. Please be a civilized bunch and understand that all cooked meats need to be rested. It's because all the juices need to return to where they came form, and the cooking continues while the meat is rested. I'd normally have a wire mesh ready and tent it with a piece of aluminium foil.

There you go. Nothing to it really. If you want to know what gets into your steak plate, than by all means, go to your butcher and bring home a prime cut of meat, and cook it your self.

As the cliché goes, Bon appétit!

Kancil Trouble Again..

Ever since the RM400++ repair of the engine block, my wife's kancil has not been the same. The engine sounds very brash, the cooling fan doesn't spin when the air cond is turned off and worst of all, the fuel consumption has increased significantly.

Compared to my new IAFM Persona, which gets around RM0.14 per km, my kancil now is only getting about 400km per full tank - 28 litres. That's roughly RM0.17 per km, and 400km is really the ultimate limit. It used to get 450km in the past, now realistically, 375km is the norm.

So, I should be sending the kancil to an authorized service centre anytime soon, and hopefully, after minor repairs and part replacements, the efficiency should slightly improve, failing which, I am looking at throwing in a new (read: halfcut) Mira L2, or even a normal 660 c.c engine as a replacement.

From memory, these are the things that need replacement:

1. Shock absorbers
2. Tyres
3. Oil & Filter
4. Air Filter
5. Dust arm cover
6. Brake pads

Let's just see, what's the cost going to be like..

Beef Foie Gras?

I should say that while most people would throng hotel buffets and other glitzy eateries for their 'buka puasa' treat, I on the other hand would rather stay at home and try cooking something special for the family.

Which is why when I saw Cold Storage stocking Wagyu Beef at RM33.90 per kilo, I quickly bought a slab of this really good meat without any hesitancy.

Only that it wasn't RM39.90, but more like RM399.90!


It was too late as I only realized it when I reached the till, and because the have already cut the meat from a big roasting chunk (which later I found out costs more than my wife's monthly wages..), there really was no turning back.

Now, I've heard of stories of people having to fork out RM300 - RM500 per dish in a fancy Japanese restaurant, so at RM139, I have wasted money on something more ridiculous than this.

Halal? Well if my PTD sis-in-law from the Agriculture Ministry is to be believed, then all beef imported into Malaysia should be Halal by default. So, no qualms there.

But honestly, just take a look at this piece of red, gloriously marbled meat:


Have you seen anything more spectacular?

I haven't cooked it yet, but perhaps if something special happens in the Liverpool vs. Man U match this weekend, I'd just might be having my grill all fired up and ready to roll!

Cooking instructions? Well, not like traditional steaks, you'd want the marbling fat to baste the meat from the inside, so intense heat is a big no-no. Seared crust outside, a reasonable time to rest, and hopefully a short trip to gastronomical heaven in a few quick slices with a steak knife (some say, you should be able to cut it with a fork!).

Well, we'll see.

Carrying On..

Okay, okay.. The last posting was maybe a bit too lewd for a wholesome family blog fun such as this, but I have not gotten around doing many things that needed doing, which explains the lengthy lapse of posting anything..

Mah, my daughter was in the hospital for a couple of days due to mucus/phlegm in her lungs. Fortunately, the X-ray shows everything to be clear, and she was give doses of breathing inhibitor in gaseous form.

She's still wheezing a little bit now, but alot better than a couple of weeks ago.

Thanks for taking care of her, Mamei..