Make the perfect steak in the oven that’s caramelized, juicy and tender. It’s quick and easy to prepare by first pan-searing the steak and then finishing it in the oven.
Top your steak with a pat of garlic herb butter, fresh herbs and serve with roasted red potatoes for restaurant quality dining at home.
Table of Contents
Easy Steak in the Oven
Steak is a classic dinner often reserved for special occasions. My family loves it and gets excited when it’s on the menu whether it’s grilled flank steak, steak bites and this oven baked steak anytime!
If you’ve never tried cooking steak in the oven, you have to give it a shot! It’s first pan seared to create a caramelized, crisp crust, then finished in the oven until tender and juicy inside. Serve with baked potato or mashed potatoes and green beans and it’s perfection!
Key Ingredients
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Steak: There’s many cuts of beef to choose from, but I prefer to use a ribeye or top sirloin steak for this recipe. If you really want to splurge filet mignon is my personal favorite.
- Olive oil: Use a good extra-virgin olive oil here.
- S&P: Salt and pepper is all you need for seasoning. It helps bring out the flavor.
- Butter: We love adding a pat of butter or garlic butter on top.
How to Cook Steak in Oven
- Season. Bring steaks to room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes then pat steaks dry with a paper towel and rub with oil. Season generously with salt and pepper.
- Sear. Preheat oven to 450°F and place large oven-safe skillet in oven while heating. Remove pan and place over high heat on stove. When pan is hot, add steaks to the hot skillet and sear on each side for 1 minute.
- Bake. Then place pan in oven and bake for 4-6 minutes on one side. Flip and cook other side for 4-6 more minutes. Remove the meat 5° before it reaches the desired temperature.
- Rest. Remove pan from oven and allow rest steaks for 5 minutes. Top each steak with a slab of butter and fresh herbs if desired.
Steak Temperature Doneness
Below gives you a good benchmark for each level of doneness (color, baking length, temperature). Cooking times may vary depending on your oven, so be sure to continue to check on your steak.
Remove the meat 5° before it reaches the desired temp. Temperature will continue to rise while resting.
- Rare: Sear outsides then bake about 4-6 minutes in oven until temperature is around 125°F and color is red.
- Medium-Rare: Sear outsides then bake about 6-8 minutes in oven until temperature is 130°F and color is deep pink.
- Medium: Sear outsides then bake about 8-10 minutes in oven until temperature is around 140°F and color is light pink.
- Medium-Well: Sear outsides then bake about 10-12 minutes in oven until temperature is around 150°F and color is slightly pink center.
- Well-Done: Sear outsides then bake about 12-14 minutes in oven until temperature is around 160°F+ and color is little or no pink.
Note: If you are a visual person, check out this cooking time chart that shows the doneness of each meat.
Cooking Tips
- Types of meat. There are 3 different types of meat: Select, Choice and Prime. I usually end up buying choice and it always has great flavor.
- Skillet. While any oven safe skillet works, I recommend using a cast iron skillet for this recipe and roast beef tenderloin. Heat is distributed more evenly and creates the perfect crust on the meat.
- Season generously. Don’t skimp on seasonings! Rub on a generous amount of salt and pepper, or use steak rub. Some seasoning will come off in the skillet, so using more ensures flavorful steak.
- Keeping it tender. To ensure a tender steak, first, bring meat to room temperature. This cooks it evenly and lessens chance of overcooking. Second, season with salt. Salt brings out moisture and break down proteins and muscle fibers.
- Let rest. Letting meat rest once removed from oven keeps it nice and juicy. Whether it’s steak or oven baked chicken, the juices flow back in and create a super moist and delicious meat. I like to let mine rest for about 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
Favorite Sides for Steak
There are all sorts of side dishes that pair wonderfully with a juicy steak recipe! Mixed vegetables and potatoes are our favorites, but below are some other great options.
- Garlic mashed red potatoes
- Oven roasted vegetables
- Loaded baked potato
- Roasted broccoli
- Glazed carrots
- Roasted asparagus
- Roasted potatoes and carrots
- Scalloped potatoes
- Homemade mac and cheese
Recipe FAQ
I personally like to bake my steak in the oven. Baking uses convection heat while broiling uses infrared heat. This means that when you bake, you are heating food by surrounding it with hot air.
When you broil, you are heating food from above by using the top elements of the oven. Food that is broiled typically gets more charred, especially on top. It has a tendency to cook and brown really fast. Baking the steaks is a little more fail-proof in my opinion. :)
For thicker steak I prefer to cook at 450°F. It helps crisp the edges while keeping the inside nice and juicy.
At 450° it will take about 10 minutes to cook to medium. It definitely depends on how you prefer your steak. Refer to the timing chart the post, but typically I cook for about 10 minutes.
