Chef settles debate on whether to use oil or butter when cooking steak

Two chefs have given their views on whether home cooks should use oil or butter to fry their steaks. Ioannis Grammenos, a chef, the world's first meatologist and founder of the UK's first School of Meatology, and Cveta Dukovska, founder and head chef of The Bountiful Cow restaurant in Holborn, spoke to the Express after a standout steak event at which the two chefs showcased their impressive cooking techniques.

The steak experts revealed the one thing many home cooks go back and forth on-whether to use oil or butter. According to Ionnais and Cveta, there is only one correct answer.

Steaks should be cooked using oil, but not just any. It should be olive oil.

Ionnais told the Express: "I don't agree with frying our steaks with butter because butter has milk proteins, so when it is at more than 100C you get burnt butter."

But for those who love the taste of butter, this doesn't mean you have to cut it out completely, Ionnais says you can add the ingredient on top of it during what is known as "the resting point" and let it melt nicely onto the meat.

He added: "Olive oil has a natural resistance to heat, and you have a natural flavour, but butter covers the flavour of your steak. So if you use butter, use it after you cook it [the steak]. Use it on top, let it melt, and it'll work nicely, rather than having a burnt flavour or burnt sensation on your steak.

"I know people love butter, but use it at the end. A nice teaspoon on the top, let it melt, and it'll be perfect."

The Bountiful Cow's head chef agreed. "It needs to be olive oil for frying, you can't just use any [oil]," Cveta told the Express.

However, if you can't grasp the idea of not using butter in the pan, Cveta says, "If you really like butter," a clarified one could be an option. This is because all the milk solids are removed and can be heated to higher temperatures before burning.

Though Ionnais assured that olive oil has been his go-to for 36 years and that he has never used "anything else".