How to Cook Steak in a Cast Iron Skillet (Steakhouse Crust at Home)

A good crust is mostly a dry steak meeting a very hot pan, and almost nothing holds heat like cast iron. That is the whole reason to cook steak in a cast iron skillet instead of a thin nonstick pan.

The rest comes down to a few choices: the cut, when you salt, how long you preheat, and when you pull the steak off. Get those right and a regular kitchen stove gives you a dark, even crust with a pink middle from edge to edge.

In a hurry? Buy a steak 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick and salt it at least 40 minutes ahead. Pat it dry, then heat the skillet on medium-high for 5 minutes with a thin film of high smoke point oil. Sear 3 to 4 minutes per side, baste with butter in the last minute, and pull it at 125°F for medium rare. Rest 5 minutes and slice against the grain.

Pick the Right Cut and Thickness

Thickness matters more than the cut. A steak that is 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick gives the outside enough time to brown before the inside overcooks.

Best Steaks for a Cast Iron Skillet

Cut	Ideal Thickness	Why It Works in Cast Iron	Method
Ribeye	1 to 1 1/2 in	Rich marbling bastes the meat from inside	Stovetop or pan-to-oven
New York strip	1 to 1 1/2 in	Firm, beefy, a fat cap that renders well	Stovetop or pan-to-oven
Top sirloin	1 in	Lean and affordable; sears quickly	Stovetop
Filet mignon	1 1/2 to 2 in	Very tender but lean; needs butter	Pan-to-oven or reverse sear
Flat iron	3/4 to 1 in	Tender, cheap, cooks fast	Stovetop
Skirt or flank	1/2 to 3/4 in	Thin and full of flavor; slice thinly	Hot and fast on the stove

For two people, one 1 1/2-inch ribeye sliced to share often beats two thin steaks. If you cook mostly for yourself, our guide to cooking for one without wasting food covers how to buy and freeze meat in single portions.

Thin Steak in Cast Iron

Steaks under 3/4 inch need a different plan. Get the pan hotter, keep the steak drier, and cook 1 to 2 minutes per side. Do not baste or move it to the oven. By the time the crust looks good, the center is done. Tougher thin cuts like skirt and flank also benefit from a quick look at how a meat tenderizer works before you cook.

Salt Early or Salt Right Before Cooking

Salt first draws water to the surface. After about 40 minutes, the meat pulls that salty water back in, leaving a drier surface and a better-seasoned inside.

So you have two good options:

• Salt right before it hits the pan. The surface is still dry, so the sear works.
• Salt 40 minutes to 2 days ahead. This is called dry brining. The steak sits uncovered in the fridge on a rack, and the surface dries out even more.

The bad window is 5 to 30 minutes before cooking. The surface is wet with drawn-out juice, and the pan spends its heat boiling that off instead of browning.

For dry brining, set the steak on a small wire rack over a plate or quarter sheet pan. The Checkered Chef Cooling Rack set has two 8 by 11 3/4-inch stainless steel racks that fit a narrow fridge shelf. Air reaches the bottom of the steak, so both sides dry. Keep it on the bottom shelf, away from ready-to-eat food. Our tips to organize a small fridge help you clear a spot.

Use about 1 teaspoon of Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt per pound of steak. Its light, hollow flakes are easy to sprinkle evenly by hand, and they are hard to overdo. If you use a denser kosher salt or table salt, cut the amount roughly in half. Add black pepper just before cooking, or after, since it can scorch in a very hot pan. A good grinder from our salt and pepper grinder guide gives you a coarse crack that sticks to the crust.

If you like a seasoned crust beyond salt and pepper, Blues Hog All In Seasoning from Grill Masters Club is a savory rub with paprika, garlic, onion and a little turbinado sugar. It already contains salt, so use it in place of your salt, not on top of it. Because of the sugar, sprinkle it on just before cooking and keep the heat at medium-high.

Should Steak Come to Room Temperature First?

