Pan-fried Beef Steak
Cooking a great steak entirely depends on preparation and choice of meat. Here is a simple recipe for pan-frying and broiling a steak. This method involves stove-cooking (pan frying to sear and brown the outside), followed by oven-cooking to ensure even cooking, both at high heat. One can omit the oven, but this results in less even cooking, particularly for thicker cuts.
Ingredients
- A cut of steak (see notes)
- Rock salt or coarse sea salt
- Peppercorns
- Olive oil or other oil of choice
Ingredients for 1 serving (225 g) · the original recipe
Method
- 1
Preparation: The frying phase can result in quite a bit of smokiness, so plan ahead by opening windows or otherwise ventilating the kitchen.
Stovetop - 2
Bring the steak to room temperature.
- 3
Rinse the meat with cold water and dry it with a paper towel.
- 4
Coat it very lightly with olive oil.
- 5
Grind the salt and peppercorns into a small bowl (use your judgement as to how much to use), mix them together, and rub this onto the meat, coating both sides. The more salt and pepper you use, the more crust will be formed once cooked. However, you may also cover up the natural flavor of the beef.
- 6
Preheating: Preheat an oven to as high a temperature as the desired skillet will be able to withstand. For example, the average plastic-handled aluminum grill pan will only survive up to around 160° C (300° F), but a cast iron pan can go higher.
OvenStovetop - 7
Heat the skillet on the stove over medium to medium-high heat until it is evenly heated (the higher temperature will finish cooking the outside more quickly, allowing a pinker center). Test the temperature by flicking a few drops of water onto the pan—they should sizzle.
Stovetop - 8
Cooking: Place the oiled steak onto the pan, and let sear for about 2–3 minutes. The meat should sizzle when it hits the pan.
Stovetop - 9
Flip the meat over, and cook for another 2–3 minutes.
- 10
Place the entire pan in the preheated oven. Roast for 2–4 minutes.
Oven - 11
Remove the steak promptly from the oven, put it on a plate, and let it rest for 5–10 minutes. This ensures more even cooking as the cooler interior continues to heat, and it allows the juices inside the steak to re-distribute through the meat.
Oven - 12
Serve with red wine and a starch such as potatoes, rice, or bread.
Recipe from Wikibooks Cookbook, written by Wikibooks contributors. Used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence; the ingredient list and method on this page are taken from that page and edited (its notes, tips and variations are not reproduced), and are available under the same licence. The macros, equipment tags and scaling are Ma Kitchen’s own and are not the source’s figures. Ma Kitchen is not affiliated with or endorsed by Wikibooks Cookbook. Copied on 2026-11-12.
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