How to Get a Steakhouse Experience at Home
How to get the steakhouse quality at home starts with the preparation before heading to the grill. Their are three ways to defrost your steak, thawing in the fridge, soaked in cold water, and microwaved. For best results thaw out in the fridge over night. All restaurants use this method as it has been proven to be the best way to safely and properly defrost beef.
The next most important part of grilling a steak is making sure you are at the right temp for the correct amount of time. Below will be grilling tips and the Steak Cooking Chart that will have the degree of doneness with the allotted time and temperature required. Always temp your steak to make sure it has reached the required temperature. The last and final most important part is the “REST”. After your done cooking your steak it needs to rest for 3-5 minuets. This allows the juices to redistribute throughout the steak. Without this last step your steak will taste dry no matter how premium the cut of steak is.
Steak Cooking Chart
* Note- use a kitchen thermometer to make sure the internal temp is reached and make sure to cook on both sides for the allotted time which is based on a fully thawed steak.
Thickness Rare (120-130 F) Medium Rare (130-140 F) Medium (140-150 F) Well Done (160-170 F)
1″ Side 1: 5 minutes Side 1: 5 minutes Side 1: 6 minutes Side 1: 8 minutes
Side 2: 3 minutes Side 2: 4-5 minutes Side 2: 4-5 minutes Side 2: 6-7 minutes
1 1/2″ Side 1: 6 minutes Side 1: 7 minutes Side 1: 7 minutes Side 1: 10 minutes
Side 2: 4 minutes Side 2: 5-6 minutes Side 2: 6-7 minutes Side 2: 8-9 minutes
1 3/4″ Side 1: 7 minutes Side 1: 8 minutes Side 1: 8 minutes Side 1: 11 minutes
Side 2: 5 minutes Side 2: 6-7 minutes Side 2: 7-8 minutes Side 2: 9-10 minutes
2″ Side 1: 8 minutes Side 1: 9 minutes Side 1: 10 minutes Side 1: 13 minutes
Side 2: 6 minutes Side 2: 7-8 minutes Side 2: 8-9 minutes Side 2: 11-12 minutes
Other Important Temps.
Some other important temp you may not be aware that are not on the Steak Cooking Chart are as followed. To cook a beef casserole or warm up leftovers the internal temp needs to be 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Now if you were just browning hamburger or grilling it that only needs to reach 160 degrees. What gets a bit tricky now is that USDA recommends that steaks and roast are to be 145 degrees. On our steak cooking chart that would be medium on the scale of doneness. While most chefs recommended doneness is medium rare.
So how does that work? If you are someone who prefers their steak rare- medium rare, their is one extra step that is takin. That is searing the steak at high temperatures. Beef is a safe meat it has denser muscles that bacteria cant penetrate. So as long at you sear your steak at high temp and don’t puncture it your steak is perfectly fine to eat at below the USDA recommended temp. Now on the other side, steak is the only objection. When cooking hamburger it needs to reach the required temp of 160 degrees to make sure any traces of possible e coli is destroyed. If you are wanting some more information check out USDA safe temp chart.
Not Sure What Steak to Buy?
You really cant go wrong with a steak, but to increase your eating experience their are a few decisions you can make to narrow it down. They are: size/thickness, fat/lean, and price. So start off first with picking what size you want, average options run from anywhere from 16 oz down to as little as 4 oz. One thing to consider while picking your right size is how thick do you want it. If you want a super thick steak your options would be filet mignon, ribeye, some sirloins depending on how they are cut. If you are wanting a thin cut of meat your options would be a flat iron or ball tip.
Your next decisions is to know if you want a steak that is lean or fatty. The leanest steak cut on the market would be the top sirloin while the fattiest would be the ribeye. Both are great cuts of beef its really just depends what you prefer. Now for the last decision is how much are you wanting to spend on your ideal steak cut. Still not sure what to buy? That’s okay you can purchase our big boy steak lover bundle and have a variety of our best steak cuts. Now that you have the perfect steak cut now all you have to do is use our steak cooking chart and you will be an expert steak griller.
Enjoy your steak
Some steaks require different temps to unlock their full potentials. For example filet mignons are better prepared at rare – medium rare but at the end of the day you are the one eating it so make sure to cook your steak how you like it. If you follow our steak cooking chart you will have an optimal steakhouse eating experience every time at your home with just the fraction of the cost. Enjoy!