sous vide. .... and all about steaks

[Westside Steve]

Trying it for the first time also first time cooking in a cast iron skillet I've had for years. 140 I think is medium trying to decide butter or grapeseed oil. New York strip.

WSS

Hi Steve,  this turned into a nice thread on cooking, grilling and more on beef and in particular steaks.  Didn't want to lose all of that  information.   Thanks,  mjp.

[mjp28]

15 hours ago, Westside Steve said:

Trying it for the first time also first time cooking in a cast iron skillet I've had for years. 140 I think is medium trying to decide butter or grapeseed oil. New York strip.

WSS

I now we since I've been teaching my wife all of my grill tricks cook by time per side depending on the thickness of a steak to cook medium.

Now on a skillet or cast iron skillet until you get it just right through trial and hopefully not error and you want to go by internal temperature try this :

 

Medium (140°-150°F)

A steak cooked “medium” will be mostly pink. A small ring of grey may form on the outside and a strip of red will remain in the center. For steaks with more marbling, this will be the temperature where the fat begins to liquefy and add flavor.

I hope that helps, mjp.

[mjp28]

OK since I haven't used one of these tables in a long, long time (years) here's some more information. 

 Since not all restaurants maintain such exacting standards in their definitions of steak temperatures, we created this guide to let you know exactly how we serve our Kansas City Steaks when ordered at each temperature.  This will help you get the perfect steak by letting us know exactly how you would like it cooked.

(To learn more about picking the perfect steak for the temperature you enjoy most, please visit our Steak Cuts page)

Rare (125°-130°F)

A steak cooked to “rare” is very different than a “raw”.  The chef will season the steak and place it on the grill.  The steak will become brown on the outside, but still remain very soft on the inside.  The center will still be cool to the tongue.

Medium Rare (130°-140°F)

A “medium rare” steak will be warm in the center.  The steak will begin firming up on the exterior, but will remain very soft and tender in the center.  A small ring of pink will begin developing around the edge, but the steak will still be primarily red in the center.

Medium (140°-150°F)

A steak cooked “medium” will be mostly pink.  A small ring of grey may form on the outside and a strip of red will remain in the center.  For steaks with more marbling, this will be the temperature where the fat begins to liquefy and add flavor.

Medium Well (150°-160°F)

At the point at which a steak has reached “medium well” it will start becoming very firm.  The steak will become primarily grey and only a sliver of pink will remain in the center.  Cuts with higher levels of marbling will begin to shrink as the fat begins to liquefy.

Well (Over 160°F)

A well done steak will be grey throughout.  It will be very firm and most of the juices will have cooked out of the steak.  With most of the fat and water removed the steak will have lost a great deal of its size.  The Majestic Restaurant will serve a steak cooked “well”, but does not recommend it.

[mjp28]

We do our steaks on the hot grill by 3, 4 or 5 minutes per side two sides then off.  When in doubt take a test slice with a steak knife to see the "doneness "  and yes that is a word.

After a few steaks you can zero on on your favorite, correct "doneness " of your steaks......eh ?  It's the art of the grill, heat, time, flip hopefully once let stand briefly then eat, Mmm-mmm.   Bon Appétit. 

[mjp28]

sous vide ?  I'm not sure what it is so I looked it up.  Way too complicated for my cooking. 

Equipment needed to cook sous vide

While sous vide cooking may sound complicated, it’s actually pretty simple. First, you’ll need to make sure you have 3 important pieces of equipment.

1. A sous vide cooker

If you’re ready to start experimenting with sous vide, you’ll be glad to know that there are many affordable options on the market today. A sous vide immersion cooker is a good option for most households. If you want even more cooking options, you may want to purchase a pressure cooker with a built-in sous vide program instead. There are also sous vide products that come with their own water bath, but these generally cost $500 or more. 

2. Food packaging

Sealing the food properly ensures an efficient transfer of energy from the heated water to the food while also preventing evaporation. Most people use a resealable freezer bag, reusable silicone bag, or vacuum sealing bag. Whichever option you choose, it’s important to remove as much of the air from the bag as possible.

Using a vacuum sealer is the easiest and most convenient method for doing this.........stop......not for me......

[DieHardBrownsFan1]

I like my steak medium rare.  My father used to only eat well done.  

[mjp28]

14 minutes ago, DieHardBrownsFan1 said:

I like my steak medium rare.  My father used to only eat well done.  

I've seen a lot of these charts, here's another one.  So which is right for you ?

