Actually, in the case of beef, bacteria tends to only grow and accumulate on the outer surfaces of the meat. So if you have a nice thick steak you really only need to cook the very outer surfaces; leaving the inside blue and bloody is supposedly perfectly safe (not to mention delicious)!
I actually have quite a few friends who are chefs and one guy in particular claims that, at one very high end resturant he used to work at, they got such good cuts of beef that guys in the kitchen would slice off the top layers of the meat and then slice the remaining meat sashimi-style and eat it raw. He claims it was delicious and no one ever got sick!
To me that steak you pictured above looks just about perfect, mistwalker, but the wifey likes hers blue...I think she takes after Dennis Leary when he said "Bring me the cow; I'll eat what I want and ride the rest home!"
I actually have quite a few friends who are chefs and one guy in particular claims that, at one very high end resturant he used to work at, they got such good cuts of beef that guys in the kitchen would slice off the top layers of the meat and then slice the remaining meat sashimi-style and eat it raw. He claims it was delicious and no one ever got sick!
To me that steak you pictured above looks just about perfect, mistwalker, but the wifey likes hers blue...I think she takes after Dennis Leary when he said "Bring me the cow; I'll eat what I want and ride the rest home!"
Your warning reminded me of the time I was in Waffle House and ordered a steak med rare. I had to sign a waiver, and then the guy over cooked anyway.