How to Reheat Steak So It Doesn’t Dry Out – CNET [CNET]
To warm up cooked noodles, rice or pizza, these are the best ways to reheat every type of takeout. But what about last night’s rib eye steak that you grilled over charcoal or seared in blazing cast iron? Nothing beats a quality steak, but as anyone who’s tried knows, it can be tricky to reheat it without overcooking.
I tried three methods for reheating steak: In a cast-iron skillet, in an air fryer and in an air fryer wrapped in aluminum foil to see which one turned out the tastiest meat.
But first…
How long is cooked steak good for in the fridge?
![steak in plastic food storage container](https://i0.wp.com/www.cnet.com/a/img/resize/dd215a5335855a0844e41f46b34dc5b0afa33c25/hub/2024/02/16/b7ccb24c-0a84-4111-9873-9afdc885d68d/screenshot-2024-02-16-at-1-25-51pm.png?resize=800%2C619&ssl=1)
The USDA recommends eating steak within four days of cooking it.
David Watsky/CNETThe USDA recommends consuming cooked beef within three to four days as long as it’s kept refrigerated at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or less. Unfortunately, steak begins to lose moisture and flavor after even a day, so the sooner the better.
If you want perfect leftover steak, cook it right the first time
Cooking steak correctly the first time will go a long way toward tasty beef after a reheat. For leftover steak, the no. 1 concern is overcooking. If you’ve overcooked it on the first run, reheating it is only going to make things worse.
![Medium rare steak on cutting board](https://i0.wp.com/www.cnet.com/a/img/resize/1c9a8be1f1370b0fac19bc6cf2077b02b4a0a459/hub/2024/02/16/36c50931-9200-4131-979e-232b331984a1/screenshot-2024-02-16-at-1-29-17pm.png?resize=800%2C549&ssl=1)
If you want great steak the next day, make sure to cook it right the first time.
David Watsky/CNETIf you suspect you’re going to have leftover steak, you might consider cooking some of it less than you normally would. Example: Cook a few pieces of beef rare instead of medium rare or medium rare instead of medium. This practice will give you more wiggle room on the reheat.
To nail the doneness of your rib eye, skirt steak or New York strip on the first cook, use this sneaky trick that professional chefs use to tell when a steak is cooked to their liking. Spoiler alert: It doesn’t require any gadgets; just your hands and a little know-how. If you do end up overcooking it, try slicing it especially thin with a super sharp knife (across the grain, of course). That should mitigate some of the stringiness.
For the reheat test, I used a roughly 1-inch thick grass-fed rib eye steak that I had cooked medium rare the night before using a cast-iron skillet. I portioned the day-old cooked steak into even thirds and used three methods to reheat the beef.
![three pieces of leftover steak on a cutting board](https://i0.wp.com/www.cnet.com/a/img/resize/557c53a41d954f624634fe93a5bb499d8af6dbc7/hub/2024/02/16/069dad35-97d8-45af-8f09-76b2a02dc370/screenshot-2024-02-16-at-1-17-55pm.png?resize=800%2C551&ssl=1)