Long and slow is the name of the game here.  Credit goes to Melissa Joulwan (author of the Well Fed Paleo cookbook series and blog: https://meljoulwan.com) for coming up with this amazing technique that works every time for grass-fed steak.

Bon Appetit!
– Chef Charly (of Grass to Food Farm)

Ingredients (per steak):

  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon arrowroot powder
  • 1 teaspoon ghee (Note: If your steak is a bigger cut, feel free to add a bit more.  You can’t hurt it.)
  • optional upgrade: replace regular salt with Wilde Spice Co’s Black Sea Salt & Coffee Rub

Directions:

  • Thaw steaks completely and pat dry.
  • Mix salt and arrowroot powder, then rub onto both sides of the steak.  (Perfection not required here and you can use your fingers. The salt/powder mixture will soak into the meat pretty quickly.  That’s what you want, you don’t need to see a white coating.)
  • Place the steak on a plate or baking sheet and put it in the freezer.  (Yes, the freezer!) Keep it in the freezer for one (1) hour.
  • Preheat oven to 200° F and cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.  
  • Heat a skillet until it’s VERY hot.  (I turn the stovetop all the way up and heat until I’m scared to stand close to it when I throw in the ghee.)
  • Add ghee, melt, then place the steak in the pan.  Sear on each side, about 3-5 minutes per side. You want a beautiful, charred crust.
  • After it’s seared, put it on the baking sheet and put into the oven until it reaches desired level of done-ness.  Rule of thumb is:
    • About 30 minutes for rare (internal temp reaches 125° F)
    • About 45 minutes for medium (internal temp reaches 145°F)
    • About 1 hour for well done (internal temp reaches 165° F)
  • Remove pan from oven, cover with foil, let rest 5-10 minutes.  Serve.

Questions:

So why am I thawing a steak, then putting it back in the freezer for an hour? That’s weird!  I know, I was skeptical too!  This technique allows you to get a sear on the outside, while the inside stays chilled, to then be able to cook the inside slowly over low heat in the oven, which is what actually makes the meat tender.  The arrowroot powder is an added tenderizer. 

So this is really time consuming…I can’t just throw it on the grill?  You’re right, it is more time consuming!  We’ve tried many ways of cooking our grass-fed steaks, and you certainly CAN throw them on the grill, but you’re going to end up with a much tougher, chewier steak.  Also, the fat isn’t going to soften up.

The fat on this steak still tastes a lot different than normal!  Yep.  It does.  Welcome to grass-finished, friends.  The fat gets its flavor from our environment: our cows spend their entire lives eating native Texas grasses and mesquite beans.  You’re tasting Texas.