We tend to store our heirlooms behind glass in a cabinet or in the shadows of a jewelry box, using them only on special occasions. Not so with cast iron, which belongs next to the tea kettle on the back of the stove. Smart cooks know the more they use cast iron—and the more love they feed it in the form of bacon fat—the better it functions. Cook with your cast iron skillet often enough and you’ll come to understand that cast iron has an old soul.
If the adage is true that every recipe tells a story, then every old cast-iron skillet is a well-seasoned memoir. Every time we light the stove and swirl fat into a hot iron pan to make cornbread, we turn another page. Listen to its dialogue: the business-like clank against the stove, the hard sizzle-sear of steak, the soothing dull scrape of a wooden spoon dragged through gravy. Pick up a 12-inch skillet; its encyclopedic heft demands two hands and your attention.
Cast-Iron Cowboy Steak
This is the best way to cook a thick, juicy bone-in steak restaurant-style without smoking up the house. The skillet surface area promotes a more assertive flavor and better sear than grill grates, yielding a steak with the proper steak house crust.
Ingredients
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (1 1/2- to 2-lb.) bone-in rib-eye or porterhouse steak (about 2 inches thick)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons butter
8 fresh herb sprigs (such as thyme, rosemary, and oregano)
3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
Preparation
1. Preheat grill to 400° to 450° (high) heat. Heat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet on grill, covered with grill lid, 15 minutes. Sprinkle salt and pepper generously over steak.
2. Add oil to cast iron skillet. (Oil should smoke.) Using tongs, place steak in cast iron skillet, and cook on grill, without grill lid, 10 minutes or until dark brown and crusty. Turn steak on fatty edge in cast iron skillet, holding upright with tongs, and cook 2 minutes. Place steak, uncooked side down, in cast iron skillet. Cook on grill, covered with grill lid, 8 to 10 minutes or to desired degree of doneness. ( We recommend an internal temperature of 120° to 125° for medium-rare; temperature will rise as steak rests.)
3. Add butter, herbs, and garlic to side of skillet, and cook 2 to 3 minutes or until butter foams. Tilt cast iron skillet slightly, and spoon butter mixture over steak 20 times ( being careful not to splatter ). Transfer steak, herbs, and garlic to a platter; let stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Slice against the grain.
How long does it take to cook steak on cast iron?
In total, the steak should be in the pan for less than 5 minutes, depending on your desired doneness. Prepping the meat and pan takes a little effort, but the cooking time is short and sweet since you’re using such an extreme temperature.
Once you’ve mastered steak, try these other cast-iron skillet recipes.
