On-Line Steak Company
Steaks! One of my greatest food loves! Who knew I would play a role with an on-line steak company, be one of their chefs at food & wine events and write blogs for them as well. Yet, here I am.
From my 31 year career with the Sheriff’s Office to being a food prep guy and volunteer at Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes, to retirement, to becoming a sushi chef at Imura Japanese restaurant, to being a novice blog writer, and finally, to being hired to write blogs, chef and appear on web TV for a steak company. A strange, but enjoyable journey through life…so far.
I’m frequently asked how the heck I went from toting a badge and gun to suddenly working with food and blog writing!
Well, I’m not sure…In fact, none of it was ever planned. Including working in law enforcement. My original plan was journalism, which I was enrolled in college at the time. I sort of fulfilled my journalistic cravings with all the report writing I did while at the sheriff’s office. But really, I was a happy-go-lucky kid, who took advantage of the opportunities that fell in front of me. So there it is…that’s how I arrived to present day.
Local Farmers!
What is United Steaks? It’s an on-line steak company that delivers steaks to your front door! Not only do I chef at events for the company I am also a customer! I recently ordered on-line from United Steaks. Within 24 hours the steaks were on my front porch.
United Steaks offers two types of steaks: conventional and natural.
Their natural steak selections come from locally sourced farms that never use antibiotics or hormones on their free-range livestock. It’s guaranteed to be all natural from farm to table.
Their conventional steaks are raised just like the natural steaks, except they are not guaranteed to be free of hormones or antibiotics.
Information source: United Steaks website.
Grilling Steaks 101...
First of all, if you are not comfortable with timed cooking, or you don’t trust your grill’s temperature accuracy, then make sure you have a thermometer that has been calibrated before you use it on your steaks. If you’re one of those steak gurus who can tell a steak is done just by touching or looking at it, then kudos to you!
If you have a bi-metallic stem thermometer, the best way to calibrate it is to put it in a known temperature source. Ice water in a cup is the best method. The cup of ice water settles at 32 degrees (your known temperature source).
The other known temperature source is boiling water. At sea level water boils at 212 degrees. At high elevation, water boils at 198 degrees or higher, depending on the altitude.
Placing your thermometer into one of these sources will help you calibrate your thermometer. Make sure to follow the instructions that came with your thermometer for gauge setting during calibration.
Information source: State Food Safety, Prometric Food Safety Manager Training Course.
Cooking times of your steak varies. The temperature chart listed is only a guide. Time varies depending on the internal temperature of your grill and the thickness of your steak. Most grocery store steaks are cut between 1/2″ to 1″ inch. 1/2″ inch seems to be the most common in grocery stores. And by reading the “rare” steak time guide I posted, I would say it was meant for a 1/2″ inch streak (about 3 minutes of cooking time on each side of the steak).
I use premium steaks. Prime is the best quality steak you can buy. The difference between premium and choice is visual, and of course, the taste. Prime steaks have a higher fat content. The marbling is noticeable. The 3 most common grades of beef are: USDA Prime, Choice and Select. And I prefer my steaks to be 1″ inch thick or more.
The most common error people make when cooking steaks happens right after the steak is removed from the grill.
People like to cut into their steak immediately. Please DO NOT cut into your steak until it has rested for at least 10 to 15 minutes! Don’t touch it, don’t nibble on it, don’t move it, don’t look at it! Let it rest. You will kill your steak if you cut into it before it had time to rest. In California, that’s known as a 187! As in penal code 187…a homicide…murder!
The steak, if not rested properly, will bleed out and dry out, if you cut into it before it rests! It becomes jerky. Just a dried out piece of leather.
Here’s the other thing: while the steak is resting it’s still cooking. The internal temperature will rise another 5 to 8 degrees or more while resting, which is why the next paragraph is important to read.
The other common error during cooking time: cooking your steak too long. This is why it’s important to know time and temperature while grilling.
I like rare steak! That means I have to know how long it’s been on the grill and what the internal temperature is. If you want rare steak, then the steak has to be removed from the grill when the internal temp reaches 120 degrees. For a 1″ inch steak, that means each side of the steak will get about 6 minutes of grill time, if your internal grill temperature is between 350 and 375 degrees.
Like I said earlier, as the steak rests, the steak will continue to cook. The internal temperature of the steak will rise 5 to 8 degrees or more, bringing the final temperature between 125 to 128 degrees, which in my opinion, is the perfect “rare” steak!
If you like medium rare steak then your final internal temp will be about 135 degrees or slightly higher. If you insist on committing steak abuse, and you want your steak well done, then the internal temp should be 165 degrees or higher.
The End Result!
This is my version of a perfectly grilled and rested “rare” New York Strip steak by United Steaks! Before I grilled it, I brought the steak to room temperature and used a simple seasoning of olive oil (lightly applied) sea salt and pepper. That’s it!
This is a visual aid to help you understand what area of the cow your steak comes from. The more common grocery store cuts are Porterhouse, New York Strip, Rib-eye and Sirloin. All from the top half of the cow.
If you want to learn more about United Steaks or you want to order some steaks…go to the website and check out the blogs and other information on the site.
Great job on this one!
Thanks Dave!
This is stellar! Thank you Paul! We are so happy to have on board. A true gem you are and you always bring such positivity and value to everything you put your heart and mind to. It is our honor to have you represent our brand!
Thank you so much Dilara!
Indeed, the grill Master strikes! Spread the Word
135°! I’m hungry
Lol…thanks Dan!