This is the 21st video in our Steak Experiment series that we've been working on over the last year and a half. If you want to watch any of the other videos in the series, here's a link to the complete playlist. ru-vid.com/group/PLA8Sgnre4XTUBNybUoykMXUD0HffOCp0O
When comparing durability, cast iron is brittle and can be broken. I have broken a side off of two old skillets when dropped. Carbon stieel's are like a boat anchor or anvil. Indestructible . BTW, my old fave Wagner #9 i broke when dropped, i sanded the rough area on broken side and have been using as a griddle for 10 yr I prefer the lighter weight, quicker reaction times (up and down) and flared sidewalls of the carbon steel. I still have all of my CI but now find I only reach for CI when baking cornbread
You have to pull the steaks way before 128F if you're trying to target a medium-rare. Also, you need to take into account the effect closing the grill cover has on your cooking. The gray-bands on your steaks are way too thick and if you sent those out as medium-rare in a real restaurant, you'd re-firing two steaks.
Spot on. That was not medium rare. That said, you cook to your preference regardless of method, it is up to you to adapt based on your equipment and desire. The steaks looked tasty and were far from ruined and the information was useful. I might have to look for a carbon steel pan.
I have both cast iron and carbon steel pans that I'd use alternately for cooking, I love them both! Thanks to your video, I'll be searing the fat cap first, great advice. I also deeply score my fat caps so they melt a lot more while cooking, I imagine searing them first will make them even better!
Adds flavor to the cook as well. I agree with a poster that the top should remain open… a bit of steaming going on. Love the clarified butter suggestion. I use avocado oil as well. Works great with everything.
The clarified butter is interesting although with my method I think the avocado oil stabilizes the butter so it doesn't burn. I cook over gas on cast iron and pull at 120 for a med rare every time. My method. Pat NY steaks dry so you get a good sear without steaming! Let sit out at least an hr to get to room temp. Add a generous amount of Coarse salt to each side and pat into meat. Add fresh ground black pepper and pat into meat just before cooking. Sear hot medium high heat (About 450 to 500) in avocado oil about 2 minutes each side. I like to stand on steaks on side to sear the fat cap first. While searing the last edge turn heat down to medium and let temp come down to about 400. Add in fresh lightly crushed garlic cloves, thyme and butter. Lay steaks down baste in butter, garlic, & thyme till about 120. Remove and place in foil. Spoon some of the butter into steaks and add in cooked garlic cloves and thyme sprigs and wrap up. Rest 10 minutes. Best steak ever! 2 NY steaks (1.5 to 2 inch thick) Coarse ground salt Fresh ground black pepper 2 or 3 tbsp avocado oil Prep and ready in small container to easily add aromatics 6 to 8 Fresh garlic cloves (lightly smashed) Small Bunch of fresh thyme sprigs About 1/2 to 3/4 stick butter
@@Briggie They are more corrosion resistant. I noticed in Japan they use stainless flat tops. Edit: *Commercial Grade* carbon steel pans contain enough chromium (~6%) to help prevent rust. To be classified as "stainless" it has to be 10%+ chromium.
The carbon steel skillet in the video is by Smithy. All are hand hammered, pre-seasoned and beautiful. A bit expensive but you are buying functional art.
Great Job 👍 I’ve been a chef over thirty years and always love using carbon steel pans! Just takes getting used to the faster heat reactions both gets hot faster and cools down quickly! Needs much less energy than Cast iron! Both types of pans are awesome Cookers!
I have some lodge cast irons and wanted to invest in some field quality cast iron pans because i have recently used one and there is a big difference in quality between lodge and field that was quickly realized and i have used cast iron my entire life but now seeing more and more about carbon steel im not sure what to do in your chef’s opinion is there a reason to have both or would it be better to opt one for the other ??
The carbon steel heats up faster and cools quicker. That's why they make woks with carbon steel. Cast iron takes longer to heat up, but it retains its heat longer.
I agree, 127 with that level of banding is suspect. Recalibration of thermometer or maybe closing the lid with pan cooking is what did it. Idk, either way a normal burner setup would probably provide a better comparison of the pans. BUT, I do like the idea of using the grill to preheat a pan instead of heating up your house with the oven in the summer if you want your steak butter basted. But firing up the grill to cook steaks to not grill the steaks seems wrong too haha
@@prenticefincannon9239 You can have zoned heating if you're pan cooking on a grill. have one side on high for direct heat to sear, and the other side of the grill set lower. sear on the hot side, and then put the pan on the pan on the "cool side" with the lid closed to bake. It turns it into more of an oven environment to finish.
