~Simple Steak Dinner~

I hope everyone had a good Valentine's Day! There's nothing better than a nice steak dinner to celebrate!



I was talking to my girl the other day and she said she is having a hard time cooking and all. I have known her for......13 years and I don't really recall eating anything she has cooked. I told her it's easy. It takes me about 30 mins to make dinner on a good day. Granted, a lot of times, the meat is already prepared (cut and marinated). So, I told her it's very easy to make steaks. Just thought I would share with everyone else since I wrote it up. It's long, I know, but I am pretending that she knows nothing about cooking. It's just safer this way :)

The short version.

1. Gather ingredients: Steak, seasoning, toppings like onions, bell peppers, mushrooms.
2. Heat up the pan.
3. Put the steak in the pan when it's hot.
4. Sear both sides for about a minute.
5. Sprinkle seasoning on both side.
6. Turn down to medium eat.
7. Cook for another minute - 2 minutes each side.
8. Take it out. Slice it a lil bit to make sure it's not undercooked.
9. Use the remaining juice to cook the toppings. Add more seasoning and a little oil.

Step 1
Buy the steak. I think about once a month or so, a major grocery store will have 50% off sales for NY Strip or Porterhouse steak. Last week, it was ribeye at the local Safeway (aka Dominick's in Illinois). $4.77/lb. Good deal. They can be kept in the freezer for a while if wrapped correctly, so buy a bunch if it's on sale!

Step 2
Pick (and buy) your seasoning. The most basic is just black pepper and salt. Steak is good on its own. You can also get one of those "steak seasoning" in at the grocery store and it's good already. My personal secret sauce is Maggie's seasoning (I think it's German soy sauce), honey, black pepper, cayenne pepper, white pepper and garlic salt. My fiance likes Worcestershire sauce.

Step 2.5
Thaw your steak, if it was frozen. You can take it out of the freezer in the morning and put it in the fridge. I don't like to defrost with microwave 'cause usually the outside starts cooking before the inside is defrosted

Step 3
Heat up the pan. It's hot enough if you put your hand over the pan and you feel heat (probably take a minute or two on high).

Step 4
Depending on the pan, you may not need oil. The steak is going to drip out oil anyway. Be healthy and skip the oil. Put the steak in and seared both sides for about a minute each.

Step 5
Sprinkle the seasoning on both sides. I usually put enough to sparsely cover the steak on both sides. Turn heat to medium. Cook each side for a minute or two more. It really depends on the thickness of the steak and how well done you like it. You can kinda tell how done the steak it by poking it. If it feels soft, it's not that done. If it's hard....uh too late..... you probably over cooked it. I usually put honey in last because honey burns easily, about 2 tablespoonfuls or just drizzle over the steak. With the Maggie sauce, it turns into this like syrupy sauce.

Seasoning is an art. It's very objective, so try it a few times and figure out what you like. Better to go light first though.

Step 6
Take it out and slice it where it's the thickest to make sure it's cooked enough. If it's not, stick it back in the pan.

Step 7
Usually, I cut the toppings while the steak is cooking. I like to cut everything into slices. For bell peppers, sometimes I like to cut laterally 'cause it's pretty! Specially the colored bell peppers....it's like flowers.

No need to clean the pan, just turn the heat a little bit higher and throw the toppings in it. Stir it around. If you don't like your onions well done, throw it in a minute after the mushrooms and peppers. You can tell they are cooked, when they are soft. For onions, they get translucent.

Pour on top of the steak and you are done!



Takes 5 minutes to make a salad too. Just wash and cut up some lettuce, and whatever you like. Or be lazy and buy the prepared bags. Get some light vinegarette to lessen the guilt of eating that huge juicy yummy steak :)