The Resting Period

In your culinary travels, I'm sure you will come across recipes that you find interesting, recipes that call for large cuts of meat that are sliced after the cooking process. This doesn't always mean that you have to cook the meat for longer, to cook it through...because essentially, that idea will leave you with some overcooked pieces, and some undercooked pieces.

Medium Rare

The key to cooking a large piece of meat is the resting period. I will use last night's dinner as an example, since that's what inspired me to write this post in the first place. I made a beef tenderloin recipe from Gordon Ramsay's In The Heat of the Kitchen. My piece of beef weighed about a pound. I put it in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, basting every 7 minutes or so, but when I took it out, it was still pretty soft, rather than springy, which is what I was looking for. I left it in for another 5 minutes and then removed it from the oven.

Now, if I had cut into it right then and there, the middle would have still been bloody. But, I left the meat to REST for 5 minutes, allowing the heat to move through the meat and continue cooking. Now, when I cut into the meat, it was PERFECT. Pink in the middle, not overcooked on the outside - and it was delicious! I mean, seriously delicious!

Medium

It is best not to cut into a piece of meat until you are ready to start serving. Each time you pierce the outer layer, you lose valuable juices and flavors. One trick I learned, thanks to a very cool apron that I bought for my friend for Christmas is this; If you take your hand and touch your thumb to your pointer finger, and then press on the pad of your hand, you will have the feeling of a piece of meat cooked rare. Going down the line, middle finger to thumb should feel like medium rare, ring finger to thumb should feel like medium, and pinky to thumb should feel like well-done (that's too done, if you ask me!). I thought that was a brilliant little tidbit and I have carried it with me. It's easy to remember, that's for sure!