COOKIN´ ON HWY 1

By Tim Acosta, Advertising & Marketing Director

If the steaks in this issue look especially good, it’s probably because I cooked them — on the rooftop of our store in Downtown New Orleans, no less.

When most people cook for the camera, they aren’t concerned about flavor. But we always eat everything on shoot days, so the steaks need to taste as good off-camera as they look on-camera.

The steaks themselves were perfect — hand-cut by our butchers, with that deep red color and just the right amount of fat — so I kept the seasoning simple, the way I do when I cook on Highway 1. I brushed them with a little bit of our Rouses Sicilian Olive Oil, then added a layer of our coarse-ground kosher salt and our butcher’s blend of black pepper. It’s a basic yet tasty seasoning that enhances the flavor of the steak rather than competing with it. Once in a while, I like to jazz my steak up with some crumbled blue cheese on top; it makes for a richer, more complex flavor.

Different cuts cook at different rates, and a lot depends on the thickness of the steak you are cooking, but you also have to take into account the total size. That 12-ounce New York strip on page 12 cooked up differently than the 40-ounce tomahawk on our cover. Both were delicious, by the way.

So how do you really know when your steak is just right? Some people swear by the touch test to determine the right amount of doneness; different spots on your hand correlate to rare, mediumrare, medium, medium-well and well-done on the steak. Basically, the firmer the steak is to the touch, like the firmer the spot on your hand is to the touch, the more cooked it is.

I’ve found the touch test useful in making sure I don’t overcook meat, but a much better and safer option is to take the internal temperature of your steak with an instant-read meat thermometer. We’ve include a handy temperature guide in this issue.

One more note about internal temperatures: If you’re a stickler about having a rare or medium-rare steak, remember: Thicker steaks like the porterhouse on page 31 keep cooking for a few minutes after they’re removed from the heat, so watch the thermometer closely as it gets near your preferred temperature.

CAST-IRON

I cooked some of these steaks directly on the grill, some in a heavy cast-iron skillet. Cast-iron heats very evenly and holds heat extremely well. You can set it right on the grill or place it on a stovetop if you have good ventilation. A hot cast-iron skillet lets you sear the steak so you get that great crust, which to me is one of the best parts of the steak.

Get the skillet good and hot before you add the steak. Pour a little bit of oil in the hot skillet — if the oil beads and shines when it hits the pan, you’re ready to cook; if it smokes, that means your pan is too hot. Use a paper towel or napkin to spread the oil around and lightly grease the bottom of the pan. Sear the steak in the hot pan, then finish it in the oven with a pat of butter on top for even more sizzle. I also like to add some garlic and fresh thyme when I cook steak in cast-iron. As the butter melts, I like to baste the steak with the melted butter that has picked up flavorful notes from the garlic and thyme.

Tim Acosta, Advertising & Marketing Director and Romney Caruso, photographer