How to Make Steakhouse Steak & Chips – Perfect Pan-Seared Steak

I have sometimes toyed with the idea of becoming a Vegetarian. I could quite happily live on nothing but grains, fruit, legumes and veg with the exception of one thing. 

A good steak.  

I would dearly miss having a good steak. A perfectly cooked steak is one of my many weaknesses!  Admittedly it is not something which I get to enjoy very often, largely due to the cost of it, but when I do decide to cook one, it is a real treat!

 

Back in the day, I used to love to go to places like the Ponderosa and Bonanza steak houses, where you could get a steak perfectly cooked to your preference (mine is medium rare) along with your desired accompaniments. 

I would always have a baked potato, as well as mushrooms and onions.  It was always really good, and a real treat for a date night.  They really knew how to cook steak in those places.  

I also used to love the all-you-can eat salad bars that they had.  It was not hard to fill up on salad before you got your steak dinner!

With the cost of steaks, and beef in general, these days, a steak is a really rare treat. I had occasion to pick up a couple marked down by 50% as it was their sell by date.  How could I resist!

I threw them in the freezer, properly wrapped to enjoy at a later date, and today was the day. I did only cook one of them today, although the recipe is sized for four people. It was very easy to cut the recipe down to serve just me.

This steak recipe I am sharing with you here today is perfectly pan grilled to medium rare, especially if you follow my directions and use a steak which is the exact thickness that I have described.  Nothing fancy needed, just salt and black pepper.  And a nice hot pan.

Of course you can cook it longer according to your preference. I give a dedicated guide below on just how to test your steak for doneness perfection. It is guaranteed.

This simple parsley chimichurri sauce has a beautiful flavor and is simple to make as well.  Just blitz the ingredients in a food processor. Fresh parsley, vinegar, olive oil, red onion, seasonings and crushed chili flakes. I use a mini food processor. If you don't have one, you can also make your sauce by hand, but it will take considerably more work to chop everything to the right size.

The chips are begun in the microwave which makes fast work of them, and then they are finished off in the pan juices from where you grilled your steak, which adds flavor and color to them.  Easy peasy. 

Altogether this makes for a really delicious meal. Feel free to add a tossed salad to the side for a complete meal that everyone is sure to enjoy!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

TO MAKE STEAKHOUSE STEAK & CHIPS

Only a few simple ingredients. Buy the best that you can afford and you will be rewarded with a delicious supper dish.

For the Steak & Potatoes:

• 1 1/2 pounds smallish potatoes, washed, dried and cut into 1-inch wedges
• 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 4 (6-ounce/170g) rib eye steaks (1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inch thick)

For the parsley sauce:

• 1 cup (45g) of fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup (120ml) extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small red onion, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 cup (60ml) red wine or sherry vinegar
• 2 TBS water
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp crushed red chili flakes

My potatoes were not much larger than about two inches across.  White potatoes, with a white flesh. You can peel or not as you wish. I kept the peels on.

You can buy either curly or flat leaf parsley. It is much easier for me to get the curly parsley here in large amounts so that is what I used.

This is when you will want to use a good extra virgin olive oil. As the sauce is not cooked you will appreciate the flavor of it more.

I used Sherry Vinegar.

HOW TO COOK

STEAKHOUSE STEAK & CHIPS

If You follow these directions to the "T," then you are assured of a beautifully cooked piece of steak!

1. To make the sauce, blitz everything together in a small food processor until well combined and finely chopped. Set aside, covered lightly, until you need it.
2. Toss the potatoes together (in a microwavable dish with a lid) with 1 TBS of the oil and salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Cover and microwave, stirring every 2 minutes, for about 7 minutes, until the potatoes have begun to soften. Drain well and set aside.
4. Pat the steaks dry and season all over with salt and black pepper.
5. Heat 1 TBS oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add the steaks to the hot oil and cook until well browned on the first side, 3 to 5 minutes. (Don't crowd the pan. If you need to do this in batches, then do so.)
6. Once they are nicely browned on the bottom side, flip over and brown on the other side, reducing the heat in the pan to medium. This will take a further 5 minutes or so for medium rare. Remove to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm while you cook the potatoes.
7. Heat the remaining 2 TBS of oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown all over and cooked through.
8. Serve the hot steaks on heated plates with the potatoes and some of the parsley sauce drizzled over top. Delicious!

