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Need Guide on Pan Searing Steaks

d_animality

By d_animality
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d_animality

d_animality

Posted
Posted

Hello all and Greetings,

 

This is officially my first post, and i am hoping to learn a lot from the experts in this forum, especially on Searing Steaks as i am now opening a homemade steak to cater the demand in my place

 

So my question is simple, i bought this Iron Cast Pan, it can fit atleast 2 steaks at one go... so basically i have demand up to 15 steaks per day

 

I dont have problem on the logistics though, but i always have problem on timing the doneness of the steaks

 

Here it is and i have tried searching it everywhere on google and youtube but still havent found the right answer, please read my problem and provide me guidance and suggestion to solve the issue so i can always cook a perfect steak

 

I know the basic of full heating iron cast until it starts to smoke then we can start searing.. flip once only and etc

 

so basically 1min each side for Raw, 3min each side for medium and so on.. and here comes the problem:

 

Lets say, the first time i heat the pan... i put my first batch of 2 steaks and i want them medium... thus 3 mins on each side... therefore, 6 minutes later they are perfect medium steak (i am so happy)

 

However when it comes to the second batch, obviously the pan is getting hotter since it has been heated from the first batch, here if i follow the same 3 mins on each side, the steaks will turn to Medium Well or Worst - Well Done with some of the surface burnt (Obviously im very very sad)

 

so my question is what can i do to make sure the second and third and following batches have the same result as the first? I have tried reducing the duration, it worked but it is not consistent so it is not efficient for me .. please help :( ... i have tried reducing the heat to medium high on the second batch and the result is worse.. cant even see the caramelized surface of the steak .. i really2 need help on how to keep having the perfect steaks as the first for the 2nd, 3rd and other batches

 

 

Captain

Captain

Posted
Posted

Firstly it's a myth to only turn steak once. Turning often gives better control of temp. Not just for the meat but the hot cold spots you create on the pan.  Depending the thickness of a steak I usually keep my cast iron pan Screaming hot.

I never cook steak to a time it's always by feel or the best way is to use a instant read thermometer.  There are other ways to meet your demands, like Sous Vide. This method would be the least complicated.

 

Anyway welcome to this great place and there are plenty more knowledgable people here to offer advise than me.

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d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

hi ! first of all, thank you very much for the warm greetings

 

im interested in your method of flipping it more than once, since i have tried it before, my tasters like the taste when i flipped it once than the other. and just to share my steak are all 1 inch size

 

i really love my cast iron screaming hot, so how do u play around with it? imagine if u want to cook medium, did u just flip and feel, then flip again and feel again? sorry to ask so many questions... and sous vide not the option for me at the moment since the availability of the items needed are quite scarce

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted (edited)

Agreed,  the one flip is a great way to mess up a steak. Multiple turns give the most even cooking.

 

Deciding doneness is a matter of predicting internal temp by the initial meat temp, time to cook and pan temp which I don't do well enough to trust. I just use a thermometer and pull the steak 5 degrees short of the desired temp and let it rest. 

 

Or just sear the surface and put it on a rack(not a pan) to finish in the oven. And take the temp as above

Edited by gfweb (log)
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d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
6 minutes ago, gfweb said:

Agreed,  the one flip is a great way to mess up a steak. Multiple turns give the most even cooking.

 

Deciding doneness is a matter of predicting internal temp by the initial meat temp, time to cook and pan temp which I don't do well enough to trust. I just use a thermometer and pull the steak 5 degrees short of the desired temp and let it rest. 

 

Or just sear the surface and put it on a rack(not a pan) to finish in the oven. And take the temp as above

 

 

so after how many seconds did u usually flip the steak?

Alex

Alex

Posted
Posted

Serious Eats 1

 

Serious Eats 2

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gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
19 minutes ago, d_animality said:

 

so after how many seconds did u usually flip the steak?

Varies with steak temp, thickness and pan temp.

 

Usually I sear each side and finish in a 350 f oven.

 

Sous vide makes it even easier. Pick your temp and sear when it's done. Sous vide takes out the effect of steak thickness unless there are cook times that are too short.  it also makes cheaper cuts tender.

Bernie

Bernie

Posted
Posted

View this

Go from there

Be kind first.

Be nice.

(If you don't know the difference then you need to do some research)

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, weinoo said:

Well, that's one way to do it.

 

But what the fuck type of pan is he using, and why so much oil?

 Looks like teflon on a thin aluminum pan.

Which may be why he needs all that oil to get a crust.

Forget a pan sauce with this method.

