Shula's Lineup
Executive Chef Rick Daidone demonstrates five winning degrees of doneness.
By Jan Walsh
Photography by Beau Gustafson
"How would you like that cooked?" is a question that puts fear in the hearts of many diners. Odds are you have sent back steaks for being both under and overcooked on more than one occasion-or should have. And whether the issue is a chef who serves steaks his way or has a different idea of what medium-rare means, today's diners often feel compelled to describe in precise detail what they want to see on the first cut.
Shula's Executive Chef Rick Daidone shares his game plan for ordering a perfect steak-no matter your preference for doneness. Daidone's starts with a definite advantage, "The Shula Cut." Less than one percent of beef makes The Shula Cut, which is custom center cuts of youthful Certified Angus Beef of Shula's own registered Angus cattle. Daidone seasons the aged steaks with Shula's Special Seasoning-a mixture of garlic, kosher salt, pepper, and thyme. Next he marks them off on the grill by searing at 10:00 and 2:00 angles on each side. These thick, juicy, well-marbled cuts are then cooked in a convection oven at 500 degrees. Afterwards the steaks rest for two to three minutes before being finished in an infrared char-broiler.
A chef can't cut the steak to see if it is cooked to order, so throughout the cooking process Daidone uses his tongs to feel for doneness, a process his father taught him. "With a relaxed hand, a rare steak feels like the area between the forefinger and thumb. Hold the hand straight, and this area feels like a medium steak. And when your fist is tight, it feels like well done," he describes. Daidone has used this technique for 35 years.
Scoreboard of doneness:
- Rare has a center cooked 60 percent through with a cool, red center.
- Medium-rare has a center cooked 75 percent through with a warm, red center.
- Medium has a center cooked 80 percent through with a pink center.
- Medium-well has a center cooked 95 percent through with a very slight pink center.
- Well-done has a center cooked 100 percent through with no pink.
Now how would you like yours?