A good carbon steel skillet doesnt need to be expensive. Tbh, the one I use, has been used as a decorative thingy in someones garden. I asked if I could have it, deep cleaned it once, reseasoned it, and boom, best pan I ever owned.
Agreed. Price should drive anyones purchase, if you shouldn’t afford it then don’t. I was tired of buying non stick and other pans that only seemed to last a year or two. Got the same lodge he used in the video and it’s been going strong for ten years. Now that I’m out of college and making big boy money, maybe I’ll treat myself on one of these expensive smithy products. 30$ cast iron is great because anyone can afford it, and like you point out-the finished product is indiscernible. Smithy is more of a bragging right and a buy just because one can.
I have a $40 steelie from Ikea and a 100yr old Wagner Ware cast iron. I love them both, but I prefer the steelie for the fact that I can change the temp in it more quickly, and it's more evenly distributed than the iron. But it's just nit-picking really...
Cast iron and carbon steel are different tools, asking which is better is like asking which is better between a truck and a sports car. Cast pans are good for use on moderate power burners where they can 'store' a bunch of energy and give you a good sear. Carbon steel is great if you have a high power burner, a smoke hood or outdoors, you'll be hot fast. This was pan frying, not searing. Searing is only for a few minutes, the cooking to get the desired temp should be done either before or after depending on which technique you prefer
I like the crust on the cast iron a little better. Another thing I thought of is the carbon steel is more done in the middle with almost the same crust, I think that would be a benefit to the cast iron as well.
How did you call it a win for the carbon steel the cast iron had a better crust and wasn't as overcooked. You're also comparing was obviously a high-end Boutique carbon steel pan versus a standard Lodge you should really compare it to a stargazer pan or just compare with the lodge carbon steel
Another great job! You rock everything brutha! … Maybe pull the steaks at 120 degrees... likely the thinner grass fed beef… I also find dry-brined steaks to cook faster… See how 120 turns out or get thicker steaks... I find 1.5”-1.75” thickness way more forgiving...thanks again man - Show your videos to all my family and friends
I dont understand that. How can it get even hotter when its off the grill? Doesnt make sense thermodinamicaly. Maybe im too close minded as a chemistry student 😂
@@ElDuardo01 The temperature close to the surface of the meat is considerably higher than the goal. It will even out as it rests, and the middle will rise higher as the surfaces cool. Eventually the whole steak will cool down, of course. Don't forget your physics classes 😉
I have both, as well as stainless 7 ply and copper. But the Carbon steel pan I have (De Buyer) on induction and electric hobs was loosing its flatness , e.g. centre down where all the oil was pooling. I had to bash the centre up with a wooden log so when it got to a cooking temperature it changed to be exactly flat. But heating it even more would again spin it on the stove. A cast iron pan is more likely to stay flat. On gas it is less noticeable.
I cannot stand pans that do that, hate it. I can live with the uneven cooking that you can get with cast iron, but if a pan stays flat, that's the biggest bonus for me and cast iron does that...as far as affordability goes.
The comment about cooking quicker being part of the material used has nothing to do with the hood being down. Both skillets should have cooked the steak a the same time. However, the steel cooked it quicker.
If it cooks faster though you will have to be more precise with your timings. If it takes a little longer it should be easier to get to the right cooked-ness. However, perhaps the quicker cooking time will make less grey bits around the edges and be more consistent throughout like a reverse sear, or maybe it'll worse, hmmm. Interesting.
IDK, your cooking method was puzzling to me. Steaks shouldn't take nearly that long, so I am assuming your steaks were not actually at room temperature when you seared them. Then you took internal of 128, but if you want medium rare I think you would remove them at 122 and rise to 128 or 130 resting on the cutting board. Lastly, you had such great garlic, but you didn't actually crush it as you said, you just left whole cloves. And whole cloves don't give that much flavor. So really, the whole cooking segment has me scratching my head.
Medium rare is 130°-140°F, so he removed them on the higher end.. but still medium rare. Also, his garlic looked crushed to me. If by “crushed” you meant crushed with a garlic press.. then yeah.. it wasn’t “fully” crushed.” However bruising/crushing whole garlic is a good way to get good flavor without risking burning from high temps. Adding garlic paste would be too finicky imo
I learned more from this one video than the 25 videos I watched before this one. Incidentally, I have the same Weber grill, Thermoworks instant thermometer, and also use an infrared thermometer to see what the temperature is of my pan before adding oil.
