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The Best Thing You Ever Ate?

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I mean no disrespect or condescension when I say this, but is it safe to eat a steak that's extremely rare?

I usually eat my steaks medium-well, but that's as much for health concerns as anything else. Are my fears unfounded?

YMMV. Restaurants that serve undercooked or raw meats, etc. are typically required by the local health department to display a written warning to customers that there is a greater risk of food-bourne illness from such items. The consumer is responsible for choosing to heed such advice or not. Personally, I take any health advice that comes from some governmental agency with a huge grain of salt. I have never gotten sick from steak tartare or very rare beef. In the case of a steak, possible contaminants will usually only be on the outside surface, due to exposure to the environment. And the outside is the very part that gets cooked. With steak tartare, a quality restaurant will cut off the exposed outside layers before preparation, using a separate knife for each side to avoid cross-contamination. I wouldn't eat grocery store ground beef rare or raw, as contaminants get thoroughly mixed into the meat in the production process.

In my opinion, contemporary society has been conditioned to be overly scared of germs. I prefer my beef, fish, clams, eggs and milk to be raw, as I seek to emulate the dietary regimens of physique champions of the 1950s as part of my old-school fitness routine (which also includes such antiquated supplements as desiccated beef liver and beef testicle tissue tablets, also technically raw). I just make sure that meats, etc. that I will consume underdone came from trusted sources rather than some industrial factory-farm.


What is that made of? Ramen noodles?

Kor
 
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I mean no disrespect or condescension when I say this, but is it safe to eat a steak that's extremely rare?

I usually eat my steaks medium-well, but that's as much for health concerns as anything else. Are my fears unfounded?
It really depends on where you get it. I wouldn't order steak tartare from a roadside diner -- I have only ever had it at "nicer" restaurants that have less than, say, 15 items on the menu. They have to source it, store it, and prepare it properly, and you generally pay more for that level of care. When I last had steak tartare, it was delicious (one of the tastiest things I've ever eaten, actually) and I did not get sick. And that's literally just seasoned raw beef with a raw egg on top.
 
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I mean no disrespect or condescension when I say this, but is it safe to eat a steak that's extremely rare?

Absolutely, yes.

That being said, it depends upon the provenance of the beef.

I fucking love steak tartare, for example, but I only eat it if I'm grinding my own meat, fresh from my local butcher (one that I trust; there's one guy downtown who seasons and sells the best goddamn burger patties but like hell if I'm cooking those things below medium) or if it's at a restaurant whose chef I personally know. I would never, ever eat steak tartare from the kitchen of someone I don't know.

Regarding steaks as in the actual steak-steak, unless it's some place that's extremely questionable (a roadside diner in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska on I-80, for example), then, yes. The raising of cows and the butchering said cows is so, so highly regulated nowadays that it's pretty much impossible to go wrong with a medium-rare steak. You aren't going to get rabies or mad cow disease, but instead you'll get flavor. And flavor is king.

That being said, it is anyone's right to order a steak medium-well or well-done. To paraphrase the great Mike Royko, it is also my right to call those people barbarians.
 
If I told you the dubious steak tartares I've eaten you would all probably puke. But.. I have not :lol:

As to the ramen taco, BRING IT ON. I have had several ramen burgers, they are good but messy. I think a taco would be even better.
 
I'm not sure about the best... but certainly the most awesome thing I've eaten :D

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duuuude.. that's interesting. Is it an actual food eaten or are you just a random critter ingester?

Last year I ate a mango that almost made me cry. I was aware as I was eating it that I had absolute perfection in my mouth.
 
It's not snobbery. The rate of evaporation of moisture in a meat is a constant. Filet mignon is so highly regarded because of its tenderness, and because the mignon has essentially no fat (remember: fat is flavor), all of the flavor is coming from the actual flesh. It's not like a ribeye or even a sirloin, which generally have rich marbling.

By cooking a filet mignon to medium well or well, you're essentially eating a piece of leather, because you're depriving it of its one unique quality. The tenderness is literally the reason to eat a filet mignon.

Edit: You can get a crisp crust without cooking a steak to the point of well. Heat a cast-iron skillet to the point where it's hotter than the surface of the sun, season the steak with salt and pepper, and then toss the steak onto the skillet for about 45 seconds per side. Then put the skillet into a 500-degree oven for about two minutes, flip the steak and cook for another two minutes. Remove the skillet from the oven, let it rest for ten minutes to re-absorb its juices and make some vegetables and potatoes in the meantime.

A good steak would probably be my "last meal" meal. But, the wife won't let me do steaks that way. She's not much of a meat-eater, and says it's smoky and "stinks up the house." :( But when she's traveling, the cast iron skillet comes out, the oven gets cranked up, and it's steak time! :devil:

One of the best things indulgent things I've eaten within the last year was a Train Wreck sandwich at Beck's Cajun Café in Philly's Reading Terminal. My god, it was good. It's their version of the Philly steak sandwich. It's Andouille sausage, steak, and salami chopped together, along with onions, American cheese, and creole mayo on a baguette. Nothing subtle about the flavors. Wonderfully decadent.
 
When I was in college at Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colorado, there was this great hippy sandwich shop not far from campus called Avogadro's Number.
It had been there since the 1960's, and the first weekend of my freshman year (1986), my roommate's older brother introduced us to this place. It had macramé booth dividers, and the walls were painted with trees and plants.

.

I went to Colorado State, too (started in 89)! Avogadro's Number was a great little place. Glad to hear it's still around. I loved a lot of Fort Collins' restaurants. Lots of good Italian places.

Best thing I've ever eaten- it's a tie. The shrimp and cheesy grits I had at the Commander's Palace in New Orleans was to die for. The shrimp had a great marinade, and the balance between the brie and grits was perfect. The whole dish melted in your mouth. Also, they had a 25 cent martini (limit 3) at lunch!

And yes, I have a photo. I'm drooling at the memory:

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The other best thing- the Steak Frites at Can-Can in Richmond, Virginia. I've never been to Paris, but my sister has and says the restaurant is as good as any bistro there.
 
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