Mine barely medium.   My wife meduim-well.  Everyone else is all over the chart.  I met a guy at a steak dinner  it was sizzle maybe 15 seconds,  flip, repeat off, bloody. UCK.

My #1 tip,  start with a good cut of meat  the rest is easy.     

TRY THIS, enlarge if necessary:

Edited July 11, 2022 by mjp28

[DieHardBrownsFan1]

Medium rare.  

[TexasAg1969]

On 7/11/2022 at 10:11 AM, DieHardBrownsFan1 said:

I like my steak medium rare.  My father used to only eat well done.  

I like to hear the last "Moo!" as I poke it with the carving fork take it off the grill.😋🥩

[mjp28]

16 minutes ago, TexasAg1969 said:

I like to hear the last "Moo!" as I poke it with the carving fork take it off the grill.😋🥩

I tried medium rare for awhile but in a restaurant most were coming back too rare for me.....blood dripping on the plate.

I like "barely medium " the warm pink center.....or at home "just right ".    I will say my wife is getting better on the grill but I still prefer mine.

Not medium well, NEVER well what's the point ?  Especially on great cuts like a USDA prime ribeye.

Another more important chart.

[DieHardBrownsFan1]

Gotta say, I've bought 'prime' steaks before and didn't notice any difference in the tenderness or flavor.  Only in the amount I paid for them.

[mjp28]

But when it comes down to the "nitty gritty " of delicious grades and cuts of meat......especially your steaks on the grill,  it comes down to one thing 💲💲💲.

That's right price and availability of the steaks where you shop.  My grandmother the best cook I've every known once worked at Sparkles grocery store primarily in the meat department.   She taught me what to look for and what was a good affordable buy.

The Prime naturally are best but can get expensive if even available at your local store.  The USDA has another very handy grading scale for meat as shown  :

 

Beef Quality Grades (Eight)

There are eight beef quality grades. The grades are based on two main criteria: the degree of marbling (intramuscular fat) in the beef, and the maturity (estimated age of the animal at slaughter).

1.  U.S. Prime – Highest in quality and intramuscular fat, limited supply. Currently, about 2.9%  of carcasses grade as Prime.
 
2.  U.S. Choice – High quality, widely available in foodservice industry and retail markets. Choice carcasses are 53.7% of the fed cattle total. The difference between Choice and Prime is largely due to the fat content in the beef. Prime typically has a higher fat content (more and well distributed intramuscular "marbling") than Choice.

3.  U.S. Select (formerly Good) – lowest grade commonly sold at retail, acceptable quality, but is less juicy and tender due to leanness.
 
4.  U.S. Standard – Lower quality, yet economical, lacking marbling.
 
5.  U.S. Commercial – Low quality, lacking tenderness, produced from older animals.
 
6.  U.S. Utility
 
7.  U.S. Cutter

8.  U.S. Canner

[TexasAg1969]

14 hours ago, DieHardBrownsFan1 said:

Gotta say, I've bought 'prime' steaks before and didn't notice any difference in the tenderness or flavor.  Only in the amount I paid for them.

The best steaks I've had in the past year came from the Ft. Hood commissary. They were Angus beef T-bones, but I don't recall they were graded any better than select. But they sure were tender. They were cut relatively thin for T-bones, so I touched them on the grill a couple of minutes per side. When I get back home from Colorado I will take a peak at the ones I still have in the freezer and see how they were graded.

[mjp28]

16 hours ago, DieHardBrownsFan1 said:

Gotta say, I've bought 'prime' steaks before and didn't notice any difference in the tenderness or flavor.  Only in the amount I paid for them.

NOTE :    Some places try to pass off choice  as Prime that's why it's nice to know and trust your butcher or meat store.

The good about 3-4% of  prime steaks generally go to the top restaurants or meat stores.  The rest of the choice steaks move on down the chain.

The best prime steaks cost more !   Some places will give you all kinds of stories about their meat grades.  Trust the USDA charts.

[mjp28]

3 hours ago, TexasAg1969 said:

The best steaks I've had in the past year came from the Ft. Hood commissary. They were Angus beef T-bones, but I don't recall they were graded any better than select. But they sure were tender. They were cut relatively thin for T-bones, so I touched them on the grill a couple of minutes per side. When I get back home from Colorado I will take a peak at the ones I still have in the freezer and see how they were graded.

Angus is from a breeders association NOT a USDA ranking.  I remember having this discussion with the gip on this briefly:

So, What’s Angus Beef?

Angus is a breed of cattle known widely for its marbling, consistency, and juicy flavors. While it can—and often does—fall into one of the top USDA classifications, Angus is a breed, not a third-party standard or type of meat. It’s a factor you should consider in addition to the USDA classification instead of as opposed to a particular grade like USDA Prime.

