The Manual
Vol. I · No. 1 · September 2026
The Gentleman's Guide
Part XI · Food & KitchenNo. 410 · Page 13 of 20

Cooking a steak

Buy a steak at least an inch thick, salt it, dry it, and cook it in a very hot heavy pan, flipping often. Trust a thermometer instead of the clock, and let the steak rest five minutes before you cut it.

Cooking a steak

Buying and preparing

Thickness matters more than the cut. A steak an inch to an inch and a half thick gives the outside time to brown before the middle overcooks, while a thin steak is gray all the way through by the time it has any crust. Ribeye and strip are the forgiving choices, because their fat keeps them juicy.

Salt the steak on both sides with about half a teaspoon of kosher salt per side. Do it either at least 40 minutes ahead or immediately before cooking, since in between the salt has drawn moisture to the surface. Pat it completely dry with paper towels just before it goes in the pan.

In the pan

  1. Heat a cast iron or heavy stainless skillet over high heat for three to four minutes, until a drop of water vanishes instantly.
  2. Add a tablespoon of oil with a high smoke point, such as canola or avocado, and lay the steak in away from you.
  3. Flip it every minute or so, which builds an even crust and cooks the inside more gently than a single flip.
  4. Add a tablespoon of butter, a crushed garlic clove and a sprig of thyme after about six minutes, and spoon the foaming butter over the steak.
  5. Start checking the temperature through the side of the steak, with the probe tip in the center, at about seven minutes. A steak this thick usually needs eight to ten.
  6. Rest it on a plate for five to ten minutes, and slice it across the grain.

Temperature and doneness

The USDA's recommended minimum for whole cuts of beef is 145 degrees followed by a three-minute rest, which gives you a steak cooked to medium. Restaurants routinely serve steaks below that figure, with medium-rare at 130 to 135 degrees and rare near 125. Hold to 145 when cooking for anyone pregnant, elderly, very young or immunocompromised. Whatever your target, take the steak off about five degrees early, because the temperature keeps climbing while it rests. Ground beef is a separate matter and always goes to 160.

The usual mistakes

A pan that is not hot enough is the most common failure, followed by a wet steak and a crowded pan. Cook two steaks in a 12-inch skillet at most, and check doneness with a thermometer instead of a knife.

Tip For a steak thicker than an inch and a half, bake it on a rack at 275 degrees until it is 15 degrees short of your target, then sear it for a minute a side.