To: patron_anejo_por_favor who wrote (22428 ) 9/29/2009 11:37:23 AM From: Box-By-The-Riviera™ 1 Recommendation Read Replies (5) | Respond to of 25073 funny thing about flank steak. back in the day it was not considered a prime cut, though one of the most flavorful areas of the animal. today, it sells in the 4-5 dollar range all day long. back then, it was the equivalent of beef heart for dog food. totally agree on the pat down/dry surface. its the same concept of saute. which is to say if the pan is not hot enough or the item is too cold when it hits the pan, instead of searing you may end up with boiling as the moisture leaks out of the meat. all residential stove top burners will never exceed 17k btu's... manufacturers are too scared. a restaurant top will go as high as 36k btu's on a gas model. so there's always a problem of compensating, including removing as much surface moisture as possible to avoid the steaming or the boiling, as you say. of course, a lot of meat has been injected now, so you are fighting the water in almost anything you buy. you can age your own beef though and get a whole different experience. i often take a whole top sirloin, put it on a rack inside a bowel and let it sit in the fridge for a week. always clean out the blood at the bottom. the meat will slowly dry out and the post enzymes in the tissues act further to break down the muscles. then simply trim out what you want to eat that night. simply discard any surface discoloration. try it sometime. take a piece and cook it right after you buy it. then air dry the rest, and try that using the same method to cook. you'll probably see a huge difference, but you are not paying "the aged" price for the meat.