Reheating steak and pizza at home

Delivery food is designed to be eaten when it arrives. But half a pizza in the fridge and the other half of a rib eye are a real situation, and there is a right way to bring both back. The principle is the same for everything: heat gently to warm the inside, then hit the outside hard and briefly to bring the crust back. The microwave does the first part badly and the second part not at all.

Steak

Take it out of the fridge 20 to 30 minutes before you start. A cold centre needs more heat to warm through, and more heat means more overcooking at the edge.

The best method: low oven, then a hot pan

1. Heat the oven to 110 to 120 °C. Put the steak on a rack over a tray so air moves around it.
2. Warm it until the centre is just below where you want it, roughly 15 to 25 minutes depending on thickness. A probe thermometer reading 45 to 50 °C is the target for medium rare.
3. Heat a heavy pan until it is smoking, add a little neutral oil, and sear the steak 30 to 45 seconds per side. That rebuilds the crust without cooking the middle further.
4. Rest two or three minutes and slice.

The fast method: slice and warm in the sauce

Slice the cold steak thinly against the grain. Warm the sauce (truffle, pepper, red wine, whatever came with it) in a small pan until it just steams, take it off the heat, and drop the slices in for a minute. The residual heat warms the meat without cooking it. This is the best use of a leftover filet mignon, which is too lean to survive a second sear.

What not to do

• Do not microwave a whole steak. The outside overcooks while the centre is still cold, and the texture turns rubbery.
• Do not reheat it straight from fridge-cold in a hot pan. You will get a grey band and a cold core.
• Do not go past medium. Dry-aged beef has less water than fresh beef and dries faster once it is overcooked.

Pizza

The best method: covered pan with a splash of water

1. Put a slice into a dry non-stick or cast iron pan over medium heat. Give it two minutes so the base crisps.
2. Drop a teaspoon of water into the pan next to the slice, not on it, and put a lid on straight away. The steam melts the cheese while the base stays crisp.
3. One to two minutes with the lid on and it is better than most pizza that arrives fresh.

The oven, for several slices at once

Heat the oven and a baking tray together to 200 °C. Lay the slices on the hot tray and give them five to seven minutes. The hot metal matters: a cold tray steams the base soft.

The microwave, if you must

Put a cup of water in with the slice and use short bursts of 20 to 30 seconds. The water keeps the crust from turning to leather. It will still be soft, so finish it 30 seconds in a hot dry pan if you can.

Wedges, fries, potatoes

Fried and roasted potatoes come back well in a hot oven at 220 °C on a tray for eight to ten minutes, or in an air fryer at 200 °C for five. Spread them out in one layer. The microwave makes them soft and is not worth it.

Sauces and soups

Warm sauces gently in a small pan, stirring, and stop as soon as they steam. Cream and butter based sauces split if boiled. Soups can go straight into a pan and be brought to a simmer; the tomato and seafood soup is better if it is not boiled hard, so the seafood stays tender.

Cheat sheet

Food	Method	Time
Whole steak	110 °C oven on a rack, then 30 to 45 s per side in a smoking pan	15 to 25 min + 1 min
Sliced steak	Warm in the sauce off the heat	1 min
Pizza slice	Dry pan, teaspoon of water beside it, lid on	3 to 4 min
Whole pizza	200 °C oven, preheated tray	5 to 7 min
Wedges, fries	220 °C oven or 200 °C air fryer, one layer	5 to 10 min
Sauce	Small pan, low heat, stir, do not boil	2 to 3 min

Cool leftovers within two hours, keep them covered in the fridge, and eat them within two days. Reheat only once.