Wafū Sutēki (和風ステーキ, Japanese-style steak)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy iron skillet or cast-iron pan
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Oroshigane (Japanese grater), or the fine face of a box grater
• •Wooden spatula for scraping the pan sauce

Instructions

1. 1

   Salt the beef

   Pat the steaks dry, salt both sides, and leave them on a small rack at cool room temperature for 20 minutes. Salt needs a little time to move inward; if you season at the last second, most of it stays on the surface and the pan sauce has to do too much work. Pat them dry again just before cooking and add the pepper. A dry face on the beef is what lets it brown instead of leaking water into the pan.

   If the beef is mechanically tenderized, do not cook it rare. That process pushes the surface inward, so it needs a higher final temperature for safety.
2. 2

   Crisp the garlic

   Put the sliced garlic and neutral oil in a cold heavy skillet, then set it over medium-low heat. Cook slowly, turning the slices, until they are pale gold at the edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Lift them to a paper towel and keep the garlic oil in the pan. The garlic will darken as it sits, so don't wait for brown. Starting cold gives it time to crisp before the sugars scorch; burnt garlic is bitter and very hard to ignore.

3. 3

   Ready the sauce

   Stir together the soy sauce, sake, mirin, and sugar if using. Grate the daikon on an oroshigane, a Japanese grater, or on the fine face of a box grater. Squeeze it only until it stops dripping heavily. You want a soft mound, not a dry clump, because the clean juice is what cuts the beef's richness.

4. 4

   Sear the steaks

   Return the skillet with the garlic oil to medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, lay in the steaks, cooking one at a time if the pan is crowded. Sear the first side until deeply browned, about 3 minutes. Turn the steaks, add the butter, lower the heat one notch, and spoon the foaming butter over the top for 2 to 3 minutes more, until the center reaches 50 to 52 C / 122 to 126 F for medium-rare, or 57 C / 135 F for medium. The oil gives heat, the butter gives aroma; butter alone from the beginning burns before the beef is ready.

   Crowding cools the pan and leaves the beef gray. Two patient batches are better than one crowded pan.
5. 5

   Rest the meat

   Move the steaks to a board or rack and rest them for 6 to 8 minutes. Resting is not politeness. Heat is still moving through the meat, and the juices need a moment to settle instead of running across the board. Keep any resting juices for the sauce.

6. 6

   Reduce the sauce

   Pour off all but a thin film of fat from the skillet. Add the soy mixture and scrape up the browned bits with a wooden spatula. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, just until glossy and lightly thickened, and the raw alcohol smell is gone. Take it off the heat before it becomes salty and heavy, then stir in the resting juices. The sauce should coat a spoon lightly; if it tastes too strong, loosen it with a spoonful of water.

7. 7

   Slice and plate

   Slice the steaks across the grain into 5 to 7 pieces per steak, about 1cm thick. Cutting across the grain shortens the fibers, so each bite feels tender without asking the sauce to rescue it. Spoon a little sauce onto the plate and over the slices. Set the daikon oroshi beside or partly over the beef, scatter the garlic chips, and finish with shiso, scallion, and a small citrus wedge if using. The daikon belongs fresh, not reduced in the pan, because its clean bite is what keeps the richness honest. Leave the plate room.

Chef Tips

• •Choose whole-muscle beef with fine white marbling and a clean, fresh smell. Ribeye is forgiving, strip is a little firmer, and sirloin is leaner. If the beef looks tired, change the dish. A sauce will not make it young again.
• •If you use true wagyu, serve less of it and pull it from the pan a little earlier. Its fat keeps softening as it rests, and a restrained portion tastes more complete than a large one.
• •Grate the daikon close to serving. Daikon oroshi loses its clean edge as it sits, and that edge is why it is here. In winter, when daikon is in shun, this dish becomes especially easy.
• •An oroshigane gives grated daikon a soft, snowy texture. The fine face of a box grater works. A food processor chops it too wet and uneven, which is not the same thing.

Advance Preparation

• •The soy, sake, and mirin sauce can be mixed one day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
• •Garlic chips can be made a few hours ahead. Keep them uncovered at room temperature on a paper towel so they stay crisp.
• •Do not grate the daikon far ahead. If you must, grate it up to 30 minutes before serving, cover it, and keep it chilled, then squeeze it lightly again before plating.
• •For a dinner party, salt the steaks 20 to 30 minutes before cooking, set the sauce and garnishes ready, then cook the beef last. Steak waits badly; people can wait better.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 340g)