Steak

If hamburgers are the official food of backyard dining, steak is the royalty. At Urban Home, we understand that steak is a rare treat by frequency as well as doneness, but we do love it. We have grilled a juicy London Broil for outside dining and served a showy Steak Diane tableside. We have put together the iceberg wedge with blue cheese dressing that inaugurates a steak dinner, the potato gratin that accompanies it, and the fruit and cheese plate that serves as the coda. We can advise what wine to serve with steak and even how to navigate the place setting. If you have room, we are even serving dessert.

As a homekeeper you do yourself, not to mention your local economy, a favor by developing a relationship with local businesses. Most downtowns from the most vital to the most struggling still offer anything from a florist to a stationer, a fishmonger to a greenmarket, a pizza parlour to a hardware store. Hopefully there's a butcher shop, and if so, a reputable one of those is the best place to buy steak for home preparation. They should have prime access to the best cuts, which they will prepare to your specifications. With advance notice, they can special order centerpiece cuts from crown roasts to country hams to free-range turkeys. In some circumstances, you may even be able to sweet talk a hook up to cuts that are usually reserved for restaurateurs.

That said, most supermarkets sell pre-cuts of beef that are reasonably priced and perfectly good. At the supermarket, it's still best to choose your steak from the meat counter with the help of the butcher on the premises. The butcher can advise on the best cuts of the day, and trim them to your specifications. Finally, there are mail order sources for steak, the best of which are trustworthy for ease of ordering and quality of product. One such to consider is Omaha Steaks.

Wherever you obtain your steak, it is graded and then priced according to grade. The USDA recognizes eight grades of beef for sale and consumption, but only three of these are commonly available to consumers. These three are USDA Prime, USDA Choice and USDA Select. In all instances, a steak labeled with one of these designations must be accompanied by the USDA shield in association with the designation. The, use of such words as prime, choice or select without the shield is misleading, which probably means that the steak is inferior. It is never recommended to buy steaks that are absent the USDA shield and an attendant grade.

• USDA Prime is the highest grade. At the counter, USDA Prime is characterized by a high degree of pure white marbling which indicates being cut from deep in the loin of younger beef. On the plate, this steak is flavorful and tender with a fine texture
• USDA Choice is the medium grade. At the counter, USDA Choice is characterized by minimal pure white marbling which indicates being cut from the outer loin or rib area. On the plate, this steak will be flavorful but with a coarser texture than USDA Prime.
• USDA Select is the lowest grade available to consumers. At the counter, USDA Select displays little to no white marbling but often displays gristle, which indicates being cut after all of the Prime and Choice cuts have been made. On the plate, this steak may display a surprising amount of flavor but it will have a coarse texture.

Steak brings a lot of flavor to the plate, and the best cuts will need little preparation other than your care. Attentive grilling over a wood fire or in a good grill pan will be sufficient. For highest-end cuts available to consumers such as petite filet, the steak should need nothing other than being brought to room temperature and then grilled with a dot of compound butter. Do not test the steak for doneness by bashing it with the spatula or tongs, which releases juices. Any steak chef will confirm that a good griller can identify a steak's doneness just by looking. Professional kitchens typically teach new cooks how to test steak for doneness by the "hand method." Let one hand hang limp and with the index finger of the other hand, press into the triangle of flesh between the thumb and index finger of the limp hand. That area corresponds to the feel of the steak in the pan or on the grill. Limp hand equals rare; fingers splayed equals medium, and fist equals well done.

No matter how you like your steak, all cuts prepared as above will make a nice dinner. But for all but the highest-end cuts, consider a dry rub. A well-prepared dry rub will enhance the flavor of the beef, tenderize it to some degree, and seal in the juices as the meat cooks. To use a dry rub, pat the steak dry if indicated and season both sides with a generous amount of the rub. Place the steaks on a plate or a cutting board reserved for meat and cover loosely. Allow the steaks to come to room temperature for no longer than twenty minutes. Transfer the steaks to the grill or pan, and cook. You can order a good grill pan here.

Two steak rubs that are staples in our urban pantry are Penzey's Chicago Steak Seasoning and The Hitching Post Magic Dust. Penzey's delivers a smoky burst that deeply flavors the meat while creating a satisfying sear. Magic Dust is as legendary to California cooking as the steaks, grilled over wine oak and served with cornerstone pinot noirs, that made the restaurant a movie star. Another staple is Bourbon Barrel's Bourbon-Smoked Pepper, which with a pat of butter and is as simple, and rich, a treat as the steak itself. Finally, below please find Urban Home's own recipe for steak rub, enriched with coffee and topped off with smoky paprika. The recipe below makes a batch which should last through grilling season; double or triple it and you'll have enough to give as a host gift the next time you're invited to a backyard barbeque.

URBAN HOME STEAK RUB
All of these herbs and spices are easy to obtain in supermarkets or online.

1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 tablespoon hot paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground cinammon
1/2 teaspoon ground coffee
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon table salt

Combine all ingredients in a mortar and pestle or a small bowl. Use the pestle or the back of a spoon to mix the ingredients, bruising the sugar and coffee so that they incorporate well into the spices and herbs. Transfer to a jar with a tight fitting lid.