The Easy Restaurant Trick for Juicy, Crispy Steaks
By J. Kenji López-Alt

This technique will deliver perfectly rested steaks with a fresh-from-the-fire crackling crust.

To Rest a Steak, or Not

There's no question that resting meat helps it to retain juices, though the exact degree to which it does so is up for debate. I've tested dozens of steaks over the years, and I've found significant variation. Sometimes even a well-rested steak will lose juices when you cut into it. Sometimes a completely un-rested steak won't spill a drop. But as a general rule, resting meat for about one-third of its total cooking time guarantees that more juices will stay inside than on your cutting board or plate. This is a good thing in my book (literally).

Meathead argues that the benefits of resting meat are overshadowed by its problems. First of all, what's the big deal if your meat leaks juices onto the plate? Can't you always just sop them up with individual bites as you eat? Are you really gonna notice that one bite has a fraction of a teaspoon less juice?

He also explains that if you're not careful about the way you cook, resting can lead to excessive carryover cooking—the hot exterior of the steak essentially causes the cooler interior to overcook as the heat from the outside transfers inward. Over-resting will leave meat cold and fats rubbery.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, resting causes a steak to lose what meat expert Adam Perry Lang describes as the "alive and snappy" crust. He has a good point. There's something magical about that crackling, crispy blend of rendered fat, salt, and juices that's characteristic of a steak coming straight off the grill or a prime rib coming out of the oven.

The Fat-Flash Method for Finishing Your Steak (or, How to Get the Best of Both Worlds)

So, if resting can deliver a measurably juicier interior, but eating immediately delivers better crust, the ideal steak would have both of those things, right? Thankfully, there's a pretty simple and obvious way to get there: Rest the steak, then re-crisp the crust just before eating.

Restaurant cooks may recognize this technique—it's what they do when they "flash" a steak or other cut of meat right before serving it. Usually, they use a cranked-up oven or salamander (a broiler on steroids) to rapidly reheat and crisp up the exterior, especially if the cut has been sitting around a few minutes longer than ideal. (Hey, slow appetizer-eaters: We're looking at you.) This kind of post-rest exposure to intense heat isn't intended to cook the meat more; it's simply meant to revive the exterior, get it sizzling again, as if it's just finished cooking.

If I'm grilling steaks or chops outdoors at home, I use a very similar approach: I cook the meat, then let it rest. Just before serving, I flash it on the hottest fire I can muster for about 15 seconds per side. If I'm cooking indoors, I sear the steak in hot fat, then let the meat rest on a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet. Then, just before serving, I reheat the fat and juices left over in the skillet until they're smoking-hot and pour them right over the steaks—you'll see them sizzle and sputter as they crisp up. This is similar to the restaurant hot-oven flash, but it works even better: Hot fat is a more efficient means of heat transfer than hot air, which means faster crisping with less chance of overcooking. It also adds a final shot of flavor to the surface of the steak.