steaks before and after cooking Aside from a minimal amount of weight loss due to rendered fat, the vast majority of weight loss comes from juices that are forced out of the meat When cooked to 130°F, a steak loses around 12 percent of its weight during cooking Cut it open immediately, and you lose an additional 9 percent But allow it to rest, and you can keep the additional weight loss down to around 2 percent Resting is not just for steaks, by the way At a fundamental level, pretty much all meat behaves the same way, whether it’s a 30-pound standing rib roast or a 6-ounce chicken breast The only differences are that just as cooking times are different for different-sized pieces of meat, so are resting times By far the easiest and most foolproof way to test if your meat has rested long enough is the same way you can tell if your meat is cooked properly: with a thermometer Ideally, no matter how well-done you’ve cooked your meat, you want to allow it to cool until the very center is about degrees below its maximum temperature So for a medium-rare 130°F steak, you should allow it to cool to at least 125°F in the center before serving At this stage, the muscle fibers have relaxed enough and the juices have thickened enough that you should have no problem with losing juices With in a 1½-inch-thick steak or a whole chicken breast, this translates to around 10 minutes For a prime rib, it may take as long as 45 minutes Afraid your steak will lose its crust as it rests? Easy solution: Reheat its pan drippings (or melt a panful of butter if you cooked the steak on the grill) and pour, smoking hot, over the steak just before serving ... it rests? Easy solution: Reheat its pan drippings (or melt a panful of butter if you cooked the steak on the grill) and pour, smoking hot, over the steak just before serving