The amount of time steak is cooked is solely a personal preference.  Cooking the steak for shorter intervals allow the steak to retain more of its juices. Steak that has cooked for longer periods of time result in drier, tougher meat.

• Raw – Uncooked.  This meat is used in steak tartare and Carpaccio.

• Blue rare or very rare – 100°F degrees core temp.  The outside is seared, but the inside is usually cool and barely cooked.  The steak will be red on the inside and barely warmed.

• Rare – 120°F degrees core temp.  The outside of the steak is gray-brown, and the middle of the steak is red and slightly warm.

• Medium Rare – 126°F degrees core temp.  Th steak will be fully red and warm in the center.

• Medium – 135°F degrees core temp.  The outside is gray-brown in color.  The middle is hot and red with surrounding the center.

• Medium Plus – 140°F degrees core temp.  More than medium, but not yet medium well.

• Medium well done – 145°F degrees core temp.  The meat is light pink in the middle.

• Well done – 165°F degrees core temp.  The meat is cooked throughout and is gray-brown in color.

 

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