HOW TO COOK THE PERFECT STEAK

Outstanding NZ Food Producer Judge, Kathy Paterson shared this ‘how to’ from her book ‘Meat & Three’. It’s essential reading for anyone on the BBQ this summer.

Step one

Choose the right cut for you: eye fillet may have tender eating on its side, but sirloin has a fatty edge and scotch a higher marbling of fat to impart lots of flavour as well as giving you enough fat to cook the steak in. Preferably, choose a steak that is 3cm-4cm in thickness to achieve the balance between outer crust and evenly cooked centre.

Step two

Remove your steak from the fridge to give it time to come to room temperature before cooking. This can take 20 minutes in summer and one to two hours in colder weather.

Step three

If there is no fat cap, then rub the steak with a little olive oil before cooking. Seasoning a steak is personal preference. You can season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper before cooking, or you can season with pepper only then season with salt after cooking.

Step four

Ensure your frying pan or barbecue is hot before you add the steak. It should be on the hotter side of medium-high. A ridged chargrill pan or barbecue grill will give you grill lines on your steak.

Step five

The cooking time will depend on the thickness of your steak. As a guide, a 3cm-4cm-thick steak cooked from room temperature should take 2 minutes on each side for medium-rare steak. You can also use the touch method:

• Medium-rare: soft but springy;

• Medium: firm and springy:

• Well done: very firm to the touch.

Turning a steak during cooking is again personal preference. If your preference is to turn a steak more than once each side, then in our experience, cooking for at least 1ó minutes on each side will give you a good crust to seal in the meat juices. Finish cooking from there.

Step six

Resting is most important for tender, juicy meat. Remove the steak from the pan to a warmed plate and cover loosely with foil or baking paper and a clean tea towel. Leave to rest for 5-10 minutes.

Meat & Three

Steak cookery instructions are among many practical guides in Meat & Three, by cookbook author and Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards judge, Kathy Paterson.

Kathy says the title, Meat & Three, is a playful take on the term ‘meat and three veg’, the mainstay of the Kiwi diet for decades. ‘It’s a book filled with traditional food memories that I have given my own modern twist. It’s about real food that comes from a quality environment and that values a sense of community.’

Get your copy here.