How long steaks

As fat drips off cut steaks, grill flare-ups can happen. This is especially common with cuts like the rib eye, which are known for their marbling. Whether you want to cook a rib steak, a T-bone, or flat iron on the grill, you can learn to do it by following our helpful grilling tips for steak. One thing that most steaks have in common is that they need a bit of preparation before you get started.

First, make sure your steak cuts are at room temperature before you place them on the grill. Doing so will help you get a more even cook so that the inside can cook to your preferred doneness without charring the outside. Then, get your grill oiled and fired up! Make sure your grates are greased so your steaks can turn easily without getting stuck. So, how long do you cook steak on the grill? One good tip to keep in mind is to use a meat thermometer for thick cuts of steak and a timer for thin ones.

For a medium-rare doneness , you typically will need to grill your steak between 4 to 6 minutes on each side, depending on thickness. Our handy steak infographic shows you what to expect from each cut and gives advice on how best to cook it. Sirloin: Considered to be a prime steak, like fillet, but with more flavour. Best served medium-rare. Great for sharing. It has little fat, and is best served as rare as you like. Flat-iron : This steak is cut from the shoulderblade, and is great value and neatly shaped, but it needs to be cooked no more than medium or it will be tough.

Onglet : Also called hanger steak, this rope-shaped piece of meat has lots of flavour but will be tough if cooked beyond rare. Rump steak : The least expensive of prime steaks, it will be tough if cooked anything beyond medium. See our classic recipes for sirloin , rib-eye and fillet steak or check out our full steak recipe collection.

A heavy-duty, thick-based frying pan will achieve the best results, as would a heavy griddle pan or cast iron skillet. These types of pan get really hot and retain their heat, making them ideal for getting that charred, smoky finish on the surface of your steak. Cook them one or two at a time and leave them to rest as you cook the rest of your batch, or cook a much thicker steak and carve it and divide the slices to serve.

Beef purists may prefer to take in the unadulterated, rich flavour of a quality steak by adding nothing more than a sprinkling of salt and a generous twist of pepper. Salt your steak in advence — 2 hrs for every 1cm of thickness. For a classic steak au poivre peppered steak , sprinkle lots of cracked black pepper and sea salt on to a plate, then press the meat into the seasoning moments before putting it in the pan.

Then transfer steak to indirect heat OR reduce to low heat. Close the lid and cook according to the cooking times and temperatures below for your desired doneness. Remember that steaks will continue to rise in temperature 5 to 10 degrees while at rest after grilling so be sure to remove from heat about degrees lower than your desired temp. But remember this: It's better to cook one large steak for every two people than to cook two smaller steaks.

Learn how to share. The doneness of a steak is by and large determined by the maximum internal temperature it reaches during cooking. With traditional cooking methods, there is a very short window of time during which your meat is perfectly cooked. A minute too long will mean overcooked meat. With sous vide cooking, on the other hand, that window of time is stretched into hours, which means your steak will be hot and ready to go whenever you're ready to sear and serve it.

Temperature can have a major impact on the juiciness and texture of a steak. Here, I've collected juices expelled by three nearly identical steaks cooked to different temperatures:. Additionally, with the well-done steak, you can see a distinct layer of rendered fat floating on top of the juices.

I recommend cooking steak in the rare-to-medium range, so that you minimize juice loss while also keeping those fats inside the steak where they belong, adding flavor and juiciness to each bite.

Here's a rough breakdown of how steaks feel at different degrees of doneness. I've seen some folks say that with sous vide cooking, once you set your temperature and add your meat, you can let it sit there indefinitely, with no change in quality.

I even believed that myself a few years back. Since then, I've come to realize that's not quite the case. Even at low temperature, there are things going on. Enzymes are breaking down proteins. Chemical reactions are slowly taking place.

I found that the most important differences typically occurred between the four- and hour marks. Take a look at these slices of steak I've cut off and torn:. As you can see, the steak cooked for just one hour stretches and pulls when you tear it. This gives the steak a pleasant amount of chew. It's still tender, but it tastes like a steak. By the time we hit four hours, that chew has been reduced a bit. Connective tissue has broken down, and individual muscle fibrils split apart easily instead of sticking together, though a four-hour steak is still pretty decent.

Head all the way over to the hour mark or beyond, and your steak ends up nearly shredding as you pull it apart. It's a strange mouthfeel: The steak is still plenty juicy a steak cooked 24 hours loses barely any more moisture than a steak cooked for one hour , but the meat shreds instead of offering resistance or chew.

For the best results, I strongly suggest following the temperature and timing charts below. I've included two separate charts to cover different categories of steak cuts. Highly marbled cuts, like a grain-finished, prime-grade ribeye or strip, should be cooked a few degrees Fahrenheit higher than leaner steaks like tenderloin, since their copious intramuscular fat helps keep them moist while delivering plenty of flavor.

Fattier steaks also have natural insulation, which means they'll take slightly longer to reach the correct internal temperature. Porterhouse and T-bone steaks contain a large section of strip and a smaller section of tenderloin. Since both sides must be cooked together, it's better to select a temperature and time based on the side you like to eat better. Personally, I like to optimize cooking time and temperature for the strip.

It means my tenderloin comes out slightly more cooked than I generally prefer, but the insulating bone helps it stay plenty moist and juicy. Timings are all given for steaks one and a half to two inches thick. For steaks one inch thick or less, initial cooking time can be shortened to 40 minutes. Lean tenderloin is easily overcooked and, lacking intramuscular fat, will become dry. I cook my tenderloin steaks at several degrees Fahrenheit lower than fattier cuts, like ribeye or strip.

The timings here are all given for steaks one and a half to two inches thick. For steaks one inch or less, initial cooking time can be shortened to 30 minutes. Preheat your sous vide precision cooker to the desired final temperature according to the chart above.

Allow the water bath to come to temperature before adding your steak. Season the steak generously with salt and pepper. Make sure to get the edges as well! If using aromatics, like thyme or rosemary sprigs, add a few to the bag now, distributing them evenly on both sides of the steak. Seal the bag, either by using a vacuum sealer or, if you're using a zipper-lock bag, with the displacement method.

To do this, slowly lower your bagged steak into a pot of water, letting the pressure of the water press air out through the top of the bag. Once most of the air is out of the bag, carefully seal the bag just above the water line. Drop the bag into the water bath, making sure not to block the intake or output sections of your precision cooker. If properly sealed, the steak should sink. Cook according to the timing charts above. Remove the steak from the bag, and place it on a paper towel—lined plate.

Pat it dry very carefully on both sides. Steak cooked completely sous vide will not have any browning on its surface, so this must be added afterward for improved flavor and texture. The stovetop is a great way to add a nice, well-browned crust to your meat. Skip this section if you prefer to finish your steak outdoors on the grill. Turn on your vents and open your windows. Add one tablespoon of vegetable, canola, or rice bran oil to a heavy cast iron or stainless steel skillet set over the hottest burner you have, and preheat the skillet until it starts to smoke.

Gently lay the steak in the skillet, using your fingers or a set of tongs.