Pan Seared Oven Roasted Steak – juicy and tasty medium-rare steak beautifully seared on stovetop and roasted in the oven for a lovely finish. A fancy restaurant-quality dish without the hefty price tag!
Truth be told, I simply cannot give up meat any time soon because of steaks! I usually order them at a restaurant and even make one at home when I want to. So yes, I’m a big carnivore! How can you even think of giving it up when it’s juicy, flavorful and a joy to eat?
And one of my favorite ways of preparing my steak is pan searing it first on the stovetop and roasting it in the oven for a nicer finish. For some of you, cooking steak might be a tricky one, but once you nail it, you’ll become expert at it! You don’t even need a sauce to go along with it. A good pan seared steak is fantastic enough!
How to Cook Steak In A Pan?
A good steak usually starts with a good sear in a pan. But first, you have to master the art of choosing the perfect beef cut for a good quality. Rib-eye, sirloin or New York steak are my top 3 picks for seared steak. Try to also select a thick steak that is at least 1 1/2 inch thick with marbling (little veins of fat across the meat).
Before you even start heating the pan, make sure that you remove the meat from the package and lay it down on a plate lined with a few paper towels at room temperature and season it with salt and with my homemade steak seasoning HERE. This method helps remove excess moisture and help intensify the flavor.
For a better resulting pan-seared steak, I always use a cast iron pan, however, if you don’t have one, any oven-safe, uncoated with good heat retention pan will do. Do not use nonstick cookware.
I start off by melting oil plus butter in my 12-inch cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Some would prefer oil alone due to the butter’s low smoking point, but I prefer that hint of buttery taste and smell on steak. Then sear both sides of the steak for 4-5 minutes per side until a slight dark crust is formed. And throw in the garlic and rosemary as aromatics.
Lastly, transfer the pan to the preheated oven to finish cooking. Remember, the thickness of your steak determines how long you need to cook it.
How long to Cook Medium Rare Steak?
I love medium-rare steak!! Often times, I get those disapproving looks from my family whenever I slice through my steak with a warm red meat inside. I know!! To each his own I guess.
Because of the variations in heat among stoves and ovens, I highly recommend that you have an instant read thermometer to insert to your steak and determine its doneness. It’ll cause you less than risking a badly cooked steak.
For a medium rare steak roasted at 400 degrees F, it took me about 7-10 minutes to cook it.
You can pair your favorite steak with salads on the side, sauteed spinach, mashed potatoes or any form of starchy sides. I’ll have to go with fries by next time then.
Enjoy!
Cooking Time for Steak
- Steak Cooked Rare: Internal temperature reads: 125°F , Color : Red
- Steak Cooked Medium-rare:Internal temperature reads: 135°F, Color : pink with a hint of red in the middle .
- Steak Cooked Medium: Internal temperature reads: 145°F, Color , pink
- Steak Cooked Medium-well: Internal temperature reads: 150°F, Color , hint of pink in the very middle
- Steak Cooked Well done: Internal temperature reads: 160°F, Color , not the faintest hint of pink in the middle
- Here is a good visual for ‘Degree of Doneness’ in this article
Pan Seared Oven Roasted Steak
Ingredients
- 2 boneless beef steak ( 1 - 1 ½ pounds, about 1 1/2 inches thick)
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons Steak Seasoning (Homemade here )
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter or Olive oil (I used both)
- 4-6 garlic cloves , crushed
- ½ a bunch of rosemary
Instructions
- Allow the steak to rest at room temperature for 30-40 minutes, this helps to obtain final internal pressure easily. Preheat oven at 400F.
- Pat the meat dry using paper towels. Season steak generously with salt and steak seasoning and allow meat to sit at room temperature for about 1 hour.
- Melt butter and oil in a 12-inch cast iron (or oven safe pan) over medium high heat. Sear both sides of the steak in the heated skillet until a slight dark crust has formed, about 4-5 minutes per side, reduce the heat if the meat is browning too quickly, if you prefer a lighter outside crust then reduce the time slightly. After searing throw in crushed garlic and rosemary.
