Flannery Beef

[Brian_Gilp]

@John O'

I was given some 28 day, dry-aged ribeyes from a local butcher. Must have been Choice grade as there was little marbling. I was surprised, thinking, why go through all the effort with an inferior grade. So, it turns out I really liked them. Sometimes the marbling (fat) can just be too much. Same reason I ordered a filet mignon at Capital Grille recently.
The pics of the Waygu strips were just not appealing to me. Maybe this is why I’m so crazy about the Flannery Hangers.
Anyone else feel this way?

We eat more Hanger than anything else, followed by fillet tails and hamburger. We still buy the occasional other cut but it’s much less these days.

[Tim_W]

@mgriffith

@Scott Brunson

Has anyone tried sous vide to about 125 degrees and then a finishing sear on the stove or grill?

I have done this with Costco steaks, but not Flannery. And those were anywhere from about the same to about 50% thicker than the Flannery I picked up last BD.

What I found worked best for Sous Vide steaks:

• NY Strip or similar with speckled marbling and trimmed fat edges. Ribeyes tend to have too many large fat pockets to work well in this method for my tastes.

• Heavy seasoning. I season as though I were roasting, which typically requires more seasoning that one would readily think.

• Rest for about 10-15 minutes after removing from Sous Vide before searing.

• Dry the steaks before searing. I get them as close to moisture free on the surfaces as humanly possible. This not only prepares them for a superior sear/crust formation, it also removes any remaining excess seasoning.

• Use cast iron for searing. Pan selection is important in order to get the optimum results. And optimum is a highly personal definition. For example, some people prefer classic grill marks whereas others prefer a solid, consistent crust over the entire steak surface. For the former I use a grill pan and for the latter a frying pan.

• Superheat the pan. A few minutes on a burner is seldom sufficient to get the best results. If going with a stovetop preheat I plan on at least 10 minutes on full flame. Yes, the pan is going to smoke like a steam locomotive. Even moreso when the steaks hit it. If you really want to be serious, crank you oven to its highest temp and stick the pan in there for an hour. If it is glowing or you need welders’ gloves to grasp it then and you feel the heat at arms length then it is about at the right temp. The whole point of this step is to load as much thermal energy in the iron as possible. This takes time to do, but it is worth it.

• Do not crowd the pan with steaks during the sear. A normal square grill pan will hold no more than two 10-14 oz strip steaks at a time. The same is true for an 8"-10" frying pan. If you are doing more than two steaks, do not worry. A properly heated pan will have MORE than sufficient thermal energy to sear off 4-8 steaks beautifully. Don’t rush things.

• A properly uberheated cast iron pan will need less than a 60-90 seconds to sear off one side of a steak. Don’t go further unless you want to undo all the effort you put into the sous vide. Searing multiple steaks may see the sear time extend a few seconds longer on the later steaks, but the additional time will be negligible.

• Don’t screw with the steak once you put it in the pan. Put it in and leave it be until it is time to flip (and/or turn 45 degrees to get that lovely crosshatch pattern if using a grill pan). Remember that seared meat will release itself from the pan when it is ready to flip.

Again, belaboring the obvious, this will produce SMOKE (ok. Aerosolized tallow. Sheesh! Such pedants! ) and lots of it so ventilation is important. If this is a potential issue then bear in mind that once you have a superheated pan there is nothing in the rule book requiring that you finish the searing indoors. Plan ahead, ready a safe, heat proofed location outside the kitchen where this can be done without smoking up the domicile. Just plan well and account for the ambient temperature. If it is cold out then consider prepping multiple pans, even for one or two steaks. I have been known to use two pans at once when searing off larger cuts. And the bottom of cast iron works just as well as the inside for searing. It is just fine to heat two pans, place the steaks in one then put the second pan on top of the steaks thus searing both at one time.

I’m a big fan of sous vide for cuts like filet and NY strip, but not so much for ribeye.

I’ve experimented with a lot of different searing methods, and I’ve found that a cast iron skillet heated on a gas grill is my favorite. My grill heats up to over 600 degrees with the top closed, so I just heat it up with a skillet inside. It gets the pan insanely hot for a good sear and eliminates the smoke problem that exists with all indoor searing methods.

I’ve also experimented with searing before vs. after the water bath. I think I slightly prefer the pre-sear method for a better crust, but rarely use it due to the extra effort it involves. When I pre-sear, I still use the cast iron on a gas grill approach, but I take the steak straight out of the refrigerator without allowing it to warm up before searing. After searing, I immediately vacuum seal it and drop the pouch in an ice bath to stop the cooking process. At this point you pretty much have a “Pittsburgh-style” steak – heavy char on the outside and very rare on the inside. From there, you just use sous vide to bring the internal temperature up to your preferred level.

