Chef’s tips for the perfect summer steak

Impress your family and friends using these summer steak tips.

Daphne Oz from The Chew is well known for cooking up healthy and delicious dishes every week alongside her co-hosts on the ABC daytime foodie talk show.

Take a peak at the above clip and watch as Daphne travels to NYC’s famous steakhouse, Porter House, for a culinary externship with famous chef Michael Lomonaco. Not only are her skills tested, but she learns steakhouse secrets along the way. Watch to see Lomonaco’s simple and easy tip for testing how rare your meat is on the grill without cutting into it.

After watching this week’s Chew clip, read on to see our tips for an awesome piece of steak.

• Season it generously with salt. This intensifies the flavor and improves the quality of the grilled or seared crust.
• For even cooking, first bring your steak to room temperature; 20–30 minutes on the counter should do it.
• Cook or grill your steak over high heat to amp up the flavor and create a pleasing crust.
• Don’t turn the steak with a pointy utensil like a fork. Use tongs or a spatula instead to avoid piercing the meat and losing juices prior to letting it rest.
• Use your hand to help gauge the steak’s temperature. When your hand is relaxed, the soft part of your palm — just below your thumb — feels like a rare steak. When your hand is open and flexed, that same part of the palm will feel like a well-done steak.
• Let the steak rest for 5–10 minutes so the juices can redistribute throughout the meat. Your patience will be rewarded!

Grilled rib eye

Serves 2

A rib eye’s balance of fat and flavor makes it well suited for a minimalist treatment. This recipe is for the true steak lover; the meat is adorned only with salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Serve it with any sides you’d like, although I’m partial to creamy mashed potatoes, buttered broccoli and a glass of red.

Ingredients:

• 2 1-inch-thick, bone-in rib-eye steaks
• Sea salt or kosher salt
• Freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the grill to high.
2. Generously salt both sides of the steaks and grill until medium-rare, about 7–9 minutes on each side.
3. Sprinkle with pepper and let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Grilled marinated hanger steak

Serves 6–8

Complement hanger steak’s rich flavor with a tangy marinade; then cook it to medium-rare and slice against the grain for ideal texture. Serve it with grilled vegetables, in tacos or on sandwiches.

Ingredients:

• 2-pound hanger steak
• 1/4 cup safflower oil or other neutral oil
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients to a gallon-sized zip-top bag. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight, flipping about halfway through.
2. Preheat the grill to high. Remove the steak from the marinade and grill until medium-rare, about 7–9 minutes on each side. Let it rest at least 5 minutes. Then slice it thinly against the grain and serve.

Did Daphne and Michael’s tips help you prepare the perfect 5-star steak? Tune into ABC on weekdays 1e|12p|c for more mouth watering recipes, fun times and laughs with all your favorite celeb chefs!

More amazing steak recipes

Sizzler sirloin steak
Grilled flat iron steak with chimichurri sauce and grilled bread
Tonight’s dinner: Brown-sugar steak