How Long Should Steak Rest? A Complete Guide

How Long Should Steak Rest? is a question that many want to know the answer to. A steak is done cooking when it reaches its desired doneness on the inside. However, just like you can’t judge how long to cook something by looking at it, likewise, you can’t tell if your steak is cooked just right by looking at the outside.

To ensure that your steak is properly rested and ready for consumption, you should rely on an instant-read meat thermometer to make sure its internal temperature has reached the ideal minimum of 145°F (63°C). If anything below this range turns up in your reading, you’ll want to put your steak back in the skillet or oven for further cooking while keeping track of the time.

Remember that any part of a beefsteak will continue to rise in temperature even after it has been removed from the heat.

The time that your steak needs to rest depends on what will please you most: For a rare steak, allow it about five minutes of resting time; eight minutes for medium-rare; 12 minutes for medium, and 15 minutes for well done.

Of course, as with cooking times, this will depend on the thickness of the meat as well as personal preference. Steaks that are approximately four inches thick need less time to rest than those that are two inches thick or less. How Long Should Steak Rest? A Complete Guide

Why Do You Let Steak Rest??

As mentioned above, when cooking meat it builds in heat so when you take it off the heat, all of that heat continues to cook the meat. If you are cooking a steak to rare or medium-rare then removing it from the pan and allowing it to rest will stop that extra cooking and keep your steak at its optimal temperature (for taste).

What Happens to Steak When You Cook It?

The meat is composed of very long molecules, and when you cook it – whether by grilling, pan-frying, or oven roasting – those bonds start to break down until they can no longer hold their shape. This breakdown creates a tender product with a lot of moisture.

After the cooking process is complete, what remains are all of the juices that escape from the meat when it’s cut open. As mentioned above, when you let your cooked steak rest for at least five minutes before serving it will allow these juices to redistribute instead of having them run out when you slice into the steak too soon.

What You Need To Know About Resting Time For Meat?

For most meats it’s important to let the meat rest after you’re done cooking it, this is true for any meat whether you’re grilling, baking, frying, or roasting. You will find that when your steak is resting that the temperature of your steak will go up a few degrees and let the juices redistribute throughout the cut.

Letting your meat rest after cooking also allows the protein fibers to relax which results in a more tender piece of meat. You can tell if a steak is rested properly by looking at the juices on top of the meat. If they are running out of it then you know you didn’t give it enough time to rest before cutting into it which means that all those delicious juices ran right out onto your plate.

After letting your meats rest for about 5-10 minutes, you can see the juices come back up to the surface of the steak, and if there’s a little pool of it on top then you know that your meat is properly rested. Resting time really does make a difference!

How Do You Rest Meat?

This is one simple step that I often feel people ignore because they’re so eager to eat their dinner, but allowing your steak to rest for at least 8-10 minutes before cutting into it or serving will allow all those flavorful juices to redistribute throughout the cut making this piece of meat more moist, tender, and delicious. Resting your meat properly before serving it will result in an even better tasting meal which is simply worth the 10 minutes wait.

After cooking a perfect steak, don’t let it go to waste! Letting your meat rest allows the flavorful juices inside the cut to redistribute throughout for a tender and juicy dinner. A single probe thermometer is the best to use for something like steak since it’s not influenced by the thickness of your protein. The resting time for a steak can be around 5 minutes to 10 depending on the cut and preference.

How Long Should Steak Rest?

Your steaks will need about 5-10 minutes to rest after cooking depending on their thickness and what level of doneness they are cooked to. After grilling, baking, frying, or roasting any sort of meat it’s best practice to let your meat rest before serving it so that all those flavorful juices stay inside rather than spilling out onto your plate when you cut into it too early.

Only during this resting period will you know if your meats have been cooked properly since the temperature will continue to rise a bit as the proteins relax which results in a more tender cut of meat.

Resting your meats for short periods of time will result in a more moist, flavorful steak that you’ll come to love! This technique is very simple and only requires about 5 minutes which isn’t too much to ask for when it comes to delicious food.

By resting your steaks before serving them you’ll be able to know if they are fully cooked by the juices coming back up onto the surface rather than spilling out onto your plate instead. The longer you allow your meat to rest the more tender, juicy, and flavorful it becomes!

Final Verdict

If you would like to serve a steak at a specific temperature, use one single probe thermometer rather than a bi-metal variety because the latter may not give an accurate reading since it can be easily influenced by variations in the thickness of the steak.

With that said, however, it is important to add that you should let your meat rest off the heat regardless of its doneness so as not to allow any juices to run out when you cut it open. This resting time will ensure a better-tasting and juicier steak.