 Just look at that beautifully cooked piece of meat, golden brown and juicy,  with that lovely sauce napped over the top of it. The colors and flavors are quite simply fabulous!

 

THE FINGER TEST

FOR PERFECTLY COOKED STEAKS

I like to use the finger test when judging the doneness of my meat. It works perfectly every time. This is a simple way to judge how done your meat is. The further your thumb has to move across your hand, the more resilient the ball of muscle in your hand becomes.

The amount of resistance felt by your opposing finger when compared against the same finger pressed onto your meat is an excellent gauge in guessing as to how done your meat is. 

 First finger stage: for blue meat and lightly cooked fish. 

 Touch your thumb to it's opposing first finger and press the ball of your thumb with the tip of a finger of the other hand, the ball will offer no resistance. 

The surface should be seared in steak, and firm, and the beads of meat juice not yet risen to the surface. The meat is rare to almost blue when cut with a mild flavor.

Second finger stage: for rare meat. 

 Touch your second finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel spongy. The meat should be well browned and spongy when pressed in the center. 

It should be firm at the sides and any beads of juice on the surface should be deep pink. The meat when cut is read, juicy and aromatic. 

  Third finger stage: For medium cooked meat, game or duck, or well done fish. 

 Touch your third finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel resilient. 

The surface should be crusty brown and the meat should resist when the center is pressed. Firm at the side, the juices on the surface should be pink, and when cut the meat is juicy, deep pink and well flavored. 

 Fourth finger stage: For well-done meat, or poultry. 

 Touch your fourth finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel firm. 

The surface of the meat will be crusty brown and dry and the meat will feel quite firm when touched in the center. Beads of juice on the surface of the meat will be clear and when cut no pink juices will be visible.  

 

A FEW 

OTHER DELICIOUS STEAK RECIPES

Steak does not make for an inexpensive meal these days. When you do get one you will want to cook it in the best way that you can! Here are a few more recipes you might enjoy! 

PAN SEARED STEAKS WITH GARLIC BUTTER -This Pan-Seared Steak has a garlic rosemary-infused butter that makes it taste steakhouse quality. You’ll be impressed at how easy it is to make the perfect steak – seared and caramelized on the outside, and so juicy inside.  

EASY RIB EYE STEAK DINNER -  A tender and juicy, delicious rib eye steak, cooked to juicy perfection. Seasoned with fresh herbs and cooked to a golden crust with plenty of garlic and butter. It doesn't get much better than this. I served with my recipe for broken potatoes and some fresh green beans.

 

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Yield: 4 servings

Author: Marie Rayner

Steakhouse Steak & Chips

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 35 Min

Beautifully cooked steak served with delicious, pan-fried chips, and a punchy parsley sauce. Simple ingredients done very well.

Ingredients

For the Steak & Potatoes:

• 1 1/2 pounds smallish potatoes, washed, dried and cut into 1-inch wedges
• 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 4 (6-ounce/170g) rib eye steaks (1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inch thick)

For the parsley sauce:

• 1 cup (45g) of fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup (120ml) extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small red onion, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 cup (60ml) red wine or sherry vinegar
• 2 TBS water
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp crushed red chili flakes

Instructions

1. To make the sauce, blitz everything together in a small food processor until well combined and finely chopped. Set aside, covered lightly, until you need it.
2. Toss the potatoes together (in a microwavable dish with a lid) with 1 TBS of the oil and salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Cover and microwave, stirring every 2 minutes, for about 7 minutes, until the potatoes have begun to soften. Drain well and set aside.
4. Pat the steaks dry and season all over with salt and black pepper.
5. Heat 1 TBS oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add the steaks to the hot oil and cook until well browned on the first side, 3 to 5 minutes. (Don't crowd the pan. If you need to do this in batches, then do so.)
6. Once they are nicely browned on the bottom side, flip over and brown on the other side, reducing the heat in the pan to medium. This will take a further 5 minutes or so for medium rare. Remove to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm while you cook the potatoes.
7. Heat the remaining 2 TBS of oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown all over and cooked through.
8. Serve the hot steaks on heated plates with the potatoes and some of the parsley sauce drizzled over top. Delicious!

Did you make this recipe?

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Look at those beautiful chips with all of that lovely color and smattering of meat juices.  Oh boy, some good eating those are . . .  some good.  I hope you will give this a go!  Perhaps this weekend. 

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