How to Cook Black and Blue Steak? [STEP BY STEP GUIDE]

Black and blue steak are among the oldest method of making grilled steak. It is also called the Pittsburgh style. Few know how to cook black and blue steak, so how do you do it?

You can cook black and blue steak by charring the outer side of the steak and ensuring that you maintain an internal temperature of rare to medium rare or blue steak. Black and blue steak are very popular, and most people love them as the outer side usually is over charred giving them a leather-like taste that is easy to identify. The middle of this steak is delicate and has a rare flavored taste.

If you love black and blue steak but do not know how to make it, here is what you need to know.

What is Black and Blue steak?

Black and blue steak is a type of steak cooked with a charred outside instead of having it seared. This makes the steak have a well-done exterior that is black and charred, but the inside remains tender and blue. It is an old way of making steak from various cuts, but it is among the most liked types of steak in big restaurants.

Is Pittsburgh-style Steak the Same?

Yes, black and blue steak are also known as Pittsburgh-style steak. The name dates back to the Pittsburgh steel mills in the industrial period. Stories say that the workers who worked in these industries used to bring steak to work for lunch and cook them in hot factory equipment. The hot equipment could quickly char the outside but leave the inside rare or medium rare with a red color. This allowed the workers to cook their steaks during their short lunchtime break.

How to Cook Black and Blue steak

The only challenging part in making black and blue steak is that you have to ensure enough flames are rising above the grates of your grill. It would help to remember that black and blue steak is usually cooked in an open flame, not on a pan, because, in a pan, it can take a lot of time before the outside becomes black-charred while the inside remains rare.

First, heat your grill to the hottest level it can get. Leave it to hold that temperature for about seven minutes before you start cooking. Based on the steak you are cooking, achieving black and blue steak can be either simpler or challenging. Notably, using New York strip and rib-eye steaks is simpler than making a Pittsburgh steak. You can quickly fabricate the meat cuts while breaking them down to keep good fats on them. 

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Trim off the excess fats and then place them around the outer parts of the steak. Another way of making this is when you fabricate the steak, trim off all the fats, and put them in a freezer or on a ready-to-order basis. Remember that meat fat breaks down relatively slowly, but it can cause a large flame to pop up that will help you attain a charred outside. One of the best and simplest ways to make the Pittsburgh steak

Further, when cooking a lean cut of meat such as fillet mignon, the best way to do this is by using butter. However, butter cooks fast, especially when used on a grill, so you will need plenty of them to make your black and blue steak. Or first, freeze the butter to prolong its cooking time. Put butter all around the meat cuts, resulting in large flames that will char the outside while the inside remains rare red.

Best Meat Cuts for Black and Blue Steaks

It would help to remember that black and blue steak takes very little time to cook. Hence, that all the animal fat is not entirely broken down. As much as most people tend to trim off the excess fats, the ones that remain do not entirely break down. Uncooked animal fats are not suitable for human consumption. Therefore, leaner meat cuts are the best option for this case.

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The following are the best meat cuts to use when making black and blue steak:

• Tenderloin – This is cut from the cow’s loin. The loin of a cow does not contain excess tissues and extra muscles, making it have very few fats. Tenderloin is among the tender meat cuts of a cow. Therefore, it is perfect for making black and blue steaks.
• Flat iron – Flat iron is cut from the shoulder part of a cow, mostly known as the chuck. It is the second most tender beef cut because it is found behind the tenderloin, thus sharing many common traits. In ancient times, flat iron was called the butler steak because people thought it was low quality and less usable. Nowadays, you can trim off perfectly to remove any connective tissues leaving behind a tender flat iron which is very useful today.
• Sirloin tip – This is cut from the back leg of a cow. The area is mainly referred to as a round. Notably, the cut is located in an area with weight-carrying muscles. Thus, it is less tender than flat iron and tenderloin. Despite its location and others, a sirloin tip is a good option for black and blue steak as it is full of flavor and relatively tender.

Black and Blue Steak Recipe

• Servings: 1
• Preparation time: 5 minutes
• Cooking time: 5 minutes
• Total time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 1.15 pounds fillet mignon
• 4 ounces unsalted butter (frozen)
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat your grill to the highest temperature possible you can attain, let’s say 550 to 650 degrees F
2. Season with pepper and salt on each side of the steaks and place them on top of the grill once it reaches maximum temperature.
3. Immediately add butter around the steaks and also over the top so that it can cause a huge flame to go over to the top of the steaks. The flames that go above the grates char the outside of the steak to look black.
4. Place the lid of your grill over the top of the steak to allow it to char black. Be careful here to avoid burning.
5. Cook the steaks for 1 or 2 minutes until the outside gets charred while the inside maintains a rare temperature.
6. Slice and serve

How Long do You cook a black and blue steak?

You need 10 minutes to prepare and cook your black and blue steak. Use five minutes for preparation and 5 minutes for cooking it to perfection. This is when you have already preheated your grill and it is ready. As said before, it takes very little time to cook. So, people used to cook it around hot factory equipment and have them during lunch breaks.

Black and Blue Steak and Crab

Black and blue steak and crab can be scrumptious when made with fresh cucumber, citrus, Milagro Silver Tequila, elderflower, and sriracha. Prepare the same way as the black and blue steak but with many different spices and herbs to enhance its flavor.

Final Thoughts

Black and blue steak is something you should try. As much as it is the be best when cooked rare, you can also cook it as medium rare. Cooking this steak takes not more than ten minutes and has deep beef flavors. Feel free to visit https://www.billyparisi.com/black-and-blue-steak/ for more information.