Beef sourced from Angus cattle is often high quality, but diet, genetics, and handling practices all contribute to the final product.

How Do You Know Which Beef to Choose?

Doing some quick research will help you find a quality beef product. Understanding the USDA classifications and differences between types of beef is a good first step. You’ll also want to look into beef brands and consider their feeding and handling practices........

●---->  ANOTHER EXPLANATION OF ANGUS vs USDA.....not by any beef association. 

We talk a lot about industry naming and labeling, and for a good reason: There are many confusing beef cut names, quality grades, and beef industry marketing tricks. Consumers are unlikely to know the differences between USDA prime beef, organic steak, and grass-fed, grass-finished meat.

One brand name that has been used by the beef industry, steak restaurants, and fast food joints for a number of years is “Angus.”

★ READ THIS !   Angus beef is often used to designate a better quality product. But in reality, the term has nothing to do with quality grades, better marbling, superior taste, or even beef that is raised to some sort of stringent requirements. If anything, the term Angus may be nothing more than a way to charge a higher price for beef that is quite ordinary, yet, in limited supply.

★ AND THIS !       In fact, Angus is so prevalent, both McDonald’s and Burger King have served their own versions of “Angus” burgers at one time or another.

If Ronald McDonald and the King are slinging a product, that should be an indicator that a product is not quite what you might expect.

What exactly is Angus beef?

Angus is a term used for any beef that comes from the specific type of cattle known as the Angus breed. There are two types of Angus: Black Angus and Red Angus, and both can trace their roots back to Scotland........

 

[mjp28]

And  Angus associations. handy meat charts.....again NOT USDA but similar.......confused yet ???   Angus started as a Scottish beef association marketing tool.

★ EXPAND CHART FOR MEAT DETAILS .....

 

[mjp28]

Any more questions on steak, USDA, Angus, whatever just ask.....I'll try to explain it.   Most of my references are from the USDA, beef.com , Angus associations  and others.  

Remember:  Beef, it's what's for dinner ?     It's an American advertising slogan and campaign aimed at promoting the consumption of beef.   The ad campaign was launched in 1992 by the National Livestock and Meat Board and is funded by the Beef Checkoff Program with the creative guidance of VMLY&R.     It's how it works, advertising paid for by associations.  And remember Sam Elliot ?  The voice.  $ millions  floating around.    The financing is amazing.....well to me a numbers guy.

[calfoxwc]

We grill our steaks, preferable, rib eye, about 300 degrees, two minutes on a side. It turns out like

a bit more rare than medium. Just pink in the center. That is for a steak that isn't very thick.

they keep turning out terrific - but my grill - the burners and shields have rusted out. Grease pan rusted out.

Cheap crap. lol.

We are looking at different grills, specifically a Blackstone grill. Haven't decided yet.

[mjp28]

4 hours ago, calfoxwc said:

We grill our steaks, preferable, rib eye, about 300 degrees, two minutes on a side. It turns out like

a bit more rare than medium. Just pink in the center. That is for a steak that isn't very thick.

they keep turning out terrific - but my grill - the burners and shields have rusted out. Grease pan rusted out.

Cheap crap. lol.

We are looking at different grills, specifically a * Blackstone grill.  Haven't decided yet.

* Several of our TBB members have Blackstone grills.  syd, Cambridgeho come to mind from the GAMEDAY FORUM,  most people I know really like them.

You can ask around there.  Also Weber and others. 

[calfoxwc]

18 hours ago, mjp28 said:

* Several of our TBB members have Blackstone grills.  syd, Cambridgeho come to mind from the GAMEDAY FORUM,  most people I know really like them.

You can ask around there.  Also Weber and others. 

Thanks !

[DieHardBrownsFan1]

On 7/21/2022 at 3:19 PM, mjp28 said:

* Several of our TBB members have Blackstone grills.  syd, Cambridgeho come to mind from the GAMEDAY FORUM,  most people I know really like them.

You can ask around there.  Also Weber and others. 

I only use Weber kettle, with the charcoal chimney.  Don't care for gas grills.  

[mjp28]

1 hour ago, DieHardBrownsFan1 said:

I only use Weber kettle, with the charcoal chimney.  Don't care for gas grills.  

Weber also a top notch grill.

[DieHardBrownsFan1]

I gave my father in law in Japan my weber grill in 1982.  He's no longer around, but his son is still using it.

[Axe]

 

[Axe]