how to season a frozen steak

Question

I have some frozen steaks I want to cook rather quickly. I want to follow this method: this question but I am not sure how to season it. How do I apply seasoning to a steak without defrosting it?

Answer 1

I'm not sure how much it matters, other than the fact that it is difficult for seasoning to stick to a frozen steak. I would season with salt and pepper (or whatever spice blend you prefer) after the sear and before the oven step...but you could also season at the end of the cook. If it is a good steak, keep the seasoning simple.

Answer 2

I find that cooking steak that is not close to room temperature and dry on the surface does not yield good results.

Cooking a frozen steak will yield something edible but for something as nice as a steak which is often expensive I think it is worth going through some extra steps.

The easiest way to thaw a frozen steak is to put it in a plastic bag, push out as much of the air as possible, and immerse it in warm water until it thaws, changing the water if it becomes too cold. A sous vide bag is ideal but even if you don't have that, any plastic bag will do. Putting the frozen steak directly in water causes it to absorb some of the water and makes it almost impossible to sear and degrades the texture.

The surface of the steak should be dry before it is cooked. If the steak is frozen or cool, water tends to condense on it so it is hard to keep it dry. You can dry it immediately before putting it in the pan, but if you do this you'll probably wipe off the seasoning.

When salt is applied to steak, at first it draws out moisture, which makes the steak dry and hard to sear. But then after about 15-20 minutes, the liquid is reabsorbed into the steak along with the salt, which seasons it below the surface and leaves a dry surface which is easy to sear. It isn't necessary that the steak be fully thawed at this point, but it has to be thawed enough for the salt to penetrate.

That is all to say, thaw the steak 1/4 to 1/2 with the plasic bag method, season it, and wait until it is fully thawed and close to room temp, and then cook.

Answer 3

The technique to get the seasoning to stick if frozen solid is one of the following:

1. Preferred method: Let it thaw enough for the outer layer to be wet rather than solid ice. This will also improve cooking as well.

2. Spread olive oil or other oil of your choice all over the meat. The seasoning will stick to that.