"It has to be very, very hot, so that if you drop a drop of water on it, it will instantly vaporize and dance." These words from the tutorial echoed in her mind.
She waited patiently until faint blue smoke began to rise from the bottom of the pot and she could feel the strong heat radiation by hanging her hand above the pot.
Next came the oil. She skipped butter (the tutorial warned it would burn easily) and opted for refined sunflower oil, which has a high smoke point. Poured in a thin layer, the oil quickly spread across the scalding pan, making a slight sizzling sound and starting to smoke within seconds.
The time has come!
An Nuo took out a steak from the refrigerator. The surface of the steak was already dry. She held her breath, picked up a piece of steak with tongs, and put it into the boiling oil pan with a steady wrist!
“Sizzle—!!!”
A huge, passionate noise instantly exploded in the kitchen! The scalding grease and cold meat came into contact, creating a violent reaction that sent oil splattering everywhere!
An Nuo subconsciously took a step back, his heart pounding. A rich, meaty, charred aroma suddenly rose up, dominating the entire kitchen!
She forced herself to remain calm, reciting the instructions silently: "Don't move! Don't move! Let it form a charred shell!"
She stared at the steak in the pan, watching the edges quickly turn from red to brown and the fat jumping and bubbling happily under the high temperature.
After about a minute, she carefully flipped the steak over.
The side facing up has turned a perfect dark brown color with beautiful grid patterns (thanks to the cast iron pan), and the aroma is so nice!
When the other side touches the hot pan, it makes a pleasant sizzling sound again.
Next is edge banding.
She picked up the steak with tongs and quickly pressed and rolled the sides against the hot pot to lock in the juices. She had to move quickly to avoid overheating the inside.
After both steaks were seared on both sides and sealed, she quickly turned the heat down to medium-low.
This step is to allow the heat to penetrate the inside and achieve the ideal medium rare.
She stared at the time nervously, and based on the thickness of the steak and the information she had looked up, she fried it for about 2-3 minutes on each side.
That's when she made a crucial mistake! In pursuit of a richer flavor, she remembered the recipe's tip: add a "shower" of butter, garlic, and rosemary at the very end.
She hurriedly chopped two cloves of garlic (without crushing them), plucked a sprig of rosemary, and cut a small piece of butter into the pot.
The moment the butter is put into the pan, because the pan temperature is still very high, it immediately begins to burn violently, bubble, and quickly darken in color!
The garlic and rosemary quickly went from fragrant to black around the edges, and a slightly bitter, burnt smell mingled with the wonderful meaty aroma.
"Oh no!" An Nuo's heart skipped a beat. She quickly removed the pot from the fire, but it was too late. The butter had already burnt!
She slapped her forehead in frustration, looking at the garlic and rosemary in the pot, which had darkened significantly and had blackened around the edges, and she wanted to cry but couldn't. The perfect burnt aroma was mixed with a hint of discordant bitterness.
She quickly used tongs to pick out the burnt garlic and rosemary and threw them away. Looking at the two steaks lying in the pan, covered with a layer of dark fat, her mood instantly plummeted.
It's over. Will the steak taste burnt and bitter? My brother's birthday dinner...
Just when she was about to give up in frustration, she heard the sound of keys turning in the hallway! Her brother had returned early!
Jin Chanyun pushed open the door, and his keen sense of smell immediately caught the complex smell in the air.
He changed his shoes and walked towards the kitchen. The scene before him startled him slightly.
The kitchen was filled with the smell of smoke. Under the light, his sister Jin Annuo, wearing the familiar little strawberry apron, stood in front of the stove with her back to him, her shoulders slightly drooping, holding a pair of tongs in her hand, staring at the frying pan in a daze.
There were two steaks in the pan that looked quite well-cooked, with a dark brown color and a beautiful charred layer.
But in the trash can next to it lay a few cloves of burnt garlic and blackened rosemary, and next to the stove was a small piece of butter residue that was obviously over-burned.
The table was already set with an exquisite dinner plate. On one side of the white bone china plate was a small mountain of delicate, tempting, pale yellow mashed potatoes.
Next to it are perfectly roasted green asparagus and bright red wrinkled tomatoes. The presentation is neat and tidy, with the style of a high-end restaurant.
There is also a small thermos, probably for sauce.
"Annuo?" Jin Suyun called softly.
Jin Annuo turned around suddenly, with obvious panic and frustration on his face, and his eyes were even a little red.
She was holding a clamp in her hand, like a child who had been caught doing something wrong.
"Brother...you...why did you come back early?" Her voice was a little tense, and she subconsciously wanted to block the stove with her body.
"I... I messed up..." She lowered her head and looked at the two steaks in the pan, her voice thick with nasal sounds, "The butter is burnt... The garlic is burnt... The steak must taste bitter... I'm sorry, brother, I wanted to..."
Jin Chanyun's heart instantly softened.
He walked over and without looking at the steak first, he reached out and gently rubbed the top of her head as if comforting a frightened little animal.
"It's okay," he said in a low and gentle voice, with a reassuring power, "Let me see the results of our Chef Anno's battle."
He walked around to her side, his eyes falling on the steak in the pan.
Putting that little incident aside, the steak itself was indeed very good, evenly browned and of moderate thickness.
He picked up the food thermometer next to him (which Anno had prepared long ago, but forgot to use in his panic) and carefully inserted it into the thickest center of one of the steaks.
The thermometer shows: 52 degrees Celsius.
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