How to Cook Steak in the Oven

Yesny

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posted on 14 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Lots of people cook steak on the grill, but you can also prepare a delicious piece of steak in the oven. The key is to prepare the steak in advance and cook it at the perfect temperature.

Ingredients

Preparing the Steak

Preheat your oven to 450° F (232° C). You'll want a very hot oven to cook the perfect steak.

Start off with relatively thick steaks. Steaks that are an inch to an inch and a half thick work best for this method. That's because thicker steaks get more time to develop a wonderful outer crust before the inside cooks. Generally speaking, the thinner the steak, the quicker it becomes as dry and hard as it cooks.

Pat dry any moisture from all sides of the steak. Excess moisture left on steaks will cause them to steam, not sear.Take a paper towel and wick away any moisture that's present on your steak.

Salt your steak before searing it. There are several opinions about how and when to salt your steak. Let your steak warm up to room temperature before you season it so it cooks through evenly. If you don't have a lot of time on your hands, salt your steak immediately before you place it in the pan. Salt draws moisture from the inside of the steak to the outside. If you have more than 45 minutes to spare, try salting the steak three quarters of an hour in advance. The salt will draw salt out to the surface of the steak, but after 30 to 40 minutes, the steak will draw back the salted moisture in a process called osmosis. This gives the steak a wonderful taste and, some say, actually tenderizes it.

Oil a cast iron skillet or other oven-safe pan with a nice coating of neutral oil and begin to heat it on a burner over high heat. The steak will start off over the burner, but the bulk of the cooking will be done in the oven. This method is used by chefs, cooks and restaurateurs the world over. Use a neutral oil such as pine nut or canola oil instead of a pungent oil like olive oil. This helps respect the natural intensity of the steak's flavor. You'll know the pan is ready to cook with when the oil starts smoking. You can also melt 1 teaspoon (4.7 g) of butter in the pan instead of using oil.

Cooking the Steak

Place the steak in the cast iron skillet. To avoid any oil splatter, tip the bottom of the pan up slightly by lifting the skillet's handle up in the air. The oil should gather in a small reservoir near the very tip of the pan. Place the steak gingerly inside the pan and lower the skillet's handle back down. Adjust the steak with tongs to ensure that it's getting equal coverage on the pan (for a better crust), but don't press down on the steak with your tongs in an attempt to "sear" the steak. The steak will sear perfectly well on its own, given time.

Continue cooking the steak on high for 2-3 minutes. Cook the steak just long enough to develop some nice color (i.e. flavor) on the first side. Searing your steak before cooking it in the oven will help give it a crispy exterior.

Flip the steak and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes over high heat. You won't need as much time on the second side of the steak because it will continue to develop color (from contact with the bottom of the pan) in the oven.

Add a little butter to the pan right before you're ready to put the steak into the oven (optional). This step is optional, but a tablespoon or two of butter right before the steak goes into the oven gives the steak a wonderfully rich, nutty taste, along with a richer jus to serve alongside the steak in the end. Alternatively, you can add a little beef broth and cover your skillet with foil to make your steak extra juicy.

Keeping the steak in the same cast iron skillet, place it in the oven and cook for approximately 6 to 8 minutes. The time spent in the oven depends on the thickness of the steak (the thicker the steak, the longer cooking time it will require) and your desired level of doneness (after 6 minutes, the steak is probably still medium-rare; after 8 minutes, it's about medium).

Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. Stick the thermometer into the thickest part of the steak and leave in for a few moments to obtain a reading. Refer to the following temperature to tell whether your steak is done. 120° F (48.8° C) = Rare 130° F (54.4° C) = Medium rare 140° F (60° C) = Medium 150° F (65.5° C) = Medium well 160° F (71.1° C) = Well done

Be sure to let your steak rest for 7 to 10 minutes after removing it from the oven. As the outer layers of the meat cook, they contract. This sends the juices of the steak further into the center, where they accumulate. If you choose to cut up your steak immediately upon removing it from the oven, the juices will run all over the place because they've been trapped in one place. If, however, you let the steak "rest" for about 8 or 9 minutes after it's done cooking, the outer layers of meat will relax, allowing the remaining juices to travel back into the entire piece of meat. This creates a much juicier piece of steak. You can rest your steak under a tent of aluminum foil to retain a little extra heat, but if you're eating it indoors, the amount of extra heat loss will be minimal if you leave the foil off. Plus, tenting foil over the steak may cause the skin to become less crispy.