With Soul
I laughed to myself as we made our way to exit 36 on the Long Island Expressway. In front of us a delivery truck from “Main Street Meats” was making its way to one of the many high end steakhouses on Long Island. Main Street Meats was our meat purveyor, along with the meat purveyor for Prime, Red, Jonathan’s, Blackstone, and the list goes on.
My dad had a running joke at Mac’s about the steak after one reviewer said “they don’t serve high end meat”. “Right, because Main Street puts all the shitty ones in the corner just for Mac’s. These fucking people.” I can still hear him say as he huffed his way to the kitchen, probably to check the cuts that were just delivered.
I reminisced on this as I followed the truck to Jericho Turnpike, they turned right and I continued straight still thinking of the idea that we all got the same steak, so what made everything different from restaurant to restaurant?
Was it the refrigeration?
The way we seasoned it?
The grill? Or, did some of the competitors pan sear each steak?
Was it the atmosphere, or the staff?
Fixated, the thought became bigger as I submerged myself further and further into the quiet woods, Marco a few steps ahead of me.
“What makes me different?” I thought, as a screen of perspiration started developing on my skin. Was it the heat or an overwhelming sense of anxiety causing this? I have the same camera as a million other photographers, the same software, the same computer… what makes a client want to work with me?
As a writer, I am certainly not the best and yet I keep chipping away at it. What makes salt with soul unique? What makes the novel I’m writing any different than the billions that exist already? Am I just reinventing the wheel? Why am I hear?… the existential thoughts creeping quickly as the Pisces in me tried to wrap my head around the fact that I am not the best at anything, therefore I am not that unique.
We got to the top of a mild hill when a subconscious thought crossed my mind: “you don’t have to be the best to be unique, you have to be yourself”
I calmed those anxious thoughts as we approached the beach. Letting Marco run into the water to cool down, I realized that the essence of what makes a place or service different is how you present yourself.
What if we have the idea of being unique all wrong? At Mac’s, I thought in order to stand out from the other 30 steakhouses, we had to be the best. It wasn’t until it closed that I realized what made us unique was the connections we had with so many customers.
Being unique, whether it’s as a person, a business person, a creative, an artist- whatever - is about presenting the most authentic version of yourself. My previous blogs failed because I was not being 100% myself; there was always a layer of fraudulence that I eventually would run away from.
We only thrive and meet the best versions of ourselves when we recognize that our story is different because it’s being told our way. We are putting our unique fingerprint on it, therefore it is ours and nobody else’s. We can admire and learn from others, but we will never be them AND THAT’S A GOOD THING. How boring would the world be if we were all the same?
It’s how we chose to interpret, share, create - our way- that makes it unique. That’s why fraudulent behavior is always sniffed out. We cannot be something we are not, regardless of how hard we try. So, why are we trying to be something we are not?
This week, I hope you root yourself in you. Who are you and what do you want to tell the world about yourself? I hope this week you think about it. Write it down. Embrace it. The moment you do is the moment you’re free. Free from all the fucks to give because you know yourself.
As for me, my fingerprint will always be the way I can make anyone feel comfortable; whether it’s in front of the camera, or just in conversation.
With Salt
In honor of mentioning Mac’s, I’m about to teach you the best way to make a steak. But, first, a lesson.
Porterhouses, sirloins, strips: will always have very little fat
Ribeye or Skirt Steak: lots of fat
Filet Mignon: no fat, very lean.
So, when you’re cooking steak, your goal is to break down the fat enzymes that are inheritently there without making it too “rubbery”. And, the best way to do that is by adding….
BUTTAH.
Fat breaks down fat. Olive Oil can do this, but it heats up too quickly, smoking out your kitchen. Butter is the softness your steak needs in order to sear and cook thoroughly.
So, now that you’ve accepted that this isn’t going to be the healthiest recipe I offer you, let’s continue.
INGREDIENTS:
Steak cut of your choice (I usually go Filet or NY Strip)
1 stick of a butter
Salt, preferably sea salt
Garlic
Optional: Fresh Rosemary
STEPS:
Before starting, make sure your steaks are ROOM TEMPERTURE and salted on both sides. I usually put garlic cloves in my steak as it comes to room temperature. Seriously, if they’re just coming out of the fridge, they won’t taste the same because the water from being chilled releases into the steak and it’s just meh. Also, I’m going to be making this dish with rosemary but I know it’s one of those adversary spices not everyone loves. Just remove it if you don’t like it.
Heat half a stick of butter and two tablespoons of rosemary in a frying pan on medium heat
Once melted, put your first steaks in (I suggest cooking two at a time)
Grab a spoon, and start taking the butter and bringing it on top of the steak, pressing down as you apply it. Your goal is to tenderize the side not cooking by applying butter to it and pressing down
After four minutes, flip the steak and add the other half of the butter. Use your spoon and keep the “up” side nice and juicy by applying the butter.
After another four minutes, pull the steak and let it rest on your cutting board.
Now, if you’re like me, this will be the perfect Medium Rare Steak. If the cut is thiccc (a filet is usually thiccc), add a minute to both sides.
If you like your steak cooked more, have no fear, I have a solution, ya hear?!
Turn your oven on to 325 and bake the steak with the excess butter from the pan for 5-7 minutes.
Viole! You’re now a steakhouse line cook. I usually air fry some potatoes or Brussel sprouts as a side… unless my dad is around and then I ask him make mashed potatoes because he truly makes the best ones. (He won’t give me the recipe, I’ve tried)