“You’ll never guess what we put in our steaks,” Black Star Burger chef Artem Loginov smiled mysteriously in an interview with GQ .
It turned out that we were talking about corn starch, which fans immediately dubbed “baby powder.”
“They sprinkle it on meat before frying,” blogger Max Ershov revealed the secret in an investigation for the YouTube channel FoodBand .
"It absorbs excess moisture, creating that crispy crust." Chef Jacob Klein of New York's The Smile confirmed:
“I tested the method on a ribeye and the crust looks like it was dry-aged.”
But how does it work? Chemist and technologist Elena Vorobyeva explained in the Science of Taste podcast: “Starch binds water molecules on the surface of the meat.
When fried, they evaporate instantly and the temperature reaches 200°C – this triggers the Maillard reaction, which is responsible for the aroma.”
Serious Eats magazine conducted an experiment: two steaks were cooked the same way, but one was sprinkled with starch. The tasters unanimously chose the second one: "The crust was crispy like bacon, and the inside was juicy rare."
Blogger Igor from Kazan showed a life hack in a TikTok video:
"I mixed starch with finely ground coffee - it created a smoky effect. Now everyone thinks I have a smokehouse!"
And chef Konstantin Ivlev warned on the show Hell's Kitchen :
“Starch should be applied a minute before frying, otherwise it will absorb the salt and dry out the meat.”
User Natalia from Sochi shared on Instagram Myasnoy Rai :
“I sprinkled some starch on the chicken breast and fried it – my husband said it was the best steak he’d ever had!”
Surprisingly, the method has scientific roots. A study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry states: “Corn starch forms a microfilm that holds the juices in, even if the meat is overcooked.”
And chef David Chang admitted in his book Momofuku :
"I use this trick for burgers - the patties don't fall apart and stay pink inside."
Author: Valeria Kisternaya
