Every single time I try doing steak I end up with an old bit of shoe leather that wears your jaw out to chew!

What cut of meat do you use? Does it need tenderising? Marinating? Grilling / oven / pan?!

Any ideas welcome, preferably tried and tested ones that are really simple for me to follow Oh, and anything still pink makes me feel funny so something that makes it well-done but edible would be nice!

I think it starts with getting a good steak in the first place! Usual supermarket stuff just doesnt cook well, even Sainsburys taste the difference is yukky!
The only supermarket ones I find decent are the Morrisons locally sourced ones, that tends to be Welsh here.

Otherwise it has to be butcher bought, we tend to go for a fillet

I dont cook them, Dan does, but I think the way to do it is have the pan really hot and sear the sides, then just a few minutes on each side, only turning the once. Do it so its actually less cooked than you like, becasue by the time you eat it the heat inside has cooked it more! So we do it rareish, then by the we eat its rare-medium

Might get hubby to try some from morrisons to road-test my "skills" on... Do you oil the pan or the meat and season before or during or after cooking? Is there a way to seal it then oven cook - to keep juices in but to cook through; or will that end up leathery too do you reckon? I might need to learn to do some caseroles or stews, they have soft meat in don't they - although I'll probably manage to make the chunks into bullets

me and oh do buy steak from supermarket but we inspect it from every angle !

i like mine ruined ! ,,, OH cooks me a steak just the way i love it !
cooks it each side for x amount of time then leaves it to rest for 2 minutes
he taught me the finger test too

Oven cooking is a no no, as it dries the meat out too much - which makes it tough I think

We just put a bit of oil in the bottom of the frying pan, and season during cooking

Beef in a casserole is great cos its well cooked and just falls apart - even the cheapish casserole packs from the supermarket always cook up nicely!
They are dead easy too - just get a big pot with a lid, pre heat the oven.
Cut the beef into 1 inch cubes and flour them in a bowl ( i add salt and pepper to the flour) then brown the beef in the frying pan with a bit of oil (pan and oil should be hot before you add). Put that in the pot.

Slice up half an onion and cook that til its cooked but not completly cooked - put that in the pot.
Slice up 2 carrots, I do cook these in the frying pan too but there is no real need!
I also add mushrooms

Then get a packet casserole sauce, mix with water and pour over, give it a good stir, bung it in the over, usually about an hour later its ready!

I like rib eye steak as it's not as expensive as fillet but really nice, and fillet for special ocassions. I only tenderise steak if it's a cheaper cut. I agree with Lisa, get it from the butcher, far better than most of the supermarket stuff. I lightly oil and season the steak rather than the pan, allowing it to get to room temperature. Don't let the salt sit on your steak for more than a few minutes before cooking, , as it draws out the moisture. Let the pan get really hot, before placingyour steak in the pan. Don't keep moving it or turning it, leave it for three minutes then turn After another three minutes, take the steak out and let it rest on a warm plate. For a rare steak, reduce the timings by a minute each side and for medium and well done, add a minute or two each side.

i must say i do mine on the george forman and dad gets mine from his butchers at asda (he makes sure they are nice an thick) handy having a daddy that works in a supermarket

Hmmm, so resting seems the way forward... I can do that
Lisa, guess what I'm on the look out for now

Something like that, yeah? Casserole sounds fab idea, can you freeze it too?
Michelle I know the finger test too but mine's more like a knuckle test by the time I'm finished with the poor thing I think I've grilled it usually, maybe that's where I've gone wrong - pan it is then! xx

oh my life - maybe not that one, eh
HOW much?!
http://www.habitat.co.uk/fcp/product/browse/22cm-round-casserole-pot/967182

i buy either rump or sirlion, make sure the pan is red hot, i hammer mine with a rolling pin, before i cook to tenderise, season with sea salt and pepper, fry in olive oil and garlic a few mins each side, then lower the heat until you get it to preferred texture. i then let it rest but put a big knob of butter on top.

It all depends on the cut of the meat pretty much. Rib or prime rib, NY strip, anything involving the tenderloin area should always be tender, but costs quite a bit. T-bone is in the middle and is what we usually buy, but after a good marinate in something. We have tried probably every store bought meat marinade and found that simply buying cheap old Italian salad dressing works the best and tastes amazing. Simply put the steaks in a zip lock baggy or in a covered container..pour in the dressing and let it sit for at least 2 hours..the longer the better up to a full day. We usually BBQ our steaks but getting the grill super hot to sear them on each side than we take them off to lower the temp, put them back on and cook to however requested. Medium rare is the way we like ours. xxx

See, now I just want steak a la Jen complete with you doing the cooking
Like the idea of a zip lock bag for marinating, touching raw meat freaks my fingers out a bit xx

oh yeh those are fab, I have 1 that was a gift and was a bit taken aback when i saw the price! They are fantastic though, Ive had it 8 years now and it has been used a lot and its still fab!

oh I must recommend this book!
Its called One Pot - and has over 90 recipes to make in just one pot, be it a casserole pot, wok, roating tin or a saucepan whatever - the isbn is 978-1-4075-7842-2 and it was reduced from £5 to £2 in the local garden centre

It is fab! http://www.booksprice.com/compare.do?inputData=978-1-4075-7842-2&Submit2.x=47&Submit2.y=12&Submit2=Search&searchType=isbn