Whole and sliced cuts of seared steak.
We Need To Stop Believing This Steak-Searing Myth

NEWS

By TIM FORSTER
Steak searing on a pan with butter.
Searing steak on high heat is often believed to lock in juices, but this is a myth. The sound of sizzling during searing is actually the water evaporating, not the juices sealing.
A partially sliced steak.
When Serious Eats put this myth to the test by searing and then roasting a cut of meat — and then doing the opposite — it found that the meat seared first ended up with less juice.
A hand using tongs to hold a steak sizzling in a pan with butter in it.
However, searing your steak, as long as it’s done correctly, remains a valuable cooking technique for those seeking a flavorful steak — due to the Maillard reaction.
A steak with seasonings on a pan.
This chemical interaction between sugars and amino acids that causes caramelization occurs when the cooking temperature reaches around 280 to 310 degrees Fahrenheit.
A cooked steak on a pan with butter.
So, despite not sealing in juices, searing isn’t necessarily detrimental or drying to your prime rib. It’s just a matter of limiting the searing time to avoid excessive dryness.