Resting meat

Resting meat means letting it stand after cooking, before carving or slicing. A rested steak or roast loses less juice on the board and cooks more evenly to the center. Rest time depends on size: a few minutes for a chop, up to 30 minutes for a large roast or turkey.

How to do it

1. Take the meat off the heat a little before your target temperature, because it keeps cooking. See carryover cooking.
2. Move it to a warm plate, a cutting board with a groove, or a wire rack over a tray, which keeps the crust crisp.
3. If the room is cold, tent it loosely with foil. Wrapping it tightly steams the crust.
4. Rest steaks, chops and chicken breasts for 5 to 10 minutes, a whole chicken or pork tenderloin for 10 to 15 minutes, and large roasts and turkey for 15 to 30 minutes.
5. Slice it, and pour any juices on the plate back over the meat or into the sauce.

How to tell it is done

The internal temperature has stopped climbing and starts to fall slightly. The meat is still hot inside.

Why it works

As meat cooks, the fibers tighten and push liquid toward the center, and the outside is much hotter than the middle. While it rests, the heat evens out and the meat firms up, so it holds juices better when cut. Resting lets the internal temperature rise a few degrees as heat moves inward. For large roasts this can be 5°C (10°F) or more, so the target temperature you pull at matters.

For safety, rely on the temperature, not only the rest. USDA guidance for whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb is 63°C (145°F) followed by a 3-minute rest. Poultry should reach 74°C (165°F).

Common mistakes

• Cutting a steak straight from the pan, so juice runs out.
• Resting too long, so the meat goes cold and the crust softens.
• Wrapping it tightly in foil.
• Forgetting carryover heat and overcooking a roast.

In recipes

"Let rest", "rest before carving" and "allow to stand" all mean this. Topping a resting steak with compound butter adds a simple sauce.