On Sat, 10 Nov 2007 17:22:06 -0500, "Mo" > wrote:

>"Holy Moses" > wrote in message
.. .
>>I was watching Food TV the other day and came across a new show FVT
>> Canada started carrying hosted by Heston Blumenthal called In Search
>> of Perfection. In the episode I saw dealt with searching for grilling
>> the perfect steak.
>>
>> After all his research and experiments, what he recommended and showed
>> doing was that you throw in a "forerib of beef", which I think is
>> British for prime rib roast, in a 50C/122F oven for 24 hours.
>>
>> The premise of doing this is that, by cooking the meat in such a low
>> temperature, the protein strands do not contract as much. In higher
>> temperatures you normally grill your steaks will have those strands
>> contract so much that the water molecules or the juices will be
>> squeezed out too much and will dry out the meat.
>>
>> Also, at around 50C/122F, some enzymes are activated and will start
>> snipping away at the protein strands, making the meat even more tender
>> and also will generate flavour compounds which will make the meat even
>> more flavourful.
>>
>> Once you take the meat out, slice the meat off the bones, then slice
>> portion out the steaks and to give it a hot and quick sear, you throw
>> the steaks onto a very hot cast iron pan.
>>
>> I'm very tempted to give this a try, but don't want to end up with a
>> $60 chunk of mess and inedible experiment either. But what do some of
>> you think about Blumenthal's claims and method? Does it sound
>> credible or plausible? Thanks.
>>
>I'd be a bit concerned at the food safety issues with this recipe. 122F is
>not hot enough to kill bacteria, and left at that temperature for 24 hours,
>you could have some significant bacterial growth. I would, at very least,
>sear the outside of the meat thoroughly, to kill any surface bacteria,
>before putting it in this low an oven. But even then this recipe would get
>you sited by the health inspector here in Virginia, USA if your were cooking
>it in a commercial environment. The health inspector requires food not be
>left in the "danger zone" of 45-140F for more than 4 hours. Of course home
>and commercial situations are different, but they make those rules for a
>reason.
>
>I also wonder how you can put a sear on the cut steaks that have been taken
>to an internal temp of 122F without cooking the steak through.
>
>If it were me, I'd give the roast a good rub of kosher salt and course
>ground pepper, and put it in a very hot oven till it's internal temp reaches
>125 - 130F. Wonderful, crispy crust and rare center. I've always preferred
>this to the slow cooked 'prime rib' treatment of the cut.

Hi Mo! Sorry, I forgot to mention that on the show I watched,
Blumenthal took a blow torch and seared the outside surface very well.
He mentioned that one of the reasons is to kill any surface bacteria,
just like you mentioned, and also to trap the moisture as well.

But you and Kent has given me great ideas for me to try out next time.
I did give Blumenthal's method a try over last weekend. I picked up a
blow torch, gave the hunk of meat a 3rd degree burn all around, then
plunked it in a quasi roaster I have, since my oven wouldn't go as low
as 50C/122F, even with the door fully opened.

After 24 hours, the outside needed to be trimmed off since it dried
out quite a bit. But what I did notice was a much more tender meat.
I like my steaks bloody rare, but my wife and my girls prefer them
medium-well done. And they have always quipped that the steak was a
little on the tough side. Well, duh, what do they expect?

However, this time, they all said that the meat was very tender. And
this despite that I had grilled their steaks closer to being welldone
than medium-welldone. I think as long as I get my cuts of meat from a
quality and respectable place, I'll have a less chance of getting
getting a chunk prone to spoilage. Hopefully