By audachef
Pan-Seared Steak
A hard sear, a butter baste, and a rest that does half the work.
Ingredients
- 1 thick-cut steak, about 1.5 inches
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- Coarse salt and black pepper
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Method
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Take the steak out of the fridge 40 minutes early and pat it completely dry with paper towels. Surface moisture steams the meat instead of browning it.
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Salt it generously on both sides. Coarse salt, more than feels right. Thick steaks can take it.
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Set a heavy skillet, cast iron if you have one, on high heat for a full 5 minutes. It needs to be properly hot, not warm.
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Add a tablespoon of neutral oil. It should shimmer almost immediately and move like water.
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Lay the steak away from you and do not move it for 3 minutes. Moving it early tears the crust off before it forms.
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Flip once. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 smashed garlic cloves, then tilt the pan and spoon the foaming butter over the top for 2 minutes.
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Pull it at 125F for medium rare. It climbs about 5 degrees while resting, so take it off before it looks ready.
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Rest it on a board for 10 minutes before slicing. Cutting early lets all the juice run out onto the board.