Perfect steak
Perfect pan-fried steak with a golden crust, served with a rich red wine and thyme pan sauce - succulent, tender, and ideal for a classic steak dinner.
Updated : 11 December, 2025
Easy
About 20 min.
Ingredients
2
Beef steak
splash
Nut oil
100 milliliters
Red wine
1 stalk
Thyme
piece
Butter
to taste
Salt
to taste
Ground black pepper
Table
Table of volume measurements:
- teaspoon - 5 ml
- dessert spoon - 10 ml
- tablespoon - 20 ml
- glass - 200 ml
Preparation
Step 1
Around 45 minutes before cooking, remove the steaks from their packaging and place them on a plate. Sprinkle salt on both sides and leave them to come to room temperature for up to an hour. Alternatively, salt them in the morning and leave uncovered in the fridge until needed. If you don’t season ahead, be sure to salt the steaks just before frying.
Step 2
Heat the oil in a heavy-based frying pan - preferably cast iron - over a high heat until very hot, but not quite smoking.
Step 3
Once the pan is ready, place the steaks in and cook for 1 minute per side, turning regularly until both sides form a deep golden crust and the interior reaches your preferred doneness. As a guide: for a 2cm/¾in steak, cook for 3 minutes total for rare, 4-5 minutes for medium, and 7-8 minutes for well-done. A cook’s thermometer provides the most reliable result.
Step 4
When the steaks are done, transfer them to a warm plate and let them rest for 10 minutes - this step is essential to ensure the meat becomes tender and juicy.
Step 5
Pour the wine into the hot pan and scrape up all the flavourful browned bits from the base. Add any juices released from the resting steaks, then stir in thyme leaves and a little butter to finish the sauce.
Step 6
Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and black pepper. Serve the steaks with your favourite sides, such as chips, generously spooning the sauce over the top. Enjoy immediately.
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