5 years of searing steaks and I was doing it all backwards

Finally figured out my big steak mistake. I used to crank the pan max heat, drop the steak in, flip every minute like all the youtube guys say. Then last month I ate at this tiny place in Portland and the chef told me he barely touches his steaks. "Let the crust form, trust it, then flip once." I tried it at home with a $14 ribeye and it came out better than any $40 steak I've made. Also learned my pan was too small, crowded it every time. Who else spent years overthinking something this simple? What's your go-to move for a perfect crust?

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daniel_martinez9212d ago

Hold on, I gotta push back on this. Flipping once is great if you like eating a steak that's got a gray band and a raw center. I flip every 30 seconds and my crust is still killer, plus the inside cooks even all the way through. That Portland chef was probably using a thick cut on a commercial burner with way more heat than you have at home. My $12 NY strip last night with constant flipping had a better crust than any "leave it alone" steak I ever made. If you're getting a bad crust, it's not the flipping, it's your pan temp or you're not drying the meat enough before it hits the heat. So what's your pan situation and did you pat the steak dry first?