Cooking the perfect steak isn’t rocket science. It’s a matter of choosing the right cut, marinating if you choose, having a hot grill or BBQ, not turning too much and resting the meat prior to serving. Sounds simple enough?
You first need to decide which cut of steak you prefer as each cut is vastly different in both taste and tenderness. Although there are different names, there’s really only five premium steaks worth considering. Doesn’t matter where you are in the world, every steak house will offer the rib-eye, tenderloin, sirloin, T-bone and rump. All these steaks can be cooked a number of ways such as grilled on a hot BBQ, char grill, broiler, or frying pan. Any local quality butcher will be able to supply you with some great Australian Beef.
Ribeye Steak
Ribeye steak is one of the most popular steaks available because it’s a naturally tender steak which is more marbled compared to other steak cuts. When cooked, the marbling melts into the beef which results in a rich, authentic beef flavour. Because of this it’s the steak I choose. The ideal size of a ribeye steak is 300g (or 10z), but also worth trying is the bone-in ribeye steak sometimes referred to as ‘cowboy rib steak.’ A typical cowboy rib weighs in at 650g (or 23oz.) and by cooking the ribeye steak on the bone, the steak doesn’t dry out and keeps the steak juicier. The ribeye steak is otherwise known as;
- Scotch Fillet
- Prime Rib
- Delmonico Steak
Fillet Steak
Fillet Steak is considered by most chefs as the best steak because it’s the most tender cut of beef. It’s also the most expensive cut of steak. Providing it’s been trimmed properly, the fillet steak has very little fat and perfect for the health conscious and is best suited cooking in a hot pan opposed to a char grill or BBQ. The ideal size for a fillet steak is between 180g - 200g (or 6oz to 8oz). The fillet steak is otherwise known as;
- Filet Mignon
- Tenderloin
- Tournedos
- Chateaubriand
- Beef Medallions
Sirloin Steak
Considered one of the cheaper of the premium steaks, the sirloin is easily identified as a long steak with a strip of fat across the top. It’s a very popular steak which is full flavoured. However, on occasions the sirloin steak can be a little tough, so I’d recommend either marinating or tenderising prior to cooking. A well aged and slowly cooked sirloin steak will prevent it from being tough.
T-bone Steak
The T-bone steak is a steak that consists of a T shaped bone which has meat on either side of the bone. The larger side of the T-bone contains meat from the striploin and is relatively tender. The smaller side contains meat from the tenderloin and is fare more tender than the larger side. Because the bone conducts heat the T-bone cooks slightly fast than others. The T-bone is an expensive cut which features full flavoured meat and is best suited to being cooked on the BBQ. Other names for the T-bone include;
- Shortloin
- Porterhouse
- Club Steak
Rump Steak
Considered the cheapest of all the premium steaks, the rump steak is a full flavoured steak which is sometimes called a round steak. As the rump steak is typically a lean cut, it definitely needs marinating or tenderising as it’s generally considered a tough steak.
Marinating
Once you’ve chosen your preferred steak to cook, you’ll need to determine if you need or want to marinate it. Marinating can be done 24 hours before cooking or could be a dry marinate using sea salt, black pepper and macadamia nut oil. Other steak marinate ideas include;
- Red wine, garlic and wildfire spice
- Chinese rice wine, soy and ginger
- Mountain Pepper Sauce
- Alpine Pepper with soy and garlic
Cooking the Perfect Steak
For best results, remove the steak from the refrigerator about an hour before cooking. This will allow the steak to get to room temperature. This is really important if you are going to cook the steak blue, rare or medium rare.
I’d recommend using a grill plate with bars, or a char grill on a BBQ heat as they will give you the best results. Turn the heat to high, as it enables the natural juices to be sealed inside the steak.
Season the steak with sea salt, black pepper and macadamia nut oil, then place on the hot grill. Leave for 3 minutes and then turn 90 degrees, this will give you the char grill marks or criss-cross effect. Cook for a further 3 minutes then turn the steak over and repeat on the other side. At that point remove the steak and finish in the oven.
If you are able to finish the steak in an oven, do so, otherwise finish on the grill to the desired doneness. Rare to medium rare will just be a few minutes longer on the grill, where as medium and medium well will see a small pool of juice come up out the top of the steak after a few minutes.
The key to the perfect steak, is allow the steak to rest after cooking. Simply remove the steak from the grill or oven, place on a plate in a warm place for a ¼ of the cooking time. The reason you need to rest the steak is because the meat is all tensed up from the heat of the cooking and you need to allow the meat to relax.