"Carbon Steel for the win!" ??? You overcooked the steak! That's an immediate DQ in my book. Especially when cooking over a grill, where the source heat is uneven, cast iron provides consistent heat across the pan
First I have to say I absolutely love your videos. I've learned a ton and can't wait to make some ribeyes using your methods. I've tried steaks in cast iron on my gasser a few times but its been inconsistent results. Second - question...early videos you simply added regular butter to the pan to baste after turning....have you switched to clarified butter permanently?
Great question Brian and thanks for the kind words too. Yeah, I have switched over to clarified butter because I love searing steaks at high heat with cast iron and in a few of my earlier videos I was burning the butter. I also learned how to make it at home and it’s really easy and WAY cheaper than buying it off Amazon Ribeyes are coming soon! Just editing a video up right now as a matter of fact.
@@BBQandBottles good to know! I was wondering if you might say something like that. Great point about the costs - very true. If you do buy it again take a look at Trader Joe's. I haven't bought it there in a long time but from what I remember it was WAY cheaper than anywhere else. I also noticed this video didn't have the dark crust of your other videos but seemed the temp was a little lower, maybe that was why. Look forward to your ribeye video!
It’s an interesting idea, but would that really work? I know that when dry brining, salt draws out water, then forms a brine. Some water in the brine does evaporate in a fridge, but I believe that once salt and water migrate back into the meat it reduces water loss from evaporation during cooking. And dry brined meat tends to remain moister, because the water-conserving effect outweighs the evaporation in the fridge in most cases. So why would this work?
I just made some skirt steak in my smithey carbon steel pan and it turned out great. My cast iron has decades of seasoning. The carbon steel seasoning will need work. I’m looking forward to that work.
After some time now with your carbon steel any recommendations on which one is a better buy, carbon steel or cast iron? Do you actually need both in your kitchen or can one be enough?
@@paradigmshift7541 I use both daily. My smithey carbon steel is now as black as coal and is great to use. I tend to make quesadillas, arepas, grilled cheese and small volumes of meat in the carbon steel. I use my larger cast iron when i need more space. Both cook very similarly so for me it is size.
@@rickeycarter because i'm a total beginner at cooking and unsure, do you think it would be accurate to say cast iron is better to cook steaks medium rare? in this video the cast iron gave a little bit better crust/brown searing, but also the inside was more rare. carbon steel got great searing, but a smidge less than the cast iron, and it seemed to cook the steak to medium/medium well.
@@paradigmshift7541 the best way to cook a steak is, in my opinion, is reverse sear. The bulk of the cooking is low temp in an oven and them seared at high heat (any steel pan) for the crust and color. Carbon steel does great and heats a little faster than cast iron. Both are great. Get s cheap lodge pan and a cheap carbon steel pan and experiment. They pans will cost less than good steaks
@@rickeycarter ahhhh i see, that was very enlightening and helpful. I guess my question was a bit silly as it was on the basis that pan fry was the only method considered. i was totally oblivious that if other cooking methods are used, i'd only be using the skillets to quickly sear at the end. thanks for the tips rickey
Looks like you’re using a thermopen? I have one and have been let down it isn’t nearly as accurate as I was hoping for. I pull at 120 and it comes out medium well. I went back to just using my instinct and I always get a perfect medium rare. I appreciate the video though I’ve been giving some thought to investing in some Smithey pans. They are beautiful!
Just got a d seasoned a Misen 12 inch carbon steel pan. Steak tomorrow. I find that doing an initial sear for a couple of minutes and then pulling it off for a 5 minute rest and then going back in for the garlic and butter basting for another 90 seconds to 2 minutes a side avoids those grey bands completely.
I'll have to look into carbon steel pans. I've never used one. I do love cast iron. I feel it should be outlawed to cook bacon in anything other than cast iron. I like my bacon crispy and cast iron just makes it heavenly. I want to try carbon steel with many things now. Thanx for the video.
I've moved to pretty much exclusively carbon steel for the last 6 years; so much so we've sold all but 3 of our cast iron pans. If you buy one; go with De Buyer; I've purchased quite a few and they all sucked compared to Debuyer.
