Reverse Seared Dry Aged Tomahawk

Time

+/- 4 hr

Cook

–

Yields

1 Serving

Level

Intermediate

Recipe By

Gregor Schnuer

Ingredients

1 x 850g Dry Aged Tomahawk
150g butter
4 cloves fresh garlic
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp ground black or green pepper
2 tsp thyme
2 tbsp good salt (fleur de sel)

R150.00 – R219.00Select options

Method

Leave the steak out of the fridge for several hours before cooking to ensure it is at room temperature and no longer cold inside.
Grind the pepper onto both sides of the steak. Melt 75g of the butter and brush some on each side of the steak. Set the rest aside.
Place the steak in the oven, preheated at 70*C, and let it cook for 1.5 – 2.5hrs. Determine the exact time by using a meat thermometer. Keep the meet in the oven until the inside of the meat is 5*C below the desired temperature for eating (for medium, 55*C).
While the steak is in the oven, take 25g of butter and brown the thinly sliced garlic in a frying pan. As the garlic turns brown (this happens quickly after quite a wait) add the thyme and smoked paprika for 1 minute. Combine the mixture in the pan with the remaining 50g of butter and stir into a smooth, flavored butter.
(Optional: before adding the thyme and paprika, remove some roasted garlic, dry it on a paper towel, then crumble it into the salt for a roast garlic salt).
Half an hour before the meat is ready, fire up the braai. It’s only for one steak, but it needs to be hot!
When the meat is ready to come out the oven, brush it with more of the butter used in the beginning and sprinkle a generous amount of salt on each side.
When the braai has a lot of heat, with bright embers, sear the steak, 90 seconds on each side, brushing it with butter right after searing.
Let it rest for 5 minutes and then enjoy!

Side Note

How does it work?

Most recipes sear the meat and then move onto roasting in the oven at a medium temperature like 120*C or so. And it makes sense: seal in the moisture before it goes in the oven. So why reverse this process? When cooking meat in the oven at a low temperature (70*C or so), the moisture never evaporates out of the meat and the collagenolytic enzymes in the meat are active for longer, adding tenderness. Without being sealed any herbs or spices flavour more of the meat. The slower cooking allows for better temperature control (5 minutes more or less are no issue). And the best part: searing at the end of high heat adds the brown crust last, leaving it that chargrilled flavour.