Why can't I make a good steak?

Question

I always grill an amazing steak, but I ruin them in the oven, pan and broiler. What am I doing wrong?

Answer 1

My boyfriend and I cook steak about 1/2 the time on the grill and about 1/2 the time by pan/oven. I used to ruin steak if not on the grill. He had to show me how to do this method which more concentrates on first searing the juices in instead of actually "cooking" the steak from the get-go. Now that I know how, we both can cook it pending who has less to do that night and either way (grill or pan/oven) it comes out pretty amazing. We like our steak to the rare side of medium rare. We try to use good cuts of meat with descent marbling (new york cuts or rib eyes usually). First we salt-and-pepper or season the steak. I have some great steak seasoning I prefer to salt-and-pepper, he likes salt-and-pepper, both are good. Then we set the oven to 400 degrees and pre-heat. We keep the rack in the center of the oven. Next we line a cookie sheet with foil. Then we heat a frying pan on high and add about 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil. Next we take tongs and add the steaks. We press down on the steak on every side and every edge searing it well (but not totally cooking it). When seared it takes on a really great nice brown that is similar to putting it on the grill. While holding it down onto the hot pan with the tongs we press very hard so as to add pressure towards the heat (I don't know if this makes a difference but it does seem to work). We also ensure we get every side and every edge. It's why we use tongs instead of a spatula, we can manipulate the meat better that way and hold it in different positions. Next we put it on the cookie sheet and then pop it in the oven which has been preheated. We keep it in the over 4-6 minutes (never much longer than that) and then we check it. About 99% of the time it's perfectly rare to the side of medium-rare and very tasty and the juices (until we cut it) are sealed in from the searing...hope that helps...good luck.

Answer 2

You just need to understand the difference in the cooking methods. Grilling has high, direct heat and not much ambient heat, so it's not too hard to get a nice seared outside and rare inside. In the oven or broiler, you have much more ambient heat and it's easier to overcook the steak. Save the oven for slow cooking or more well-done dishes. On the broiler, make sure the setting is high but know the steak will need to be taken out quickly.

In a pan, the heat is not as direct. I can't be more specific without knowing the kind of pan you're using, but I'd advise you to experiment with different heat settings and cooking times to see what works.

Answer 3

Probably your pan and heat level have something to do with it. In restaurants when we broil or pan cook a steak, the cooking surface is smoking hot when we put the meat on it. If you are properly broiling anything -- you need to heat the broiler pan to very hot before adding what you are going to broil -- broiling is supposed to cook food from the bottom and top (as opposed to simply searing the top) - so you should leave the pan in with the broiler on high and the oven door slightly ajar to preheat the pan and the meat should make a hissing sound when it is put onto the broiler pan. In restaurants we often use a heavy cast iron pan that we leave on the fire all night heating when cooking steaks during service. The cast iron pan can take high heat and when you put the meat in -- you leave it to cook without moving it on one side until browned, then it will lift up easily and you turn it over to sear the other side. Since the meat is usually very thick -- we have a hot oven (500) and move the pan to the oven to finish cooking through. The timing depends on the thickness of the meat. And as for baking a steak in the oven --just don't do that kind of cooking to a steak. A steak needs direct heat, as you have noticed when cooking steak on the grill successfully. Good luck.

Answer 4

It sounds like you are overcooking the steak when you are cooking in the non-grill methods. Many people have a tendency to overcook steak. You may want to make sure that you are purchasing a bit more expensive cut of meat, or marinate a less expensive cut in a marinade of your choice. Grilling is so fast, it is an easier method to perfect steak, without really thinking about it.

There are many marinade products available in the grocery stores, you can find them near the salad dressings. If you go onto the Martha Stewart site, there are lots of great recipes to follow on there. You can also go onto the PBS sites, and search for many of the cooking shows such as Americas Test Kitchen, and they will have suggestions for cooking a tender and juicy steak.

The best thing that I ever learned, from my mother in law, who was a phenomenal cook; was to undercook the steak by a few minutes, as it will actually continue cooking once you have removed it from the pan or grill. That is one of the biggest reasons why you can end up with the "dried out shoe leather effect."

When I was in undergraduate school, and "financially challenged," I would use regular Italian salad dressing as a marinade on the inexpensive steak that I bought. I would use a bowl, put the steak in with enough dressing to cover it put it in my refrigerator in the morning before classes. When I came home at night, I would just dump the dressing and pan fry the steak and it would be excellent. You could marinate easily now in the zipper type plastic bags, no mess no fuss. Hope this helps. Have a good day and Happy Valentines Day!

Answer 5

in a pan, usually people push down on the steak to make it cook faster. this squeezes out all the flavor in the steak. The outside also cooks much faster than the inside, so when the inside is ready, the outside is usually charred. Grilling is the best way to make a steak, so stick with that for now, and find some steak recipes online that people have where they use a broiler, oven, or pan.

Answer 6

You are putting them in the oven, pan and broiler. Steaks only taste good when grilled. Try using a George Forman Grill when you can't go outside to grill - It does a fantastic job with chicken and burgers.

Answer 7

Make sure the meat isn't frozen and that it has adequate marbling to stand up to the kind of heat you're exposing it to. Salt can help dry out meat faster so you may want to hold off on salting until the end (fleur de sal is best).

Make sure the broiler, pan or oven is completey up to cooking temperature before you put the steak in. Putting any kind of food in a pan or oven while it's still heating up is a guaranteed way to over cook it.

Answer 8

You might be cooking them too close to the flame. Make sure your oven racks are about 4 to 5 inches from the flame and monitor them frequently. For medium rare, think 7 minutes per side depending on how thick the meat is. Also, make sure that your broiler is well heated and stick the pan under it to heat before adding the steaks.

Answer 9

First of all, Don't bake steak!!
Frying is ok though. Use a little olive oil, if you want. Salt, fresh cracked pepper, Sauteed onions, peppers, mushrooms, hot sauce(whatever you like, these are just suggestions). And when you fry it, use high heat. That works very well if you like it medium. Oh, yeah, also try some cajun seasoning or Montreal steak seasoning and sear it on. You should have a really good steak.
But, with the broiler, I can't really understand why it doesn't come out as well as the grill.
Happy cooking!

Answer 10

most important thing is to buy a good cut of meat. t-bone, or new york strip is best. then go simple. salt, pepper, and a bit of worsteshire sauce at the end of cooking. On an OPEN (don't close the lid) gas or charcoal grill cook staek on medium to medium high flame for a few muinutes, longer if you like it more well done. flip with a spatula or tongs, cook a few more minutes, longer if well done. turn again to get cross section grill marks for a few more minutes, flip again. drizzle the worsteshire on the last two flips. test the doneness by pressing with your fingertip, the firmer, the more well done it is. But remember, a well done steak is never good.