Steak Doneness: How Do You Like It?
Steak: Rare, Medium, or Well Done?
Some people want their steaks well done: Charred on the outside, thoroughly brown and chewy on the inside.
Others want their steaks done medium or medium rare, with a warm, succulent, juicy pink center.
And some people want their steaks so rare that it practically moos when they stick a fork in it.
Me, I like my steaks done to a tender and flavorful medium rare. However, I've been strongly tempted to try rare...
So what kind of a steak eater are you? Do you prefer a crispy critter, or do you like your steaks pink and juicy?
Levels of Steak Doneness
Degrees of Cooking
Well done: Grayish-brown with no sign of pink, usually slightly charred on the outside. Cooking a good steak to this level of doneness is a challenge. It has to be done slowly on low heat, or else you end up with shoe leather.Medium well: Mostly gray-brown throughout, but with a hint of pale pink inside. Good for someone who wants an ever-so-slightly juicy steak, but detests any sign of "blood" in their meat.
Medium: A more pronounced band of pink in the middle of the steak. However, there should still be slightly more gray-brown than pink coloration.
Medium rare: Warm and mostly pink to red center. Firm on the outside, soft and juicy on the inside.
Rare: Cool or warm red center. It's nearly like raw meat, but obviously cooked on the outside.
Very rare or blue: Red, cool, and practically raw. It's barely cooked for the true carnivores amongst us.
Raw: I think this one is self-explanatory. Die-hard carnivores can go for this.
Isn't Eating Undercooked Meat Bad For You?
When it comes to things like chicken, pork and ground beef, yes, definitely! But the risk for steak is different. If a cut of steak is going to have any bacteria, it's just about always going to be on the outside. Steak doesn't contain the parasites that plague chickens and pigs. However, the outside should be cooked and handled with clean instruments.Ground beef, on the other hand, is going to have bacteria spread throughout. You are more likely to get E. Coli by eating undercooked ground beef. Go for a well-done hamburger.
Our biggest worry with chicken meat is salmonella. It's very common for chickens to carry salmonella, which permeates its flesh. The only way to kill the salmonella is to thoroughly cook the chicken meat.
Undercooked pork is potentially even worse than undercooked chicken. There's a risk of developing trichinosis as a result of eating undercooked pork... if the pig was infected the larvae of a trichina worm.
But I Don't Want My Steak to Bleed!
People who love rare steak usually fend off this objection with, "It's not blood, it's MEAT JUICE!" (Or they just grin carnivorously and say that the "blood" is the best part.)The squeamish people scoff and throw up a wall of skepticism. "Yeah, right. So what exactly IS meat juice, anyway?"
That "meat juice" is mostly water, fat and myoglobin. Did you know the real reason raw meat looks so red is because of myoglobin protein in the muscles? Contrary to popular belief, it's not because of the hemoglobin found in blood.
A quality steak that's been properly drained and cleaned should contain hardly any blood at all, even when it's served rare.
YOUR TURN!
Steak: Pink Center or Crispy Critter?
Fetching blurbs now... please stand byGive me my tender pink steak!
allinmygrill says:
crispy outside tender inside medium
Posted July 10, 2009
tassos says:
I love it medium!
Posted July 02, 2009
Ace says:
The best steak is the one on it's way down to my belly!
Posted June 30, 2009
italianheart92 says:
Medium rare. Too much blood is just gross! And too hard and crunchy- nuh huh. I like mine right in the middle
Posted June 27, 2009
Random dude says:
warm, succulent, juicy pink center.
rofl made me laugh
Posted June 23, 2009
MishimaSan says:
I don't really eat steak that much anymore, but when I did, boy oh boy, I liked it RARE.
Posted June 06, 2009
Matilda says:
I love a nice juicy rare steak. Cooked more than medium is just a waste of a piece of good meat, rather eat chicken then.
Posted June 01, 2009
Casey says:
If it's not screaming when I stick a fork into, then it's wasted meat.
Posted May 26, 2009
beef slayer says:
i like the rare steak myself if i had to eat a welldone steak i would rather just eat fish or chicken heck if i could i would eat it raw lol
Posted May 22, 2009
Ste says:
I eat rare but after eating this I'm tempted to try blue
Posted May 14, 2009
sps says:
Just had medium rare for dinner last night. YUUMMMMM!!!
