What’s more elusive than a well-seared steak with a rosy interior? A well-seared thin steak with a rosy interior. Even when the meat’s surface is dry and the heat is cranked—prime conditions for browning—it’s a race against time to develop a rich crust before the inside goes gray.
Plenty of cooking traditions boost browning by coating proteins with something sweet. Think: kalbi (Korean grilled short ribs), thit heo nuong xa (Vietnamese grilled lemongrass pork chops), and the aptly named sugar steak that’s claimed by Bastien’s Restaurant in Denver but appears in eateries and recipes
