Steak doneness explained, from rare to well done
Core temperatures from rare to well done: what happens to the meat at each stage, why a steak must rest and which doneness suits each cut.
When the waiter asks how you would like your steak, the real question is: at what temperature should we stop cooking the centre? Everything else — colour, juiciness, texture — follows from that. And the difference between a memorable steak and a dry one often comes down to five degrees.
What happens in the meat, degree by degree
Meat is made of muscle fibres full of water, held together by collagen and interlaced with fat. Each of the three responds at a different temperature, and the levels of doneness are simply stages along the way.
Up to around 45 °C, the fibres barely tighten, and the intramuscular fat — the marbling — starts to soften and baste the fibres from within. Towards 50 °C they contract harder and start pushing moisture out. Above 55 °C, the moisture is already on the plate, not in the meat.
The table, in brief
The temperatures below are taken at the centre of the steak, not at the surface, and before resting — more on that shortly.
| Doneness | At the centre | Appearance | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rare | 40 °C | Red, cool in the middle | Lean cuts, fillet |
| Medium rare | 45 °C | Red to pink, warm | Almost any cut; the most widely recommended point |
| Medium | 50 °C | Evenly pink | Thick, richly marbled cuts |
| Medium well | 55 °C | Pink only in the middle | Those who dislike red but want juicy meat |
| Well done | above 55 °C | Brown throughout | Rarely ordered with aged beef: it loses what ageing has gained |
Temperature is measured, not guessed
The finger test, comparing the steak to the palm of your hand, is a charming story and a poor method: it gives different results for a thick cut and a thin one, for cold meat and meat brought to room temperature. A probe thermometer costs as much as two steaks and settles the matter.
The probe goes in from the side, into the middle of the thickest part, away from the bone and pockets of fat. Bone conducts heat differently and gives a reading that is a few degrees out — which is why bone-in cuts such as the T-bone or tomahawk are measured in two places.
Meat keeps cooking after it leaves the grill
The outside of the steak is much hotter than the inside. Once you take it off the heat, the warmth keeps moving towards the centre, and the core temperature rises a further 2–5 °C on its own. This is called carryover cooking, and it is why a good cook takes the meat off before it reaches its target.
For medium rare, the steak comes off the grill at 45 °C at the centre, and rises a few more degrees as it rests. The thicker it is, the more it rises: with a tomahawk of over a kilogram, the difference can exceed five degrees.
Five minutes' rest on the board makes more difference than the last five minutes on the grill.
As it rests, the contracted fibres relax and reabsorb some of the juices. Cut straight away, and the juices end up on the plate. The rule of thumb: roughly one minute of rest for every two hundred grams.
The cut changes the answer
There is no universally right doneness. It depends on how much fat and collagen the cut has:
- Richly marbled — ribeye, tomahawk, entrecôte. They need enough heat for the fat to melt. Below medium rare they remain waxy.
- Lean — fillet, tenderloin. There is nothing to render, so every extra degree dries them out. Rare or medium rare, without question.
- Long-grained — bavette, onglet, skirt. Cooked quickly over high heat, and always sliced across the grain.
- Long-aged — at 30 or 40 days, the meat has already lost moisture and has a more concentrated flavour. One degree too many shows more than it would in fresh beef.
What we recommend, by cut
We cook over open flame, on a live-fire grill, which gives a fast, deep crust. With that crust, the points below work best:
| Cut | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ribeye | Medium rare | The marbling has melted, the moisture is still in the meat |
| Tomahawk | Medium rare to medium | A thick cut: carryover cooking adds a great deal |
| T-Bone | Medium rare | Two different muscles either side of the bone |
| Fillet | Rare to medium rare | No fat to render, every extra degree dries it out |
| Bavette | Medium rare | Long grain, high heat, sliced across the grain |
| Wagyu A5 | Medium rare | The fat melts at a low temperature; any more and it runs off |
The mistakes that ruin a good steak
- Putting cold meat on the grill. The gap between edge and centre widens, and the outside dries out before the middle warms through.
- Turning it only once. Turned often, every minute, it cooks more evenly and forms just as good a crust.
- Cutting it straight away. See above: juice on the plate is juice no longer in the meat.
- Ordering an expensive cut well done. A steak aged for 40 days and taken above 55 °C is money spent on something you can no longer taste.
How to order at the table
State the doneness and leave the rest to the kitchen: “medium rare” is enough. If you have a finer preference — “towards rare”, say — mention it then, not once the plate has arrived. And if you are unsure what to choose, ask your waiter what they recommend for the cut you have chosen: for every piece in the display there is a better answer than the average.
And if you want it well done, ask for it. There is no wrong order — only cuts that cope better or worse with heat, and a waiter who can tell you which is which.
Frequently asked
45 °C at the centre of the steak, as it comes off the grill. It is the point at which the intramuscular fat has softened but the fibres have not yet squeezed the moisture out — which is why it is the doneness most often recommended for aged beef.
Because the outside is much hotter than the centre, and the heat keeps moving inwards after the steak has left the fire. The core temperature rises a further 2–5 degrees on its own, and more the thicker the cut.
Roughly one minute for every two hundred grams: four to five minutes for a typical steak, longer for one over a kilogram. In that time the fibres relax and reabsorb the juices.
You can, and we will cook it. It is worth knowing, though, that above 55 °C the moisture has already left the meat, and the concentrated flavour built over 30 or 40 days of ageing comes through far less. With such an order, your waiter can suggest a cut that copes better with the heat.
With a probe thermometer, inserted from the side into the middle of the thickest part, away from the bone and pockets of fat. Bone conducts heat differently and gives a false reading, so bone-in cuts are measured in two places.