oven and allow it to rest for 10 minutes (during which
time its internal temperature should rise by about 5
degrees, to 130°F, then fall again). Weigh this steak
and note the amount of weight loss (which translates to
fat and moisture loss).
Now cook the second steak by first placing it in the
oven until it reaches an internal temperature of around
115°F, then transfer it to a blazing-hot skillet and cook,
flipping occasionally, until it’s nicely browned and has
reached an internal temperature of 125°F. Allow it to
rest, same as the first steak, then weigh it and note the
amount of weight loss.
Both steaks have been exposed to searing and roasting
and both steaks have been cooked to the exact same final
temperature. The only difference is the order in which the
operations were carried out. Now, if there were any truth at
all to the “searing locks in juices” theory, we’d expect that
the steak that was seared-then-roasted will have retained
more juices than the steak that was roasted-then-seared. In
reality, however, both steaks lose a fairly similar amount of
juice—and, if you repeat the experiment, in most cases, the
roasted-then-seared steak will actually stay juicier.
This is due to the fact that a cold steak going into a hot
skillet takes longer to sear than a steak warm from the oven
going into a hot skillet does. The extreme heat of a skillet is
great for developing browned flavors, but it also causes
muscle proteins to contract violently, squeezing out juices.
For juicer steaks, the less time you spend at high heat, the
better.