The One Food Wolfgang Puck Wouldn't Cook As A Young Chef

Wolfgang Puck has likely never encountered a dish that he couldn't conquer. Having begun his culinary training at the early age of 14, Puck is the only chef to ever receive the James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef multiple times. He is the owner of several renowned restaurants like Los Angeles hot spots Spago and CUT, has appeared on countless cooking shows, served as a judge on "Hell's Kitchen" and "Master Chef," and even assumed roles on primetime hits like "Frasier" and "The Simpsons." There is seemingly nothing that this culinary genius with such charismatic personality can't do. 

That doesn't mean, however, that there are things he won't do. Like most chefs, Puck knows that certain foods should be cooked a certain way. To deviate from this would be an abomination. As a result, when Puck was a young chef, there was one dish that he refused to cook.  

It's no secret that Wolfgang Puck is not a fan of well-done steak. As he recently shared on TikTok, he likes his steaks rare to medium-rare, conceding, "We have restaurants in the Middle East and everybody eats it well-done." He explains that his eateries sell more Japanese steaks in that region than anywhere else in the world, as these cuts of beef have more fat and can take being cooked a little longer. Puck went on to admit, "When I was a young cook, if somebody wanted a steak well-done, I told them to go and eat a chicken." 

So, how does Wolfgang Puck recommend achieving a perfectly-cooked steak? He tells Tasting Table that it is best to start with meat that is room temperature and properly salted on both sides and rubbed with olive oil. He contends that using a barbeque grill is best as it caramelizes the fat into the meat. If you want a great way to tell if the meat is done, Puck shared this trick with Stylist: Press your finger into the flesh between your thumb and forefinger with your hand stretched open wide. That is how springy a medium-rare steak should be when you press your finger into it. And always let your steak rest for 5-10 minutes. 

The bottom line is that, if you prefer to have all the pink in your beef replaced by brownish-gray, it may be wise to refrain from ordering steak by Wolfgang Puck. Perhaps, he can recommend the chicken.