"grilling" the perfect steak (sans grill)

I have to admit, in my 25 years of loving everything about beef, I didn't start cooking steak until a few months ago. The task always seemed so daunting, like I needed a grill or expertise or, at the very least, testosterone.

Of course, once Stephen showed me this stupid easy way to "grill" the perfect steak (seriously, perfect), we started eating steak at least weekly. He studies for the bar, I steadily make progress toward a Grill Master certification.

Be warned: I am not a cook. At all. I hate it. (I enjoy baking.) So, this isn't some great precedent for scores of recipes I share. But, I figured there are other people who are clueless about steak. And what better time to share/learn how to cook a steak than July 4th?

You'll need:

• Steak
• Salt
• Pepper
• Olive Oil
• Iron Skillet
• Appetite

 I'm gonna go ahead and apologize for how disgusting meat looks in my photos.

While you're prepping the meat, heat up your iron skillet with the eye set to "High."

You're going to season these to taste, which, for me, doesn't take much.

Sprinkle with salt on both sides.

Crack fresh pepper, again, on both sides.

Go ahead and give both sides a good rub, too, to get the seasoning in the meat.

Your skillet should be good and hot now, so drizzle olive oil in it. It doesn't take much (especially if your skillet is well-loved).

Next, throw your steaks in and sear each side for 30 seconds. This is important because it keeps the yummy juices in.

**Update: According to a friend of mine, if you like your steak toward the rare side (no thank you), sear each side for 1 minute, 30 seconds and be done with it. If bloody steak juices ooze all over your plate and make you gag, blame him.**

The just-seared side should look a bit like this. It should be brown with a bit of red showing through in some places.

Once both sides are seared, turn the heat down to Medium-Low. It's a good rule of thumb to start with 5-6 minutes for each side. I did seven minutes with these two; it was perfect (medium) for the thicker steak, but the thinner steak was almost well done.

You can always cut into the thicker bits of the meat to ensure it's cooked the way you like it before you decide whether to cook it longer.

Auto-focus. le sigh.

Enjoy!

Do you have any great tips for the perfect steak?