@@twoblink so it seems like carbon steel is your go to now, is there any reason at all to keep cast iron ones around? are there some specific foods/recipes that specifically call for cast iron? if i'm fresh out of school with zero pans, should i get both carbon steel and a cast iron skillet?
@@paradigmshift7541 I actually gave away my large cast irons, I keep them around mainly for baking corn bread or any time my dishes need to go into the oven for a long time. I've purchased other carbon steel and they've all ended up curling on me except De Beyer. That's what I recommend. 1 skillet to do it all. Slightly expensive but my 9" is going on year 12, and still amazing.
@@twoblink i really appreciate your thoughts on this, as i have no cooking skills yet, and it's reassuring to hear from someone with hands on experience. thanks albert!
I cook for my watchdogs in winter on a portable gas camping oven ( bout 12" x 12"). Got Woks.. one aluminium, one carbon steel..... Aluminium wok is thicker (⅛"), and 7" at bottom..... Steel bout ¹/³²" and 6" across at bottom ......the aluminium takes longer to heat up, thus using more gas bottles, so more money out of pocket....... So I go for steel, and keep a thin film of rice oil (or any cooking oil will do), on it to stop rustin.
Bro. I was watching this video thinking "this guy sounds like someone I hear all the time" but couldn't place it. You're 100% spot on that he sounds like Sean.
I just bought a Matfer Bourgeat 8 5/8" carbon steel crepe pan for $18 on amazon. Perfect size for one steak, or one hamburger. I don't need high sides for either. Even if I did need a normal fry pan shape, their 10" is only $31, and their 12 1/2" is only $54. All on Amazon.
How about testing a carbon steel pan that fits easier in your audience's budget, instead of a $275 pan? What about a Lodge carbon steel, or something under $50?
@@wiseowl1580 keep drinking the kool-aid. Tell that to all the grandmas around the world that cook fantastic meals with the most basic of kitchen equipment.
@@wiseowl1580 Nah, the gray band was massive. Charcoal grill searing at a much higher temp would help that a lot. Fairly thick steak, so a reverse sear would be great.
Thanks for pointing me to this video. In my pull out drawer under my cook-top I have 2 Matfer Bourgeat carbon steel skillets and two cast iron skillets - one a gorgeous 100+ year old Puritan. I love them all and find that the wall construction is the differnentiator - if I'm cooking a one pan meal (which I am wont to do) I go with the cast iron. Whereas the carbon steel side lend themselves to flipping or mixing ingredients in the pan over the stove.Two nights ago though I used the Puritan to cook two rib eyes, starting on the stove and finishing to temperature in the oven. I use a Thermoworks Dot to monitor temperature while cooking . Thank you for the video!
First off, love the series. Now for the crust, during the final comparison you say that they’re the same but after the first turn the cast iron crust looks a lot better and more even than the carbon steel. You even say that you don’t know about the carbon steel crust and would try to fix it. For that reason I thought the cast iron would win. Did you fix the carbon steel crust somehow? What made you change your mind about it in the end? Thanks.
I fixed it a little bit by basting it heavily in the butter, but to be honest these two weren’t the best crusts I’ve gotten. I just really like how light weight the carbon steel was and how it heat up more quickly and evenly than the cast iron and it seemed to cook faster too
Could just be the way the steaks were cut, could be fat around, causing 'cupping', could be where the steaks were cut from original piece... but I'd 'still buy that'. Thanks for the vid!
@@BBQandBottles But if the decision was to be made on the weight of the pan, why do the sear test at all? Great video on the process of making a steak, but the end verdict was not convincing and seemed a bit biased.
@@cameronbrown8757 Agreed. Some people like that Chefs use carbon steel so it must be better. At best carbon steel is equal to cast iron, not better. Lighter is not better. Holding in heat, nothing beats cast iron as it is thicker then carbon steel. Plunking a steak down on cast iron doesn't cause any loss of heat.
Surprised people have not realized Avocado oil is the best/affordable option without olive over flavoring. I am glad you are awake! Now the surge in price of said oil. 🙄
You can’t just call the sliver of red in the center medium rare and the rest is something else. How do you like the Smithey carbon pan after using it more?
Yea, the carbon steel was definitely in the well done category and the cast iron had maybe a toehold in the medium-well category. But I think these pans are generally considered for different purposes so it doesn't reflect poorly on either one, just the operator
Bold of you to declare carbon steel the winner. This is America. Cast iron reigns supreme. Even if you have to burn the bejeezus out of what you cook. Burnt food makes us men...and women, because it would be politically insensitive...ok wtf ever. Nice video 👍
That is a lovely looking carbon steel! Although that price is little to be desired... Maybe someday I could splurge on a almost-$300 pan, but for now, I'll stick with my $60 Matfer Bourgeat.
