predicate.

Take your steak.... you did buy a good thick ribeye or other high-quality steak from your local butcher, didn't you? If not, you may as well stew it. But, if you DO have a good, high quality steak or two, start by sprinkling liberally with kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper on both sides of the steak, and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Preheat your oven to as high as it will go, or 500 degrees will do. Meanwhile, put high heat under your cast-iron skillet.... you don't have a cast-iron skillet?

[If all you have is non-stick stuff, well, you shouldn't just have that. Visit your local restaurant supply store or Williams-Sonoma or Sur La Table - you whould be able to pick up a preseasoned cast-iron skillet for around 10 bucks. And that skillet, if you treat it well, will be useful for years to come. Go get one.]

You've got your steak(s) seasoned and your pan pre-heated on high heat, so much so that it's smoking. Rub your steak(s) on both sides with oil - I prefer olive, you may use whatever. Your pan is now rocket hot - toss the steak(s) in! Make sure that there is some room between steaks if you are doing two. Then... don't touch it for the next three minutes. I mean do NOT touch it. Don't even look at it. Magic - tasty magic - is happening. When those three minutes are up, flip the steak(s) quickly, turn off the heat, and stick in the probe thermometer to the thickest part of the steak(s). Immediately after that, transfer it into the oven. Make sure the probe isn't jammed in so far into the meat that it's touching the metal. Set your probe thermometer to go off at 123 degrees if you like your steak very rare, 125 if you like it rare, 130 if you like it medium rare, 135 if you like it medium, and whatever the fuck you feel like after that. I buy my leather at the shoe shop, but there's nought as queer as folk and people do like what they like.

As soon as the temp alarm goes off, take the pan out of the oven and the steak(s) out of the pan and put them on a plate. It is imperative that you let the steak(s) rest for about 5 minutes, but after that...enjoy! You may also wish to slice up some mushrooms or onions and cook them in the steak drippings and residual heat in the cast-iron pan. If you do so... please invite me over, because of yum.