Can we talk about how my so-called 'perfect' steak ruined my dinner service?

I like a good medium rare as much as the next chef, but I tried this whole 'reverse sear at 125 degrees' thing everyone raves about for a busy Saturday night at our place in Portland. I cooked six ribeyes low and slow in the oven, then seared them hard on the flat top like the guides say. They looked amazing with that nice crust, but when I cut into them, they were practically blue in the center, not even close to medium rare. I felt like a fool plating those up, and three came back to the pass saying they were too raw. I learned my oven runs cooler than I thought, so 125 internal is way too low for my setup. Has anyone else had to adjust their temps because of their equipment, or am I missing something simple here?

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holly_craig1d ago

Man, that's rough. I've totally been there with the oven temperature tricking you. It's like you follow the recipe perfectly and still end up with a different result, which is super frustrating. I remember trying to trust the thermometer on my old gas oven and everything came out way underdone, just like you described. So yeah, I think you're absolutely right about having to adjust for your specific setup, it's not a one size fits all kind of thing. Maybe it's just me, but I find that going to 135 or even 140 before the sear gives a better margin for error, especially on a busy night. You're definitely not missing anything simple though, this is just one of those annoying kitchen realities that takes some trial and error to nail down.