Steak

The most difficult part of this recipe is navigating the choices of which cut of meat to buy. The best advice is not to be shy, put your questions to your meat vendor and experiment. Premium cuts include strip which may also be called shell steak, porterhouse, T-bone and the ultra-rich rib-eye, and they can be extravagantly presented as single servings. New York sirloin is fairly ubiquitous, likely to be reasonably priced, and is compatible with serving in either big pieces or slices. Tri tip is also a good choice. Look for meat that is red, not pink or brown, and with an even marbling of fat throughout.

SERVES 4 to 6

Ingredients:

Steak; figure on 5 to 8 ounces per person, more if there are bones; it is unlikely that leftovers will go to waste

Salt and freshly ground pepper

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Instructions:

▪ The first step is to have the meat at room temperature, so take it out of the refrigerator an hour or so before you are ready to cook it. Salt and pepper both sides of the meat.

▪ The method of cooking is grilling, and you can do that on a stovetop grill pan, under the broiler or on an outdoor grill. Preheat your pan, broiler or grill.

▪ Timing is the critical factor and it is dependent upon how you well done you like your steak cooked. As a rule of thumb plan on seven minutes per side for medium rare meat that is about an inch thick. Check it early and often, and remove it from the cooking process when it is still more rare than you want it to be. It will continue to cook as it rests.

▪ The other important factor is the resting time you give the steak after you remove it from the heat. It should sit for five or ten minutes, during which time it will continue to cook a bit as the juices redistribute themselves, ensuring the meat will be moist and tender.

▪ Experience will be the best teacher in cooking steak, so plan on enjoying the practice.