oven-roasted London broil

many dates

I usually cook London broil on the grilling plate in the oven. However, that doesn't mean I do the same thing every time. The temperatures I have used range from a low 225 ºF to a high 400 ºF.

The factor that determined this was mostly the thickness of the steak, but occasionally how long I wanted to wait for it.

We return to our 2 rules of thumb:

  1. The thinner the steak, the hotter the pan; and the other way around is also true.
  2. Thick steaks require a double cooking technique, not necessarily in this order:
    •  Sear the outside at high enough temps to get the color and flavor;
    • Cook the inside at low enough temps to maintain the red color.

Three steaks cooked at different temperatures: 

Pic1: 225 ºF,  no striping, evenly pink inside -  2016-10-31
Pic2: 350 ºF, medium striping, thicker grey outer edge  - 2019-05-30
Pic3: 400 ºF, darkest striping, grey outside, not fully cooked inside - 2019-07-19

All sessions were targeted for rare to medium rare.
None of these steaks were seared before or after the oven session.

The method that was used was the same each time, except for the temperature and cooking times:

  1. preheat the oven.
  2. season the steak.
  3. Bake on an oven-grill plate.
    • 225 ºF = 45 minutes for 1 ½ "
    • 350 ºF = 8 - 25 minutes for ½ " to 1 1/4"
    • 400 ºF = 12 minutes for 1"
  4. Remove, rest, slice, serve.

That would suggest that the 225 ºF session was a thicker steak that required longer cooking, and the 400 ºF a thinner one that could be pushed faster. Look again.

 

Three steaks cooked at the same temperature: 

Pic4: 350 ºF - 2019-05-02
Pic5: 350 ºF - 2019-05-30
Pic6: 350 ºF - 2019-07-14

The three steaks at 350 ºF are very similar in thickness. What you see here is that shorter cooking times leave a larger pink-to-red area in the center, and that decreases with longer cooking times until it would completely disappear and the steal would be well-done throughout. Not my favorite.

350 ºF is a good middle range for low to middle-thickness London broil, and doneness can be adjusted by adjusting the cooking time. However, the thicker cuts will be overdone on the outside while still raw in the center. Unlike in a frying pan, turning the piece will not really alleviate that because in the oven, the heat comes from both sides.