The Clever Tactics Restaurants Implement For Tastier Steaks

Many avoid cooking with large amounts of butter, but restaurant steaks are succulent because they’re cooked in a bath of butter and some garlic, rosemary, and thyme.

Thorough seasoning is also crucial. Chefs suggest applying a generous coating of salt to steaks 45 minutes before cooking so the dry salt has time to draw out the steak’s juices.

Tossing a well-salted steak into a hot pan yields the perfect sear and triggers the Maillard reaction — the chemical reaction that gives the steak a nice brown crust.

Since the Maillard reaction requires high heat to occur, restaurant chefs use heavy cast iron pans that can handle the heat. That’s another reason restaurant steaks taste so good.

Flipping a steak by stabbing it with a fork or knife when cooking frees the steak’s juices from their enslavement inside the meat and sends them to the pan’s bottom.

That is exactly why restaurant chefs use tongs to turn steaks over. That way, the steak’s juices will only escape to freedom when you bite into it and not before.

Allowing cooked steak to rest for five to 10 minutes before serving allows its interior to continue cooking, transforming the raw center from red to pink.

Additionally, the juices will have the time to disperse themselves throughout the steak, guaranteeing a flavorful experience with every bite once you finally cut into it.

Once a steak reaches 248 degrees Fahrenheit, a chain reaction sets off, which reduces the sugars and amino acids inside the meat, giving the steak a brown crust.

This chain reaction also creates flavors and aromas an uncooked steak doesn’t naturally produce. Restaurant chefs have mastered this chemistry, so their steaks always stand out.