temperature of 130°F, then sliced one open every 2½ minutes to see how much juice would leak out Here’s what happened: • After no resting: The meat at the exterior of the steak (the parts that were closest to the pan) is well over 200°F At this temperature range, the muscle fibers are pinched tightly shut, preventing them from holding on to any moisture The center of the steak is at 125°F While it can hold on to some of its juices at this temperature, cutting the meat fibers open is like slitting the side of a soda bottle: some juice might stay in there (mostly through surface tension), but liquid is going to spill out • After 5 minutes of resting: The outermost layers of meat are down to around 145°F and the center of the steak is still at 125°F At this stage, the muscle fibers have relaxed a bit, stretching open a little wider This stretching motion creates a pressure differential between the center of the muscle fibers and the ends, pulling some of the liquid out from the middle toward the edges As a result, there is less liquid in the center of the steak Cut it open now, and some of the liquid will spill out, but far less than before • After 10 minutes of resting : The edges of the steak have cooled all the way down to around 125°F, allowing them to suck up even more liquid from the center of the steak What’s more, the center of the steak has cooled down to around 120°F, causing it to widen slightly Cut the meat open at this stage, and the liquid will be so evenly distributed throughout the steak that surface tension is enough to keep it from spilling out onto the plate The difference is dramatic Look back at the unrested steak, then take a look at this one: With the unrested steak, all those delicious succulent juices are all over the plate With the rested steak, everything stays inside, right where it belongs But wait a minute—how we know that those juices really are staying inside the rested steaks? Is it not possible that in the 10 minutes you allowed it to rest that the liquid has simply evaporated, leaving you with a steak that is equally unmoist? To prove this is not the case, all you need to is weigh the ... slightly Cut the meat open at this stage, and the liquid will be so evenly distributed throughout the steak that surface tension is enough to keep it from spilling out onto the plate The difference... is dramatic Look back at the unrested steak, then take a look at this one: With the unrested steak, all those delicious succulent juices are all over the plate With the rested steak, everything stays inside, right where it belongs... we know that those juices really are staying inside the rested steaks? Is it not possible that in the 10 minutes you allowed it to rest that the liquid has simply evaporated, leaving you with