h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

sometimes the steaks are very dark black; they are very well done. so called cole style. at the outside they are black and in the middle very dry.

don't enjoy them

Tobias

Anthony Bourdain says (I think it's in the book "Kitchen Confidential") that if you order a steak "well-done" in a restaurant, the order will reach the kitchen as "dead steak". As a well-done steak is, in culinary tradition, a ruined steak and indistinguishable regardless of cut, they'll use a cheaper cut - why waste a good one.

I have to say that as a squeamish child, I always wanted my steak well-done. As a carniverous adult, I'll only eat it blue or rare.

As a chef I miust disagree. I use best quality steaks from a local butcher. If a customer wants a steak blue, or a customer that wants a steak very well done gets the same cut,cooked to preference. i.e no cheaper cuts. Personally I detest cooking steak anything over medium/well done as in my view it's knackered, the rarer the tastier.

Blue/rare is a taste to be learned an appreciated.

san

HI I WANT TO ASK YOU IF BLEEDING STEAK IS SAFE AS I HAVE ALWAYS DONE THIS TO MAKE MY STEAK TENDER

All the bacteria on meat is on the surface so a quick blast of intense heat will scorch the surface and sterilise it. It would then be perfectly safe If the meat is badly off and the bacteria has penetrated further, it will not be safe but you'd be able to detect that this is the case as it would smell bad.

Any steak, cooked rare or well-done, could be re-infected if the kitchen staff were not careful with cooking implements and basic kitchen hygiene. I'd say that if you suspect a kitchen of not being clean or of supplying dodgy foodstuffs, don't eat there. If you trust the kitchen to supply safe food, eat your steak the way you like it.