You don’t have to be a master chef to cook a perfect piece of steak! You more than likely already have the tools in your kitchen to cook the steak…now you just need the knowledge!

Here are a few ways to cook a perfect piece of steak, right at home!

Follow these steps if you are using a cast iron grill pan.

First: Oil a cast iron pan (with canola or such), then heat it very hot, until it starts to smoke. Make sure the meat is completely dry on the outside (wipe with a paper towel, water will prevent browning) and gently place in the pan. Leave it there for a minute or two (it’ll smoke quite a bit!), rotate 90° to get the nice grill marks. Leave for another minute or two. Flip, and repeat for the other side.

This will give you a medium-rare steak. Cut the steak in half to check. If you want to finish off the cooking process in order to get a more well-done steak…simply pop it in the oven for a few minutes on 400-degrees.

Remember…the steak will continue to cook as long as 5 minutes after you remove it from direct heat. Aim for undercooked. You can’t uncook a steak once it’s overcooked.

Always let your steak rest at least 5-minutes prior to serving.

Don’t know what kind of steak you want? Try the ‘Rule Of Thumb’.

Loosely touch one of your fingers to your thumb: forefinger for rare, middle finger for medium rare, ring finger for medium, and pinky finger if you like your steak well done.

The perfect method. (By Andy Rice)

First. Start with a decent cut. Typically, these will be cuts from the rib (Ribeye), short loin (Tenderloin, T-Bone, Porterhouse, Top Loin), and sirloin (Sirloin, Top Sirloin) parts of the steer. Whichever cut you go with should have a nice, even distribution of white fat throughout the muscle (called marbling).

Second. ALWAYS let your meat come to room temperature before doing anything to it. Then, salt and pepper it and let it stand at least 40 minutes before cooking, or cook it immediately.

Third: Get a nice heavy pan and a high smoke point oil (like canola) and heat a thin layer of oil until it just starts to smoke. Don’t let it smoke too long lest the oil break down and affect the flavor of your steak. Avoid butter as the milk solids will burn before achieving a high enough temperature. And see here for the right way to dispose of fats and oils after you’re done.

Fourth: Add your steak to the pan and flip every 15-30 seconds until desired doneness is reached. This is where most people get it wrong. Not flipping is an almost guaranteed recipe for unevenly cooked steak. The temperature in the pan will fluctuate no matter how high you have it cranked up, which means one side will be cooked more than the other. Flip to equalize any temperature differences in the pan.

Fifth: Forget about shortcuts for testing doneness and get yourself a decent meat thermometer. Testing temperature is the only surefire way to ensuring steak is done to your liking.

Last: LET IT REST! From 5-15 minutes, depending on the thickness and cut. Not giving it time to rest is a surefire way to end up with dry steak.