[Rob_Isaacs]

@Scott Brunson

Has anyone tried sous vide to about 125 degrees and then a finishing sear on the stove or grill?

I think 125 is way to low a temp. 137 is my go to number on steak, but it sounds like most people doing sous vide here don’t use a ice bath after it comes out of the water. I always cool mine down to fridge temp before I sear, steak finishes perfectly warm inside. I’m not sure if at 125 you would be completely activating the fat on the steak unless you cook it for a long time, much longer than needed for something like a rib eye. But if you are going from the hot water to the pan I can understand the low cook temp. Also, why vacuum seal and why right after searing? Never a good idea to vacuum seal a hot piece of protein. Ziploc bags work perfectly.

[Tim_W]

@Rob Isaacs

@Scott Brunson

Has anyone tried sous vide to about 125 degrees and then a finishing sear on the stove or grill?

I think 125 is way to low a temp. 137 is my go to number on steak, but it sounds like most people doing sous vide here don’t use a ice bath after it comes out of the water. I always cool mine down to fridge temp before I sear, steak finishes perfectly warm inside. I’m not sure if at 125 you would be completely activating the fat on the steak unless you cook it for a long time, much longer than needed for something like a rib eye. But if you are going from the hot water to the pan I can understand the low cook temp. Also, why vacuum seal and why right after searing? Never a good idea to vacuum seal a hot piece of protein. Ziploc bags work perfectly.

I agree that 125 seems too low for my tastes, but that is considered rare by most. If you’re cooking at a temperature that low, you need to be careful about bacteria, and should avoid leaving the meat in the water bath for more than two hours.

As far as the comment on vacuum sealing after pre-searing, I should have been more clear that I cool the meat in the bag first, then seal it. I use the Waring pistol vacuum sealer, which basically uses special Ziploc bags. That said, I wasn’t aware of any particular dangers associated with vacuum sealing warm meat. I know that some bacteria can thrive in a low-oxygen environment, but I would expect a pre-seared piece of meat to have less bacteria than a completely raw piece of meat. Sealing a pre-seared steak doesn’t seem any more dangerous than sealing any other steak.

[Rob_Isaacs]

No safety concerns, searing first is a good idea for food safety, just quality. Vacuum sealing while hot can cause the water in the meat to boil, not anything you want to happen. It’s more of an issue for fish but still there is no reason a steak needs to be vacuum sealed for home cooking. I’m sure regular ziplock bags are cheaper than bags with a valve in them also. I haven’t used a vacuum machine for anything done sous vide in years.

[Bill_Tex_Landreth]

Marinated hanger steak

[Corey_N]

That looks fantastic, Bill. Killer char.

[Tom_Gutting]

This thread makes me happy. I’ve been experimenting with steak techniques over the past several months. I’ve tried reverse sear, and it’s very good. But I’ve found a sous vide method that, I believe, gives as good a sear and has better texture inside than the reverse sear. I used the Serious Eats reverse sear method:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

And something stood out to me: for the reverse sear but not the sous vide technique, they put the steak in the fridge on a rack overnight.

So I did this with my sous vide and reverse sear steaks. And the results were remarkable. With the night out in the fridge, the sous vide steak exhibited almost no moisture production in the bag and seared as well as the reverse-seared steak. The interior texture was moist and uniform. Totally the method I’m defaulting to from now on – sous vide after a night on the rack in the fridge.

And final note to say Flannery is the best, and can’t wait to get my post-Harvey strips for Reserve vs. Wagyu tasting. Because beef.

[Bill_Tex_Landreth]

@Tom Gutting

This thread makes me happy. I’ve been experimenting with steak techniques over the past several months. I’ve tried reverse sear, and it’s very good. But I’ve found a sous vide method that, I believe, gives as good a sear and has better texture inside than the reverse sear. I used the Serious Eats reverse sear method:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

And something stood out to me: for the reverse sear but not the sous vide technique, they put the steak in the fridge on a rack overnight.

So I did this with my sous vide and reverse sear steaks. And the results were remarkable. With the night out in the fridge, the sous vide steak exhibited almost no moisture production in the bag and seared as well as the reverse-seared steak. The interior texture was moist and uniform. Totally the method I’m defaulting to from now on – sous vide after a night on the rack in the fridge.