Posted May 09, 2009
Charlie Jones says:
I have to say thanks for creating this very informative article. The other day I went out for lunch, had steak and based on this very article I tried medium (You know, baby steps!) and it was realy tasty! I can also personally recommend Lonestar Steakhouse. (No, I don't work for them. ;) )
Posted May 04, 2009
Jesse says:
Medium rare is the way to go.
Posted April 24, 2009
Dana says:
Rare. Maybe medium rare sometimes. Full fledged medium is for wimps. I've been a vegetarian for six years or so though, but I don't think cow physics have changed much in that time. Still, you can take my opinion with a grain of salt if you like.
Posted April 21, 2009
papawu says:
I think it really depends on the cut of the meat. The better the cut, the pinker I like it. Not rare, but between just a tad under medium rare.
Posted April 09, 2009
Yuka says:
I luv rare.
Oh, I do respect all the medium / well s out there. But for myself, rare to medium rare means soft, juicy, moist, succulent and delicious.. crispy is only for when I know the beef has more fat than muscle. BTW, if you're only choosing medium / well because you like chewy, try something lean bordering on tough- these guys stay relatively chewable so long as they are not cooked through, and often have good flavor that satisfies all chewies.
Posted April 07, 2009
Dr.Evil says:
I like mine Very rare.
Posted April 06, 2009
ME says:
Med Rare all the way, and can the other side please stop saying they don't want "blood", but rather they do not want wonderful flavorful juices, as you are eating muscle. The taste of blood , ie from a cooked heart, is far different and is closer to sucking on a piece of iron than eating a perfectly cooked, well marbled rib eye
Posted April 05, 2009
Give me my crispy critter!
Sydnei says:
I love a fork tender juicy meduim well steak. Anything below meduim has the gooey rubbery texture of raw meat that could never be cut with a fork and probably a few bacteria as well. If medium well is done right it is not crispy, burnt or dry.
Posted July 04, 2009
Ben says:
when Jesus was asked how he likes his steak didn't he say "well done good and faithful sevant, well done"?
Posted July 03, 2009
Freddy says:
well done!! if i see any pink in mine at all i will be maddd :-)
Posted June 06, 2009
The Hedge says:
Well Done for me. I don't like the gooey, jelly type texture of uncooked meat. It's not pleasant for me. A well done steak can still taste extremely good, if it's cooked by an experienced chef.
Posted June 01, 2009
Danny says:
I like it well done. I absolutely hate any sign of raw meat and it's hard for me to enjoy a steak unless it's done right (even if it is quite juicy).
Posted May 25, 2009
S.Gray says:
Crispy critter
Posted February 26, 2009
Mark says:
I like my steaks medium well. That's the way I like it and that's the way I order it. It tastes great to me and heck, I'm the one paying for it. I hate when people pronounce how a food "must" or "should" be eaten. That if you don't have it their way then somehow you're defective. I say "eat and let eat."
Posted December 04, 2008
miss lady says:
i like mine very well done
Posted October 29, 2008
Tiddledeewinks says:
It's not safe to eat undone meat! But, I've gone mostly vegetarian now, because it's not safe for the cow at all!
Posted August 17, 2008
MeganCasey says:
Gollum said he likes his meat rraww and wwrrriggling. I'll pass.
Posted February 20, 2008
Oosquid says:
I am no longer allowed to eat steak, but when I was . . . I had it burnt to a crisp!
No sign of blood, no, no, no! Nice and chewy please.
Posted February 16, 2008
Christene says:
I don't want my steak to moo. Not too crispy though...medium well please.
Posted February 15, 2008
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A Definition of Steak
A steak (from Old Norse Category: wikt - :steik#Old Norse|steik, "roast") is a cut of meat. Most steaks are cut perpendicular to the muscle fibres, improving the perceived tenderness of the meat. In North America, steaks are typically served grilled, though they are also often pan-fried. The more tender cuts from the loin and rib are cooked quickly, using dry heat, and served whole. Less tender cuts from the chuck or round are cooked with moist heat or are mechanically tenderized. The more tender steaks have a premium price and perception; the idea of eating steak signifies relative wealth.
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Moo! Have Your Say
Want to add some more seasonings to your steak?
papawu wrote...
I pretty much like my beef medium rare to medium. I have some friends though that like everything almost to the point of being charred or burned, but I simply can't see myself eating a piece of seasoned rubber.
Posted April 09, 2009
rockycha wrote...
Great topic, high fives, love the debate, and lensrolled to my gourmet steaks. :)
Posted March 31, 2009