Just a little tip if you're using a meat thermometer to cook steak; take it out -10f of your steak preference. The residual heat when it rest will settle spot on to your ideal steak then.
@@davidhunternyc1 Well, if your goal is 128F then yes take it off the heat at 118F, but medium-rare is clocked at 130-135F; at least that is what I've been told. Either way taking it off the heat ≈ -10F before your goal temperature will typically get you where you want it once it's done resting.
@@tulekahju My guess is why there was so much grey in these steaks was that the pans weren't hot enough before he put the steaks on? They slow cooked too much before they got a sear?
@@davidhunternyc1 Im not entirely sure since its been a while since I watched the video, and Im not entirely inclined to rewatch it. I mainly just recall that he took them off too soon for his desired end temperature; hence the original comment. What I may say as someone who cooks with CI I tend to preheat my CI for 10 minutes, but if Im going for a high temperature like what steak requires for a sear I increase the heat gradually, because I dont want to warp my skillet; especially important if youre cooking on the stove (You dont have to be gradual if youre preheating in the oven, or enclosed in a grill). Ill set it to med-low/med for 5 minutes then raise it a notch or two from there every few minutes until I get to the heat setting that I want. A few things that may prevent a sear: Pan temp is too low Moisture (pat the steaks dry with a paper towel before cooking) Moving it too early/often
I just find that if I have to turn down the carbon steel pan, it takes too long to reheat .. so I don’t think the heat retention of carbon steel is really good enough
That's also a plus though, if you find that you are cooking too high of a temperature the carbon steel will respond quicker when you turn down the gas, whereas with cast iron you turn it down and it takes much longer to respond which makes all the difference between being cooked and burned. Sometimes you want fast response times, which is why copper bottomed pans are so loved.
Kinda strange... He remove the steaks @ around 127F so it should still be medium rare unless grass fed beef retains a lot of residual heat normally I sous vide my steaks between 129F to 131F depending on the type of beef
You want to take steaks OFF heat, especially high heat, at 118-125 the latest. 128 is way too hot, remember the outside of the steak when you cook this way is extremely hot and that heat is going into the meat. Meat continues to cook for minutes after you remove it from the pan. So the internal temp of these continued to rise to probably 140 or so while they rested.
In my opinion, you ruined both steaks mate, both have about 1/2" of well-done meat. To each their own though, and I appreciate the effort and the video quality -- truly spectacular. I found that a "reverse sear" method works best to achieve a perfect medium-rare throughout with a beautiful crust.
Great video as always, very informative ! I am definitely going to get one of these pans. Probably have to get the cheaper due to enconomics etc. Please do a video comparing one of these to a French Traditional Copper Pan !! Might be fun !! And French CHefs are supposedly among the Best so why are they always using Copper and not Cast Iron !! Maybe cause its lighter ! i don't know ! hence the REquest !!! But if not possible thanks anyways and keep making these great instructional vids !! Never tried the GArlic, Ghee and Rosemary for Basting and flavor 1! Will try this in the next few days for sure !! THanks Mate !!!
Good suggestion. They use copper because it’s a great conductor of heat so the pans heat up very evenly. We should give it a shot. I’ll see if I can find one somewhere.
I got both pans. Always wondered which one will do the best but your test is flawed.... Only one judge, there should be at least one more, like me and I would have brought the beer!!! Nice video!
Not to be a hater, but those steaks are bordering on medium-well by the time you pull them off. You can see there is some serious banding going on there, with only a thin strip of medium rare (pinkish) beef left in the very center of your cuts. Would probably do better with a much hotter pan before you start searing.
Dear BBQ and Bottles, What a gentleman you are to reply that quickly. So, to be clear, does that mean to stop cooking once it reaches the exact temperature?
@@BBQandBottles Well I never knew that. I will tell you how I get on. I could never make sense of time guides as the time seemed to depend on the thickness of the steak. Again thank you from Brighton, UK.
I just got a SolidTEKNIK carbon steel pan and it is NEXT LEVEL!!! One solid piece of hand-worked steel, NO RIVETS! super easy to season, super easy to cook with, just beautiful craftsmanship, I highly recommend it to everyone