- Transfer pan to the preheated oven. And cook until an instant read thermometer reads 140F to 145F (for medium rare), about 7-10 minutes (cooking time will depend on the thickness of the steak).
- Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a few minutes before serving.
- Slice steak across the grain and serve.
Tips & Notes:
- If you do not have steak seasoning, you can use black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder or any other seasoning you like.
- Steak will continue to cook a few degrees after you remove from the oven. So it is advisable to pull out the pan from the oven a few minutes before the desired doneness.
- Let steak rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing . The reason for resting the steak is because the juices need time to redistribute, if not it will just flow out of the steak , making it tough and overcooked piece of meat.
Nutrition Information:
How to Cook Pan Seared Oven Roasted Steak
Allow the steak to rest at room temperature for 30-40 minutes, this helps to obtain final internal pressure easily. Preheat oven at 400F. Pat the meat dry using paper towels. Season steak generously with salt and steak seasoning and allow meat to sit at room temperature for about 1 hour. Melt butter and oil in a 12-inch cast iron (or oven safe pan) over medium high heat.
Sear both sides of the steak in the heated skillet until a slight dark crust has formed, about 4-5 minutes per side,
Reduce the heat if the meat is browning too quickly. If you prefer a lighter outside crust, then reduce the time slightly.
After searing, throw in crushed garlic and rosemary.
Transfer pan to the preheated oven. And cook until an instant read thermometer reads 135 F to 140F (for medium rare), about 7-10 minutes (cooking time will depend on the thickness of the steak). Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a few minutes before serving. Slice steak across the grain and serve.
Pam Osborne says
Everything I hoped for and restaurant level. Seared 2 minutes each side and 8 minutes in oven at 200 degrees Celsius. Perfect .Remember to check the thickness and weight of the steak.
Amina says
Great to hear that. Thank you for your feedback.
Cindy Whetstine says
What are some good steaks to cook?
imma africanbites says
Hi, Cindy. I’d say go for rib-eye, top sirloin, tenderloin, and New York strip – to name a few.
Susan says
I plan to try this recipe without the garlic. The pictures looked beautiful and tempting but I dislike garlic.
ImmaculateBites says
You can use Shallot or just use garlic powder. 🙂
Diane says
Hated this recipe. What was said to be med rare was actually hard and tough. I felt like the cooking times were too long so I cut the sear to 3 min and the oven to 5. Worst overdone steak ever. All my husband could say is, well it tastes good though.
Immaculate Bites says
Hello Diane! Sorry it didn’t work out for you. Maybe the temperature and cooking times didn’t match? This is why I mentioned in the post that I recommend having an instant read thermometer to insert to your steak and determine its doneness because heat among stoves and ovens vary, another factor would be the thickness of your meat. Thank you still for trying out this recipe. 🙂
Kathy Stevens says
After 25 years of cooking steaks unsuccessfully this comes out perfect every time.
Thanks!
ImmaculateBites says
WOOHOO!! Thanks so much.
debbie says
my husband & i loved this now he wants me to make for 8 people!
is this possible? how would you do this? thank you
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you can. You would have to make it in batches , place in the oven at 200 degrees F. until ready to serve . Hope this helps .
Mr. Mike says
Made a Tomahawk Rib Eye for Father’s Day using your recipe. Everyone loved it!
imma africanbites says
Thank you for letting me know. So happy it turned out well for you.
mark.dtaylor666@gmail.com says
You have the wrong temperature for med rare is never over 135 please send me a response.
Thanks for your time and consideration Marcus D TAYLOR
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Marcus, I double checked and you are right, most people prefer 135 degrees . However, there are others who disagree.
JOHN CAMPBELL says
I TOO WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW LONG TO COOK THE STEAK FOR MEDIUM WELL TO WELL DONE AND AT WHAT TEMP.
Kate says
Hi Imma! Do you have any idea how long to cook the steak for medium-well to well done? I know it is a travesty to cook beef that long but I have children who won’t eat meat with any sign of pink. Thanks!