And final note to say Flannery is the best, and can’t wait to get my post-Harvey strips for Reserve vs. Wagyu tasting. Because beef.

I would love to be at that tasting. Of course, have beef and will travel.

[Rob_Isaacs]

@Tom Gutting

This thread makes me happy. I’ve been experimenting with steak techniques over the past several months. I’ve tried reverse sear, and it’s very good. But I’ve found a sous vide method that, I believe, gives as good a sear and has better texture inside than the reverse sear. I used the Serious Eats reverse sear method:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

And something stood out to me: for the reverse sear but not the sous vide technique, they put the steak in the fridge on a rack overnight.

So I did this with my sous vide and reverse sear steaks. And the results were remarkable. With the night out in the fridge, the sous vide steak exhibited almost no moisture production in the bag and seared as well as the reverse-seared steak. The interior texture was moist and uniform. Totally the method I’m defaulting to from now on – sous vide after a night on the rack in the fridge.

And final note to say Flannery is the best, and can’t wait to get my post-Harvey strips for Reserve vs. Wagyu tasting. Because beef.

Great technique, salting and drying in the fridge makes a much better steak no matter how you are cooking it.

[CFu]

@Rob Isaacs

@Tom Gutting

This thread makes me happy. I’ve been experimenting with steak techniques over the past several months. I’ve tried reverse sear, and it’s very good. But I’ve found a sous vide method that, I believe, gives as good a sear and has better texture inside than the reverse sear. I used the Serious Eats reverse sear method:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

And something stood out to me: for the reverse sear but not the sous vide technique, they put the steak in the fridge on a rack overnight.

So I did this with my sous vide and reverse sear steaks. And the results were remarkable. With the night out in the fridge, the sous vide steak exhibited almost no moisture production in the bag and seared as well as the reverse-seared steak. The interior texture was moist and uniform. Totally the method I’m defaulting to from now on – sous vide after a night on the rack in the fridge.

And final note to say Flannery is the best, and can’t wait to get my post-Harvey strips for Reserve vs. Wagyu tasting. Because beef.

Great technique, salting and drying in the fridge makes a much better steak no matter how you are cooking it.

For sure. Always overnight in the fridge salted.

[Chris_S_p_i_k_e_s]

@Bill Tex Landreth

They are Black Wagyu that are greater than 75% genetically pure. Pretty sure I know the herd and genetics behind.

Should’ve known you would have the inside scoop! Thanks!

[John_O]

@c fu

@Rob Isaacs

@Tom Gutting

This thread makes me happy. I’ve been experimenting with steak techniques over the past several months. I’ve tried reverse sear, and it’s very good. But I’ve found a sous vide method that, I believe, gives as good a sear and has better texture inside than the reverse sear. I used the Serious Eats reverse sear method:

Reverse-Seared Steak Recipe

And something stood out to me: for the reverse sear but not the sous vide technique, they put the steak in the fridge on a rack overnight.

So I did this with my sous vide and reverse sear steaks. And the results were remarkable. With the night out in the fridge, the sous vide steak exhibited almost no moisture production in the bag and seared as well as the reverse-seared steak. The interior texture was moist and uniform. Totally the method I’m defaulting to from now on – sous vide after a night on the rack in the fridge.

And final note to say Flannery is the best, and can’t wait to get my post-Harvey strips for Reserve vs. Wagyu tasting. Because beef.

Great technique, salting and drying in the fridge makes a much better steak no matter how you are cooking it.

For sure. Always overnight in the fridge salted.

On a rack, right on a plate, paper towels?

[David_K_o_l_i_n]

Rack. Makes a huge difference

[Rob_Isaacs]

Definitely on a rack.

[Bill_Tex_Landreth]

Alex MacDonald told me to use a rack.

[Tom_Gutting]

Yes, on a rack. For sure.

Sorry for the delay getting back to this thread. Been traveling for work. But had the good fortune of my wife telling me my next Flannery order – delayed thanks for Harvey. So I’ve got that going for me. Which is nice.

[Rob_Isaacs]

@Bill Tex Landreth

Alex MacDonald told me to use a rack.

That made me laugh.

[ToddFrench]

What is the secret to tender hangers from Flannery? I really love the taste of them, but often they come across ‘tough’. Do they need to be cooked to a higher temperature, like 140 degrees or higher? I typically have them on a rack in the fridge, then try to get near room temperature, cook to 125-130 degrees, let sit, but often they are still tough/chewy.

[David_J]

I cook my hangers rare. For those that like medium rare, I talk them into rare. They are always tender when rare in my experience.