Steak will be cooked to medium when it feels springy with blunt tongs. A meat thermometer will show the internal temperature of a medium steak as 140–150°F (60–65°C).
Medium rare steak temp is 130–135°F, Medium steak temp is 135–145°F.
The USDA recommends steaks and roasts be cooked to 145°F (medium) and then rested for at least 3 minutes. To ensure food safety, ground beef should be cooked to a minimum 160°F (well done). Be sure to check with a thermometer, as color alone is not a foolproof indicator.
No risk of sickness
So eating that medium or rare steak isn't going to make you sick. More to the point, cooking a steak to rare – an internal temperature of 135°F is heating the meat hot enough to kill the bacteria that cause those ailments in the first place.
When you cook a steak to medium-rare the internal temperature is hot enough to allow excess moisture to escape through vapor or steam, keeping your steak juicy and flavorful. Medium or well-done steak not only exceeds the just right zone of protein balance, but it also causes moisture to evaporate from your meat.
Cooking ground beef to 160°F kills E. coli germs rapidly. If irradiated ground beef becomes readily available, food safety programs may also wish to consider educating restaurant owners about it.
If you like rare beef cook the joint for 20 minutes per 450g plus 20 minutes, for a medium result cook the meat for 25 minutes per 450g plus 25 minutes and for a well done joint cook it for 30 minutes per 450g plus 30 minutes. Once the joint is cooked allow it to stand for 10 minutes this will make it easier to carve.
The "Danger Zone" (40 °F-140 °F)
This range of temperatures is often called the "Danger Zone." That's why the Meat and Poultry Hotline advises consumers to never leave food out of refrigeration over 2 hours. If the temperature is above 90 °F, food should not be left out more than 1 hour.
Medium (140°-150°F)
A steak cooked “medium” will be mostly pink. A small ring of grey may form on the outside and a strip of red will remain in the center. For steaks with more marbling, this will be the temperature where the fat begins to liquefy and add flavor.
Internal temperature should be 120-125 degrees F (49-52 degrees C) for RARE, 125-135 degrees F (54-57 degrees C) for MEDIUM RARE, and 135-140 degrees F (57-60 degrees C) for MEDIUM. Remove from your smoker and loosely cover with aluminum foil for about 30 minutes to rest the smoked beef roast.
Any meat bought from a reputable source will carry very little risk of salmonella, E. coli or any other scary ailment associated with undercooked meat. So eating that medium or rare steak isn't going to make you sick.
Stages of steak doneness:
Medium Rare. Medium. Medium Well. Well Done.
Raw, rare, and medium-rare steaks pose an increased risk of foodborne illness regardless of age, but babies and young children are more susceptible and more at risk of serious illness.
The answer: When it comes to nutrients – protein, iron, zinc, etc. – there's no difference between steak that is cooked medium rare or well done. The concern is that meat cooked until it's well done contains more potential carcinogens called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) than meat cooked for a shorter time.
So when that filet or T-bone reaches the restaurant and you order it medium-rare, the bacteria on the outside will be killed when the steak is seared, but anything living on the inside will continue to thrive.
An example of this is the tenderloin or, otherwise known as the eye fillet. This cut should be placed in the oven on a very high heat (180 – 200 degrees C) for a short period of time to reduce meat shrinkage. The idea is to achieve a well – browned flavoured exterior and a rare to med – rare tender interior.
To roast a whole joint preheat the oven to 180°C/160° fan/gas 4 and weigh the joint (with any stuffing, if using) in order to calculate the cooking time. Place in the centre of the oven; Rare – cook for 20 minutes per 450g plus 20 minutes. Medium – cook for 25 minutes per 450g plus 25 minutes.
The internal temperature of a rare steak falls between 120 and 120℉. Rare steak does not need to be cooked for very long, but it's still somewhat warm in the middle. To achieve a rare internal temperature, you'll remove the steak when it reaches 115℉.