Perfect Tomahawk Steak - Top Three Ways To Cook It - Craft Beering

Ways to Cook a Tomahawk Ribeye

There are a number of ways to perfectly cook a Tomahawk steak and they are all relatively easy and involve the same two essential steps - only their order and the means of executing them varies. We will look at:

• oven (classic and reverse sear)
• grilling (indirect heat) and
• sous vide

The key to cooking this thick, large, bone-in ribeye is to allow the needed time for the meat to cook evenly on the inside, at a low temperature, and create an appetizing outer sear at a high temperature. All methods of cooking a Tomahawk steak include these two steps.

How to Prepare a Tomahawk Steak for Cooking

• If the steak you bought was frozen thaw in the refrigerator slowly - for two to three days so it is thoroughly defrosted.
• Once you remove it from the packaging pat it dry with a paper towel and allow it to reach room temperature (usually about an hour).
• Because the meat is so flavorful simply seasoning it with salt and pepper is enough - reserve compound butter and sauce(s) for when you are enjoying the cooked steak, but try it with just a sprinkle of sea salt first to appreciate its wonderful flavor.

Tomahawk Steak In Oven (Classic Method and Reverse Sear Method)

You can follow one of two avenues to prepare the cut using the oven - the classic or the reverse sear techniques.

Classic. Here the Tomahawk is hard seared in a cast iron skillet or on the grill after which it's transfered to the oven to finish cooking to the desired temperature, rested and served.

Reverse Sear. As the name implies, this method reverses the order of the steps. To reverse sear Tomahawk steak first it is cooked it in the oven, until its internal temperature reaches 100-110 F. Next it is seared over a hot grill or in a suitably sized skillet (or a gridle) with olive oil and/or butter until the temperature for the desired doneness is reached.

NOTE: The best results are achieved when the oven is set at a lower temperature, we like 300 F, some people go as low as 225 F. However, in a restaurant setting when diners generally do not have the patience to wait for their food, oven temperatures are often set much higher - Chris says that at the various restaurants he has worked at they regularly cook the steak in a 425-450 F oven.