Rust CohleYou have to try stove-top butter-basting it’s a great solution to making a perfect steak. Throw in some herbs and shallots, and you will have a steak exploding with flavors. The best part about a butter-basted steak is that you get a deeply caramelized, dark bark. That’s where most of the flavor comes from in a steak – a richly caramelized bark. That’s why we sear steaks – to give them more flavor.
Butter-basting gives a steak more flavor
To get the best out of you porterhouse steak, start preparing it a few days in advance. Season it liberally with salt and pepper, place in an uncovered container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. The salt will penetrate the meat and tenderize it.
To take your porterhouse steak to an even higher level, if that’s even possible, serve it with a homemade chimichurri. Argentinians really hit the nail on the head when they decided to put this oil, vinegar, and herb mixture on grilled meat – it adds a complexity of flavor and balance. Once you try it with steak it’s hard to not want to do it again and again.
Ingredients
- 1 porterhouse steak (1 1/2″ to 2 1/2″ thick)
- kosher salt (to taste)
- ground black pepper (to taste)
- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 large shallots (thinly sliced)
Directions
- Pat dry the steak with paper towels. Season liberally on all sides with salt and pepper. Place in an open container and refrigerate for 1 to 3 days, flipping once every 12 hours and patting dry with paper towels. Refrigerated steak needs to be removed from the fridge an hour prior to cooking to come to room temperature.
- Heat the oil and the butter in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until just beginning to smoke and the butter starts to turn brown. Carefully add the steak and sear, flipping it every 15-20 seconds, until a golden-brown crust starts to develop, about 5 minutes.
- Add the herbs and shallots to the skillet and continue to cook, flipping the steak occasionally and basting it with the foaming butter, shallots, and thyme until the desired doneness is achieved:
- To baste, tilt the pan a little until you can get a tablespoonful of butter, then pour the hot butter over the steak. To get even cooking, try pouring the butter over lighter spots on the steak. If the butter starts to smoke excessively or the steak begins to brown too quickly, lower the heat down to medium.
- Once the desired doneness is achieved, transfer the steak to a cutting board and let rest for 5-10 minutes.
