Winter has finally blown into Utah in full force. My morning commute has become twice as long, and this morning I woke up my neighbors by scraping the ice off my car before the sun came up. I then drove to work huddled in my fingerless gloves, cursing their lack of fingers. I don’t know about you, but the cold puts me in a mood to turn on the oven.

Okay, topical opening aside, let’s talk about the reverse sear.

What is the Reverse Sear?

A common cooking technique is to sear your food on high heat, then cook it on low heat. This is because you want a nice crust and good browning on the outside, but you don’t want to overcook the inside. Thus, give it a quick lick of intense heat to get some color, then let it sit over low heat to finish cooking. Searing is especially popular with steak, pork chops, and braised or roasted meats.

But what is a reverse sear? Well it’s the same thing, but in reverse. First you slowly cook your meat until it gets to an ideal temperature, and then you blast it with high heat to get the color and flavor you want.

Why the difference?

There are a few reasons, such as it’s the only option available when you’re using advanced cooking techniques like sous vide or confit. However, the best reason for us is it lets us control our temperature more precisely, and it therefore lets us get even juicier meat. By this I don’t mean it gets easier to see when your steak hits 125℉. What I mean is the entire steak will hit 125 at the same time, instead of just the center being a perfect medium rare, but a ring near the middle being closer to, say, 140 degrees F.

This is because when you start your cook with a sear, the residual heat will carry over and overcook at least some part of the meat. But with the reverse sear, there is much less residual heat.

Believe me when I say the reverse sear is a key to the juiciest meat you’ve ever had.

The Pros and Cons of the Reverse Sear

The pros to a reverse sear are pretty simple—it makes better food at no extra cost. But let’s get a little more specific:

• Juicier and more tender meat
• Better crust
• Delicious pan drippings
• Requires no additional equipment

But what about the cons? Honestly, I can only think of one. Depending on what you're cooking, it can take a little extra time. My reverse-seared chicken recipe, for example, takes a couple of hours to cook, so it’s certainly not a 15-minute dinner that you’ll find on Pinterest. However, it might be the best chicken you’ve ever had.

Because of this, the only restaurants that use the reverse sear are the high-end, ultra expensive places you go to on your anniversary. Applebee’s doesn’t have the time to reverse sear their meat when they’re serving 200 people in a night who all want something different. But your kitchen isn’t a restaurant, and that’s a good thing. It means you can make food better than the restaurant.

How to Reverse Sear

The reverse sear is super easy. You’ll need the following equipment:

• Oven-safe pan
• Oven and stove
• Oven-safe food thermometer (it’s best to have a thermometer with a reader that sits outside of the oven).

As far as cooking, it’s as easy as the following steps:

1. Salt your meat at least 24 hours before cooking and leave it in the fridge.
2. When it’s time to cook, preheat your oven to 200℉, remove your meat from the fridge, and pat it dry.
3. Insert your thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, and bake it until it falls within twenty to twenty-five degrees of your desired final cooking temperature (for example, if you’re cooking chicken, it’ll be done once it reaches 165℉ internal. So you’ll want to cook it here until it reaches about 140℉).
4. Once the internal temperature reaches the ready zone, increase your oven’s cooking temperature all the way to 400℉. Alternatively, you can instead turn on the stove to high heat and use a pan to blast the meat with intense heat. Oven cooking is great for a chicken, but stovetop cooking is often better for steak or pork.
5. You could eat right now if you want to. But to get extra fancy, this is where you can pour the drippings of the meat over your vegetables or starch, or maybe use some wine and herbs to deglaze the pan and make an incredible pan sauce.

How about a recipe?

I don’t often do this, but the best recipe I have so far is this chicken recipe that I shared a while back. If you haven’t tried it before, try it now!

In the coming weeks, I’ll be experimenting with reverse seared steaks, pork chops, and salmon, and I’ll be sure to bring you in on the action.