The Best Mail-Order Steaks

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Steak night is my favorite night. There’s little in life more pleasurable than sinking my teeth into a perfect medium rare—an ultra-marbled, funky dry-aged ribeye is my cut of choice. Pair with the best bottle of Napa Cab you can get your hands on, and you’re in very good shape. It’s hard to beat this classic combination at an old-school steakhouse, but I love the ritual of cooking steak at home just as much. And because multiple martinis are inevitably involved, I save steak night for Fridays so there are no alarms to snooze through the next morning.

The preparation starts a couple of days before: as soon as my meat arrives, I pat it dry with paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible, then give it a good showering of Kosher salt on all sides. I’m particular to the Diamond Crystal red box you see in all the restaurant kitchens—I like the feel of the finer grains in my hands, and the lower salinity levels give you more control when seasoning.

Salting 1-3 days ahead of time is key, especially for a larger cut of beef. “The salt pulls out moisture in the steak, dissolves, then gets sucked back into the steak,” says author Jordan Mackay, who wrote a literal book about steak with the legendary meat-master Aaron Franklin. “It’s the best way to get salt seasoning in the steak.”

Salting the steak ahead of time also serves as another crucial to creating a crust. “You have to dry out the exterior to get good browning—the famous Maillard reaction” explains Mackay.

Once seasoned, into the fridge goes the steak, which I leave uncovered standing on its side over a wire rack set over a plate so there’s proper airflow—this further aids in moisture evaporation and helps with searing later.

Finally, the big day arrives: I pop open my wine and stick in a decanter, make my martini, and because home for me is an apartment in San Francisco with very sensitive fire alarms, I plug in my AirHood, which saves my kitchen from getting hotboxed.

I get my cast-iron pan ripping hot, add a little bit of grapeseed oil (or better yet dry-aged beef fat aka Chef’s Gold), and give the steak a good hard sear on both sides—60-90 seconds uninterrupted on each. I use The Chef’s Press, which helps create an even crust—I like the contrast of a thick salty crunchy beautifully browned layer against the tender medium rare red meat below.

After the sear, into the oven goes the steak. My Breville is already heated at 350, so this will take anywhere from 10-15 minutes—I use a Thermapen to be safe, and pull the steak when it reaches 125, knowing that it will continue to cook and rise in temperature another five degrees or so.

I let the steak rest for at least five minutes, ten if I’m being good: this allows the muscle fibers to chill out for a bit and the juices to remain in the steak rather than seep out everywhere. Finally, I cut into the steak and go to town.

Patience and preparation pay off. I gnaw on the bone and sip on my cab; meat sweats ensue. It’s Friday, I’m in love. And because a good steak starts with good beef, ahead are some of my favorite purveyors that will ship top-quality cuts directly to your doorstep. Plus, the accouterments I use to cook them properly.

Prime Porterhouse Steak

Not every steak needs to be a rib-eye to be delicious: case in point, The Porterhouse Steak from the legendary Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors, who provides their beef to everybody from Minetta Tavern to Shake Shack. This cut features both the tedner cut of filet mignon on one side and a New York strip on the other with a choose-your-adventure level of funk: 30, 45, or 60 day dry age.

California Reserve Dry Aged Bone-in Ribeye Steak

This ribsteak is a full-bone rib cut from the chuck end of the Prime Rib, which means there’s a large amount of spinalis dorsi aka Ribeye cap (the best part) as well as extra marbling. Each rib weighs between 2-2.5 pounds, serves 2-4 people, and is dry aged for 30-35 days, resulting in a pleasantly nutty funky aroma unlike any other. This is a special one.

Dry-Aged Bone-In Ribeye

This is the same beef that’s used in the tasting menu at three-Michelin-starred French Laundry—if it’s good enough for Thomas Keller, it’s good enough for us. This 2in, 2lb piece of beef is dry-aged, well-marbled, and USDA Prime Grade.

Stemple Creek Ranch Bone-In Ribeye Steak

Cattle that roam freely on the big green coastal hills in Northern California? Check. 4th generation family run ranch? Check. Regenerative and organic farming practices? Check and check. Stemple Creek Ranch's grass-fed beef is a product you can feel good about eating, and you'll find their stuff in all the great farm-to-table restaurants in the Bay Area, including the pioneer itself Chez Panisse.

Wired

Want to get a great sear on a steak but live in an apartment with sensitive smoke alarms. The Airhood will let you get the job done.

18 oz. Chef’s Press

This press gives steaks and burgers, a good, even sear that is much harder to get with a spatula.

Chef's Gold

What's better than oil when it comes to searing steaks? Good ol' fat. Chef's Gold is pure tenderloin fat that is finely ground, compressed into shape, then dry-aged.

ONE

Take the guess work out of guessing whether a steak is medium-rare, and have one of these quick, easy to read thermometers on hand.

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