The Exact Temp To Aim For When Cooking Medium Steak

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Cooking restaurant-quality steak at home can be a challenge for even experienced cooks, especially when it comes to achieving your perfect doneness, be that medium-well or medium-rare. We spoke with Aurele Berdoz, director of Food & Beverage for Café Maud, which has two locations in NYC, about cooking a steak to a perfect medium. When attempting to cook a steak to medium, Berdoz tells us that "the ideal internal temperature would be between 140 to 145 degrees Fahrenheit after resting." The key here is the phrase "after resting," meaning that this is the temperature the steak will eventually increase to as the residual heat continues to cook the steak after it leaves the pan. Berdoz advises that while the steak is still sizzling in the pan, "you should pull the meat off with an internal temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit."

The easiest way to ensure that you cook your steaks to a precise temperature is by using an instant-read meat thermometer, like the ThermoWorks Thermapen, a favorite amongst professional chefs. However if you don't have a meat thermometer, you're not completely out of luck. While not as accurate as a meat thermometer, Burdoz notes that "the finger test is a fine way to test the steak." While it does allow room for error, Burdoz says that the finger test "helps get a general idea of how far along the meat is." Similar to the finger test, which uses the softness of different hand positions to compare the doneness of meat, Gordon Ramsay has a different tip that involves your face.

When we asked about mistakes people commonly make when cooking steaks at home and how to avoid them, Berdoz provided many examples. In terms of preparation before cooking, one of the worst offenders is "not removing excess liquid from the steak." To avoid this, Berdoz recommends "patting [the steak] down prior to seasoning," which can simply be done with a paper towel, and "help[s] achieve a nice sear on the meat." Another error many home cooks make when preparing to cook a steak is "not letting the pan preheat on medium heat," which Berdoz tells us "prevents an even sear on the meat." Preheating over medium heat is key here, instead of over medium-high or even a high heat for a ripping hot pan, which is a searing myth constantly circulated about pan temperature.

Additionally, Berdoz warns that "not letting the meat rest and cutting into it immediately prevents the internal juices from sitting within the meat to help create a juicy steak," which may be the gravest error in cooking a steak. Letting the steak rest for five to 10 minutes after removing it from the heat is key to retaining moisture and tenderness. Check out a few more key factors to determine how long to cook your steak to achieve your perfectly medium steak at home.