Searing a London Broil: how long for ½ an inch?

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

The marinated London Broil recipe I want to make calls for searing the meat for 5 minutes on each side in butter and oil on cast iron: then leaving on the pan to come to 140 degrees. But that’s for a cut that the recipe says is an inch and a half.

Mine is more like ½ an inch. That’s the usual thickness I see. Sometimes a little thicker. Certainly I never see it an inch and a half around here.

How should I adjust the timing for the searing portion ?

Thanks.

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Comments (5)

annie1992
8 years ago
Linnea, if you want your steak to end up being medium (145F), I'd start with a 3 minute sear per side. You won't get a good sear in less time, I don't think. The website Serious Eats even advocates cooking your steak while still cold, instead of bringing it to room temperature, and that might buy you some searing time while not overcooking the center. They also say to flip the steak multiple times. Don't puncture with a fork, use tongs, but they say you can get a better "crust" by flipping.

Truthfully, it's going to be an experiment on your part, depending on how you like your steak done. I like that crusty exterior with a rare middle, so a screaming hot pan, cook just until seared, flip it, sear it, take it off. My steaks are cut an inch thick, though, and my processor tells me that 3/4 inch is "standard", certainly not that 1 1/2" here either.

Good luck!

Annie
lindac92
8 years ago
With a piece of meat that thin you won't be able to get it brown on both sides without over cooking.
I would sear it in a cast iron pan without any fat in it....and get the pan screaming hot before you put the meat in it....when it's seared it will release and then very quickly brown the other side.
The clue to browning a thin piece of meat is a VERY hot surface.....and with oil and butter in a pan, they would smoke before the pan got hot enough to sear it quickly.
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lindac92
8 years ago
Interesting...Annie and I were posting at the same time and essentially saying the same thing..
Islay Corbel
8 years ago
Might sound a bit odd, but consider only searing one side. If you think about a piece of fish, you might only cook the skin side to avoid over-cooking it so why not try that with such a thin steak? I agree with the others that it's high on impossible to get a good crust without over cooking it. I have a steel pan I keep just for this job. I also do this with a duck breast. Cook the skin side til the fat has all been released then let it rest in a low oven to finish.
dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
8 years ago
Your best friend is a good instant thermometer.

There are so many variables. How cold is the steak? how warm is your kitchen? how hot is your fire? What color of the meat you consider rare, medium, well?

Searing is good, makes the steak look pretty, Makes the kitchen smells good. But I don't think searing adds that much taste while you are eating. Consider grill marks cover only covers about 20 % of the meat. .

dcarch

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Searing a London Broil: how long for ½ an inch?

Comments (5)

annie1992

lindac92

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lindac92

Islay Corbel

dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m

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