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Sainsbury's advice for cooking a fillet steak


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Old 20-05-2015, 21:15
WombatDeath
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This is how Sainsbury's think I should cook the steak I'm having for dinner:

- Pre-heat pan to a high heat
- Fry for four minutes
- Roast in the oven at 200C for 7-9 minutes (rare), 9-11 minutes (medium) or 14-16 minutes (well done)
- Rest for two minutes

That's step two AND step three, sequentially - they're suggesting that I should do both, not one or the other.

I don't want to get into the "rare vs. well done" argument here because it's silly (and besides, medium rare is obviously objectively correct) but this sounds like madness. Does fillet steak have some sort of heat-repelling property that other cuts lack? I mean, I haven't actually tried it the Sainsbury's way (and I'm not going to tonight) but I'd expect them to know how to cook a steak so perhaps I'm missing something. Has anyone tried it their way?
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Old 20-05-2015, 21:28
rjb101
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To my mind a Rare fillet would be 2 mins a side and then rested. I'd season it first too
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Old 21-05-2015, 10:00
postit
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Depends on the thickness of the fillet, I should imagine
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Old 21-05-2015, 10:30
pearlsandplums
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I would probably fry it for the recommended 4 minutes (or less) and leave it to rest.
My mother cooks fillet steaks (and thin ones at that) under the grill for 20 minutes.
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Old 21-05-2015, 13:13
walterwhite
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Ask a hundred chefs how to cook a steak and you will get 100 different answers. Those timings do look a bit long though.
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Old 21-05-2015, 14:59
wildpumpkin
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Crikey never heard of fillet steak being done 'the Sainsbury way' timings all wrong.

found this link which may help and sounds to be just right

http://blogs.technet.com/b/ewan/arch...let-steak.aspx
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Old 21-05-2015, 15:33
Jellied Eel
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Maybe Sainsburys is trying to tell us something about their meat quality. Never had a baked steak before though.
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Old 21-05-2015, 16:56
molliepops
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Sounds ok to me but I do all meat very well done, no one here will touch it any other way.
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Old 21-05-2015, 20:41
degsyhufc
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Maybe Sainsburys is trying to tell us something about their meat quality. Never had a baked steak before though.
Depends on the size of the steak. If you have a really thick steak then a minute a side in a pan to sear it and get a nice coating then a few minutes in the oven just to cook through evenly can work very well.
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Old 22-05-2015, 13:01
walterwhite
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My issue is with the cooking times, rather than the method.
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Old 22-05-2015, 13:53
WombatDeath
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I stuck with my standard method: four minutes in a frying pan (two minutes per side) and ten minutes resting. It was more rare than I'd usually go for, but then it was a thicker steak than I usually buy.

I think that the collective wisdom of DS has found the answer: the method suggested must be intended to deal with steak thicker than you'd usually find in a supermarket. But it was nicely rare with no time in the oven, so I can only imagine that an additional 7-9 minutes of roasting would have resulted in something at least medium. And that's with the thickest steak they had on the shelf, so I think I have to disagree with their definition of "rare".

Oh well. It was a very nice steak, anyway.
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Old 22-05-2015, 13:56
alan29
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Depends on the thickness of the steak. Thats why those sort of one-size timings are not helpful.
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Old 23-05-2015, 12:05
Menk
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That sounds like instructions for cooking the entire fillet to me.
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Old 23-05-2015, 12:26
walterwhite
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Depends on the thickness of the steak. Thats why those sort of one-size timings are not helpful.
For a supermarket fillet those timings are way out.
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Old 24-05-2015, 21:59
grimtales1
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Think those timings are way too long - thats 15 minutes (not including resting) for a medium steak which sounds insane.
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Old 25-05-2015, 09:22
Heston Veston
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Typical supermarket recommendation - they're scared stiff of being sued by someone who might blame an upset stomach on a piece of rare steak, so they tell you to cook the bejesus out of it.
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Old 27-05-2015, 08:43
smudges dad
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I always use a thermometer when cooking steaks. As soon as the middle touches 45 deg, then it's off the heat and resting (that's blue to rare).
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Old 28-05-2015, 12:52
grimtales1
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Has anyone ever had a blue steak? Isnt that nearly raw?
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Old 28-05-2015, 13:10
walterwhite
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Has anyone ever had a blue steak? Isnt that nearly raw?
Yes i have them all the time. It's seared on the outside but essentially raw in the middle.
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Old 31-05-2015, 08:27
smudges dad
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Has anyone ever had a blue steak? Isnt that nearly raw?
Only gone blue from rare in the past year. Absolutely tender and delicious
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Old 31-05-2015, 16:26
Toby LaRhone
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I'm currently reading a book about professional kitchens where steaks are flash seared and finished in the oven but the Sainsburys timings seem crazy.
I just googled an example which, for a medium rare pink steak is a total of 5minutes.
But, as already said, it's to do with thickness.
A really thick steak done only on the stove top can just just get burned on the surface.
http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook...-kitchn-108490
(Scroll past the pictures)
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Old 31-05-2015, 21:04
IvanIV
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If you cook a steak in a pan, what temperature do you use? Is it on the maximum? That's one thing I can't get right. Either my steak is well done or raw in the middle, I can't control it well.
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Old 31-05-2015, 21:25
Toby LaRhone
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If you cook a steak in a pan, what temperature do you use? Is it on the maximum? That's one thing I can't get right. Either my steak is well done or raw in the middle, I can't control it well.
I use a cast iron griddle pan - no oil - on the hob at max and wait until it literally smokes.
Then lay the oiled and seasoned steak down.
It will instantly sizzle.
Timing is then down to your preference.
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Old 31-05-2015, 21:50
IvanIV
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I use a cast iron griddle pan - no oil - on the hob at max and wait until it literally smokes.
Then lay the oiled and seasoned steak down.
It will instantly sizzle.
Timing is then down to your preference.
Thanks. Let's say I have an entrecote 2 cm thick and want it medium rare. If I do it 2 minutes on each side, it's too much, cooked through and dry. Some say get the meat to the room temperature before, others say don't if it is thinner. I think If I saw it done once I would be able to do it properly.
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Old 01-06-2015, 01:37
Bex_123
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Has anyone ever had a blue steak? Isnt that nearly raw?
Yep. Lovely!
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