The Best Type Of Oil For Impressively Seared Steaks

A flawlessly cooked steak makes for an ideal celebratory meal, and the secret to a perfect steak is all in the preparation. If you choose the wrong oil, then you're already setting yourself up for disaster. As meat lovers know, the best steaks have a prominent outer crust that gives the beef that nice caramelized flavor. To get a good sear on your steaks, you'll need to crank up the heat. You'll need an oil that supports rather than hinders your cooking process. 

The best oils for impressively seared steaks are those that have a high smoke point. Use oils that have smoke points of 400 degrees Fahrenheit or more. What is a smoke point? It's the tipping point where the oil in your pan goes from shiny to starting to burn and produce smoke. It's essentially the point at which oil is no longer resistant to heat. You'll want to get your oil up to almost its smoke point when searing your steak.

Selecting an oil with a high smoke point will help to avoid burning the oil when searing your steak. Oils with lower smoke points will scorch before the searing process, leading to your steak tasting bitter and, well, burnt. Opt for a neutral-tasting oil as well to avoid affecting the taste of your steak. Still, there are a few things to keep in mind when choosing the right oil for searing beef.

Fortunately, there are several high-smoke point oils to choose from that will help deliver an exemplary crust. Consider using oils made with grapeseed, avocado, or canola. Canola oil is a popular choice for steak aficionados because it has a particularly neutral taste and is unlikely to affect the natural savoriness of your meat. It's also very low in saturated fats and has a smoke point of 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you're looking for an oil with a higher smoke point, consider going with avocado oil. Depending on the brand, its smoke point ranges with 375 degrees Fahrenheit being on the lower end, but some brands of avocado oil have smoke points as high as 520 degrees Fahrenheit. Finally, grapeseed oil does have a slight flavor but is unlikely to overwhelm your steak. It's also rich in antioxidants and has a smoke point of 420 degrees Fahrenheit.

Whichever you choose, don't add too much oil. Adding too much oil to the pan can affect the searing process, leading to a cut that lacks a nice crust. Don't let it be one of the mistakes that ruin your pan-seared steak. So how much oil should you add to the mix? Consider only adding around ½ teaspoon of oil to your pan. Afterwards, dispose of the cooking oil in one of these reasonable ways.