Medium rare: 10-12 minutes
Medium: 12-15 minutes
Well done: 15- 18 minutes
Yes you can, it will just take a couple minutes longer to cook. For thin steaks like flank steak, you can also place under the broiler for a minute to get the seared edges.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Serve at breakfast with eggs, make steak fajitas or turn it into a philly cheesesteak!
A few of our other favorite special occasion meals are meatloaf, chicken marsala, spaghetti bolognese and fettuccine Alfredo.
More Favorite Steak Recipes
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How to Cook Steak in the Oven
Video
Ingredients
- 2 (1-inch thick) ribeye beef steaks (any cut will do)
- 1-2 Tablespoons oil , I use olive oil, canola or avocado oil
- Kosher salt , to taste
- Ground black pepper , to taste
- 1-2 Tablespoons unsalted butter , or garlic herb butter (for finishing)
Fresh thyme or rosemary for serving
Instructions
- Remove the steaks from the fridge and bring to room temperature, about 15 to 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place a large skillet in the oven while it is heating. Remove pan from oven and place on the stove over high heat.
- Dry steaks with a paper towel. Rub the oil over the steaks and generously season with salt and pepper. Once the pan is very hot place the steaks into the pan. Let each side cook 1-2 minutes, or until seared. Use tongs to flip.
- Place the pan in the oven 4 minutes. Flip and cook the other side an additional 4 to 6 minutes. Check the center with a meat thermometer or slice with a knife to check for doneness (see notes below for different levels of doneness). You want to remove the meat 5° before it reaches the desired temperature. Temperature will continue to rise while resting.
- Using an oven mitt, remove pan from oven and allow to rest on a plate 5 minutes before serving. Add a slab of butter on the top of each steak.
Notes
- Rare: 125°F (red)
- Medium Rare: 130°F (deep pink)
- Medium: 140°F (light pink)
- Medium well: 150°F (slightly pink center)
- Well done: 160°F (little or no pink)
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: 30 Minute Meals, 30 Minute Meals, 5 Ingredients Or Less, 5 Ingredients Or Less, American, Beef, Dinner, Low Carb, Reader Favorites, Stovetop, Valentine's Day
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Best steak I have ever had! Easy and on point as to flavor and tenderness! I used a ribeye cut. Quick and easy! A must try!
Yay! So happy to hear you loved it :)
Perfect! The best steak I’ve had in a long while. The only caution is don’t touch the skillet when it comes out of the oven. Ouch.
Yay, I’m so happy to hear this! And yes, definitely don’t want to touch the skillet! I made a note in the recipe instructions so that it’s more clear :)
Loved this recipe! Thanks for showing us how to cook steak in the oven! A game changer for sure during winter months!
Enjoy!
Thank you so much . I had 4 steaks I needed to cook with little time. Went by your recipe , they are so good. Probably the best I have made in the oven. Strawberry Plains, Tn
So glad you enjoyed them :)
Turned out great. I did modify the seasonings, but it was well received by everyone.
So glad it was a hit!
I always do steak on the stovetop with a cast iron but had never tried in the oven before – loved it! Great recipe.
Honestly, I never tried this method. I’m more stovetop steak girl. But looks really juicy and delicious. Definitely easier and less messy. Will give it a try
Setting the steaks out 30 minutes before baking is a must. Seared for 30-45 seconds and was just right. I cooked in oven 3 minutes on each side and they were perfect. Thank you, Jamielyn!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! :)
The recipe was such a great hit with my husband…that I am now allocated to cooking the steaks! This was formerly his job on the grill! This is a FABULOUS way to cook steaks. We have two small iron skillets…so I just served everything in the skillet. It was amazing. Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear it was a hit! Thanks for your comment!
Very eadyvand good
Easy and good!
I loved that it cooking it in the oven cut down on the smoke produced! I live in an apartment with a cheap range fan that doesn’t blow the smoke outside, but rather lightly filters it and pushes it right back into the kitchen.
When I do this again, I will bake for 2 minutes each side and then check temp for medium rare, instead of the 4 minutes each side I baked them this time. They ended up well-done.
This turned out as great as a fantastic restaurant steak! It’s my new go-to recipe.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it! :)
Best steak I’ve ever cooked!! Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear that!
My family loved their steak dinner. It was fast and easy to do.
I’m so glad to hear your family loved it!
Happy with the way this turned out. I don’t eat red meat but I made it for my boyfriend and had to try it myself. Was not disappointed
I seared my steak a little longer after trying this recipe 3 times and figuring out what works best. The butter should not be optional as it makes a difference. Thanks for sharing this – I can finally now do steak indoors that my family gets excited about. Yay! Bless you!
Not yet, but I’m going to! I don’t have canola oil on hand. What other oil could substitute?
Any other oil should be fine. :)
Use a cast iron skillet
Huge game changer!