Reverse Sear Steak
I love steak. I am a meat eater. Well, I eat everything, but don’t tell steak that!
Good quality meat (I love my Walden Local) deserves a cooking method to honor it, to make it shine, to bring out the best in the dish. Other than grilling outside (it’s too cold for my patio), reverse searing a steak has become my favorite method because it’s absolutely foolproof. When we are allowed to have people over (thanks, COVID), this will be the way to go since it affords some room to play with the timing.
Pre-heat the oven to 250F.
We are going to start with steak that’s at room temperature. It’s very important not to skip this step as it allows the steak to spend less time reaching out the correct temperature while retaining maximum moisture (juiciness). Pat dry the steak and season generously with salt & pepper.
Place the steaks on a rack fitted on a baking sheet (I lined it with aluminum foil for easy clean-up) and place in the oven.
It could take our steaks about 25-30 min to reach temperature (a probe thermometer is really helpful here; I set it with an alarm and I don’t have to worry about over-cooking). I like my steaks rare and my husband prefers medium-rare. below is a scale of when you should retrieve your steaks from the oven based on the desired level of doneness:
| Doneness | Target Temperature in the Oven | Final Target Temperature | Approximate Time in Oven |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rare | 105°F (40°C) | 120°F (49°C) | 20 to 25 minutes |
| Medium-Rare | 115°F (46°C) | 130°F (54°C) | 25 to 30 minutes |
| Medium | 125°F (52°C) | 140°F (60°C) | 30 to 35 minutes |
| Medium-Well | 135°F (57°C) | 150°F (66°C) | 35 to 40 minutes |
Once I pull the steaks out of the oven, I melt a few tablespoons of butter in a screaming hot cast iron pan along with some thyme and a few garlic cloves. You can add rosemary (I ran out and had none) or fresh oregano. Add the steaks to the bubbling butter and sear quickly, about 1 minute, 1 minute 30 seconds per side. Keep basting the steaks with the butter (it helps if you place the thyme and garlic on top of the steaks so that flavors meld together). Turn the steak on the other side for 1 minute. Sear the sides too…you want caramelization all around. The best part of this is that you don’t have to rest the meat. You can slice and serve right away. I served the steak my with wax beans instead of French fries for a healthier alternative.
All photos are the work of my very talented, professional photographer husband, Dariusz Terepka.