According to one scientist, everything we thought we knew about cooking the perfect steak is wrong.
George Vekinis, from Greece’s National Centre for Scientific Research, claims that adding salt ruins a good steak and that, instead of searing it in a pan, it should be nuked in the microwave first.
The expert says that adding salt draws out moisture from the meat, making it tougher and less palatable.
Instead of seasoning before frying, he recommends microwaving the steak for up to two minutes before quickly searing it for no more than a minute on each side.
He explained on the BBC’s Instant Genius podcast: “Salt must never be put on a steak before frying.
“Salt has this osmotic ability to drag out as much water as possible from the meat and you’re going to get [something] tough and inedible.
“Put steak in the microwave for one or two minutes, depending on the thickness of the meat, then you fry it quickly, a very short time, as short a time as possible, just to give it that little bit of reaction on the surface.”
George detailed that the internal temperature of the meat ought to hit a minimum of 55 to 60C “at least”.
For those who fancy it, he suggests you can drizzle some oil for added flavour, reports GloucestershireLive.
Adhering to this technique, George assures that a medium-rare steak will be “slightly red and cooked on the outside”.