I'd have trimmed off those big chunks of fat.

d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

Oh wow you guys are very helpful for providing the tips to perfect my steaks, i apologize i cannot reply them all in the timely manner due to the limited number of postings for new user, so ill try to reply each and everything:

 

20 hours ago, Alex said:

Serious Eats 1

 

Serious Eats 2

 

Okay thank you very much for this video it actually gives me the rough ideas of what the do's and dont's, i Thank you for that

 

20 hours ago, gfweb said:

Maybe some details on how you run your business would help

 

Okay it is an online business using instagram, basically this is after giving several (almost 30 free steaks) to families and friends and ask their opinion, obviously the first few have their ups and downs, burnt steak and many more, haha, since there i have been googling and practicing to make a perfect steak. After i managed to make it wayy better, they all suggest me to open a business because the taste and my homemade sauce can definitely sell. So yea, thats where it starts. So i have been promoting it here and there. Anyway the 30 steaks are not made at the same time... during the testers, the max steaks i made in a day were just 2-3 only, so i didnt experience the things i said above

 

19 hours ago, weinoo said:

And what kind of steaks? How thick? Ribeyes, strips, hangars, etc. Bone -in?

 

Multiple turns is basically the only best way.

 

2 min in a hot pan will be enough to crust any proper steak on the first side. 

 

 

 

Striploins, and its 1 inch steaks. And i agree 2 mins already produce some burns but still acceptable

 

19 hours ago, weinoo said:

P.S. Buy a second pan.

 

Haha this is in the pipeline, will invest more when the demand rises, however at the moment i'll just stick to one pan, this is because the iron cast pan hardly can be found in my place and it is very expensive, currently im using LAVA pan and it cost me around USD50

 

And my verdict, I have tried the multiple flips method earlier today and for your information. YESSSS IT IS DEFINITELY THE BEST WAY TO DO IT!! I can prevent the burn, and it is now easier to clean the pan than before. Im using the 30 secs flip, and as for trial and error today it turned out very well :D THANK YOU!! I realised that the reason why it did not work the first time is because im not using iron cast pan, so the heat kinda dissipated when i used that method.. my bad!

 

Now another question, Kosher salt is very hard to find around here and if i ever saw one (which i did) the price is kind expensive, its around USD6 for 200g if im not mistaken. What is the best alternative for Kosher salt for steak? I'm currently using normal salt for it, but i only put a little because the last time i read the advice from some web "Don't be stingy, Put them generously" and wow i literally poisoned my siblings with very salty steaks.. haha

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d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
21 hours ago, patti said:

I just paid $12.42 for 1.36 kg of kosher salt from Amazon. Diamond Kosher Salt

 

Problem is i live in Brunei (Asia), where amazon is not our option. It is a very small country where items like kosher salt can be quite rare and pricey. We cannot just find it anywhere lol

 

Here is another question, today i got 20 steaks to complete, doing multiple flips really does its magic. However, i have noticed the remainings from the previous batch like oil, fat and etc filling up the pan... is it beneficial to just throw away all the remainings before putting another batch of steak? as i have noticed the remainings are mostly oils from the fat and the longer it stays there, the blacker it became and it can affect the colour of the steaks :S 

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, d_animality said:

 

Problem is i live in Brunei (Asia), where amazon is not our option. It is a very small country where items like kosher salt can be quite rare and pricey. We cannot just find it anywhere lol

 

Here is another question, today i got 20 steaks to complete, doing multiple flips really does its magic. However, i have noticed the remainings from the previous batch like oil, fat and etc filling up the pan... is it beneficial to just throw away all the remainings before putting another batch of steak? as i have noticed the remainings are mostly oils from the fat and the longer it stays there, the blacker it became and it can affect the colour of the steaks :S 

 

I'd wipe it out after each use. 

  • Like 1
d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
2 minutes ago, gfweb said:

 

I'd wipe it out after each use. 

 

Ahh okay that makes sense but can you wipe it immediately? since it is super freaking awesomely smoking hot pan after every batch, and time is the essence here

 

Well if you do wipe it immediately, would be great if you can guide me how did u do it?

 

Thank you very much in advance

liuzhou

liuzhou

Posted
Posted (edited)
11 hours ago, d_animality said:

Problem is i live in Brunei (Asia), where amazon is not our option. It is a very small country where items like kosher salt can be quite rare and pricey.

 

Use coarse sea salt. It's the same thing. "Kosher salt" isn't available most places in the world, but sea salt is.

Edited by liuzhou (log)
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...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

"No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot"
Mark Twain
 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

d_animality

d_animality

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
22 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

 

Use sea salt. Kosher salt isn't available most places in the world.

 

okay sea salt also hard to be found, i have checked.. what is the 3rd option?

JoNorvelleWalker

JoNorvelleWalker

Posted
Posted
6 minutes ago, d_animality said:

 

okay sea salt also hard to be found, i have checked.. what is the 3rd option?

 

Do you have any coarse salt?

 

Cooking is cool.  And kitchen gear is even cooler.  -- Chad Ward

Whatever you crave, there's a dumpling for you. -- Hsiao-Ching Chou

liuzhou

liuzhou

Posted
Posted
6 minutes ago, d_animality said:

 

okay sea salt also hard to be found, i have checked.. what is the 3rd option?

 

Rock salt. Same thing again. Nearly all of Brunei is beside the sea! You must be able to get some. The only real difference is the names.

...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

"No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot"
Mark Twain
 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

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