How do YOU cook ribeye cap steak?

[shrinkrap]

Sounds like a nice project! When I made the OP, a grill wasn’t an option, while sous vide was!

@kaleokahu

For the record, I did a St. Patrick’s Day corned beef sous vide this year

[ipsedixit]

@shrinkrap

My memory is I tried pan searing one pinwheeled, and one unwound. Neither “cooked evenly”, as in medium rare from surface to center, but as you say, in both cases, the different textures cooked differently. Both were tasty.

For most steaks, I reverse sear, and I was wondering if sous vide might offer something similar

This is why sous vide works here.

The water bath will cook the meat evenly regardless of its shape, as it’s submerged.

The quick sear afterwards is simply to give a nice charred crust and to allow the Maillard reaction to take place.

[alarash]

I also had skirt steak as a childhood treat. It was my mom’s favorite cut of beef to prepare for us when splurging a bit. Nowadays when I want skirt steak I buy hanger steaks, as they’re similar in flavor but I like them even better as they’re often thicker.

Regarding ribeye cap, I cook them two ways. Unroll, remove the silver skin on the inner radius (inner aspect of the cap) using kitchen shears to minimize beef waste.

1. Cut into 1.5” lengths, place on metal skewers, salt, cook over hot charcoal.

2. Salt and sear in a lightly oiled hot frying pan, browning on all sides, using the walls and bottom of the pan to sear two sides of each cap simultaneously. Optionally, baste with herbed butter in the frying pan for the last part of the cook.

Ribeye cap is my favorite cut of beef. I always unroll it for two reasons, one to remove the silver skin although you can chew through it without difficulty, and second to sear all sides of each cap. When cooking it in a wheel, too much of it remains unseared. This cut benefits from maximizing the Maillard reaction. It’s marbling and stringy muscle fibers make it forgiving even if cooked a little beyond medium, which to me is worth the trade off to get good browning on all sides.

I like to sear all 4 sides of each unrolled cap. When I do this from raw, the center gets a little more cooked than I like. Therefore I’m concerned searing as hard as I prefer on 4 sides after sous vide would make it even more internally cooked than I prefer. Maybe I should try searing from frozen!

When Costco started to offer ribeye cap, it was one of the best quality of life improvements I could ask for in my adult life. Previous to this I would sort through packaged ribeyes lookin for examples with large cap portions. I would be seriously disappointed if they reverted this decision.

I saw a Netflix special filmed in China that specified a cut of beef neck which they claimed was the most prized part of the cow. I’m not sure how to obtain it in the US but am curious to try.

[BoneAppetite]

Wagyu Cap of Ribeye

[kaleokahu (Kaleo)]

@ipsedixit

The water bath will cook the meat evenly regardless of its shape, as it’s submerged.

So will an oven.

The unevenness comes from flat surface heating (grilling, frying, etc) the unwound, different portions at higher heat than you’re planning to serve at.

And frankly, until SV’d food comes to a terminal temperature, it’s uneven, too.

[shrinkrap]

Thanks everyone! I’m hoping my Costco still carries them and I get to try all of your great ideas.

I’m trying pinwheel and sous vide. It’s been “dry brining” for two days

Re-pinwheeled and vacuum sealed…

Into the bath for 1.5 hours

… based on this article about sous vide ribeye cap

Here’s the recipe, which I found after I re-pinwheeled and sealed the bag. .

Sous Vide Ribeye Cap

I plan to un-wheel it before pan searing.

[honkman]

@kaleokahu

So will an oven.

But the oven temperature is higher than the desired final meat temperature and so will always create a temperature gradient in the meet. Something which can be easily avoided by using sous vide

[kaleokahu (Kaleo)]

Certainly a leading contender. I like hanging tenderloin and Spenser, too.

[shrinkrap]

Yum!

ETA Note to self; one piece would have been plenty.

[ipsedixit]

@shrinkrap

why was I not invited?

[ipsedixit]

@honkman

But the oven temperature is higher than the desired final meat temperature and so will always create a temperature gradient in the meet. Something which can be easily avoided by using sous vide

Exactly

[alarash]

That looks delicious. Beautiful job. Maybe time to blow the dust off of my immersion circulator.

I cook them a lot darker than that on the exterior, but the center of each cap often gets darker than yours too.

[kaleokahu (Kaleo)]

@honkman

But the oven temperature is higher than the desired final meat temperature

No, it’s not. I set my oven for 120F (or whatever anyone would set on their circulator). It’s obviously not as precise as a PID controlled circulator, but an oven cooks the meat just as evenly. In fact, a little exterior evaporation is an advantage for the sear.

Speaking of which, SV zealots give short shrift to the fact that, unless they want to eat their steak wet out of the bag, there will always be some temperature/texture/visual gradient after the sear. Some grey band is not a bad thing IMO, and hardly worth struggling to avoid. The whole issue really shouldn’t come into play unless you’re firing large numbers of truly thick steaks. And if you are, finishing in the oven works just fine. For experienced steak cooks, SV is mostly advantageous in saving time at serving.

[kaleokahu (Kaleo)]

Wow, I’m flummoxed by the direction of 132F for 1.5 hours and then searing 2 minutes/side. Either the writer is dyslexic, or the finished dish will look nothing like their lead photo.

Even 123F is pushing it for showing pink, IMO, if the steak gets a full 2 minutes per side after the bath.

How satisfied were you with the finished degree of doneness bathing at 128F?

[shrinkrap]

I didn’t sous vide at the recommended 132, and I didn’t sear for 2 minutes each side because I wanted it mid rare/red-pink, but I think I would have been equally satisfied with a bit more doneness, I guess because of the cut. I would call it very unctuous, but for me, not overly greasy or fatty. I can’t explain it any better, but I really love this “rib cap” cut.

[kaleokahu (Kaleo)]

@shrinkrap

I didn’t sous vide at the recommended 132

I was pretty sure you didn’t, judging by your one photo, which showed 128 and 126.5. Hard to envision anyone recommending 132, except maybe the chef at Mar-a-Lago?

It’s difficult to judge doneness by photos, but your steak looked less pink than medium rare to me.

Yes, the cap can “sweater” your teeth with fat.

Have fun.

[shrinkrap]

@kaleokahu

looked less pink than medium rare to me.

Yes, the cap can “sweater” your teeth with fat.

I would say it was closer to medium, but it chewed a bit looser and juicier than expected from medium. I don’t think I would have liked it as much medium rare.

Maybe what it reminds me of is 140 f , 48 hour sous vide short rib.

[ipsedixit]

@shrinkrap

I would say it was closer to medium, but it chewed a bit looser and juicier than expected from medium. I don’t think I would have liked it as much medium rare.

The ribeye cap is so marbled, that under cooking it can actually be a detriment, where the fat remains, well, fat.

[alarash]

I totally agree.

The ribeye cap tastes delicious when done medium to medium well for the reasons stated.

[alarash]

Just yesterday I remarked here how crestfallen I would be if Costco discontinued separate sales of ribeye cap in their prime meat section. To my disappointment, my visit today suggested this fear may already be a reality. The only ribeyes in the prime section were standard ribeyes including the eye and the caps.