Not for long. Twenty to thirty minutes on the counter barely warms the center of a thick steak. Just take it out when you start preheating. Pat both sides and the edges with paper towels until the towel comes away dry. Never leave raw meat out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour on a day above 90°F. For more on safe storage times, see how long leftovers last.

How to Preheat a Cast Iron Skillet for Steak

Cast iron heats slowly and unevenly, with the edges lagging behind the center. A rushed preheat is the most common reason a steak comes out gray and patchy.

1. Put the dry skillet on the burner at medium heat for 3 minutes.
2. Turn it up to medium-high for another 2 to 4 minutes.
3. Flick a few drops of water in. If they skate around as beads and vanish in a second or two, it is ready.
4. Add the oil. It should shimmer at once and give off a faint wisp of smoke within about 30 seconds.

An instant-read thermometer is the best tool you can own for steak. The ThermoPro TP03B instant-read thermometer reads in a few seconds and has a backlit screen. Keep the probe clean between raw and cooked checks; our guide on how to clean a meat thermometer shows the safe way.

Which Skillet Size Works Best

A 10-inch cooking surface fits one big steak or two small ones. A 12-inch surface fits two ribeyes with space between them. Crowd the pan and the steaks steam instead of sear.

The Lancaster No. 10 Cast Iron Skillet has a 10-inch cooking floor and weighs 6 pounds. Its smooth, machined surface releases a steak cleanly, and it is light enough to tilt with one hand for basting. For two steaks at once, the Lancaster No. 12 Cast Iron Skillet gives you a full 12 inches at 7.5 pounds. Our Lancaster cast iron review goes through every size.

On a tighter budget, the classic Lodge 12-Inch Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet sears just as well. It is heavier, with a pebbly surface that smooths out as the seasoning builds. Read our Lodge cast iron skillet review for the full picture. If you are still choosing a shape, our explainer on the difference between a skillet and a frying pan helps.

On an Electric or Glass Top Stove

Electric coils and glass tops take longer to come up to heat, and they hold it after you turn them down. Preheat for 7 to 10 minutes and lower the heat about a minute before you want it lower. Lift the skillet to move it; never slide it. Our guide to protecting a glass top stove from cast iron covers the rest. Cast iron works on induction too, and it heats much faster there, so watch the first few minutes.

The Best Oil for Searing Steak

Use a refined oil with a high smoke point. Smoke point is simply the heat at which an oil starts to burn and smoke heavily. Good choices are refined avocado oil, canola, vegetable oil and refined peanut oil.

Skip extra virgin olive oil and butter for the first sear. Both start to burn well below the heat a good crust needs. Use about 1 tablespoon of oil, just enough for a thin film across the floor of the pan. A pool of oil does not help the crust and makes far more smoke and spatter.

How Long to Cook Steak in Cast Iron

These times are for a steak straight from the fridge, in a skillet preheated as above, aiming for medium rare. Use them as a guide and let the thermometer make the final call.

Thickness	Method	Time	Pull Temperature (Medium Rare)
1/2 in	Stovetop, hot and fast	1 to 2 min per side	Check after second side
3/4 in	Stovetop	2 to 3 min per side	125°F
1 in	Stovetop	3 to 4 min per side	125°F
1 1/4 in	Stovetop, flip often	4 to 5 min per side	125°F
1 1/2 in	Sear, then 400°F oven	2 to 3 min per side, then 4 to 6 min in oven	125°F
2 in	Reverse sear	40 to 60 min at 250°F, then 1 to 1 1/2 min per side	115 to 120°F before searing

How Long on Each Side for Medium Rare

For the typical 1-inch steak, it is 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Add about a minute per side for each step toward well done. For medium well, a 1-inch steak usually needs 5 to 6 minutes per side.

Step by Step: Cast Iron Steak on the Stove

This is the method for steaks up to about 1 1/4 inches thick. Everything happens on the stovetop.

1. Dry and season. Pat the steak dry. Salt it now if you did not dry brine.
2. Preheat. Heat the skillet on medium, then medium-high, for 5 to 7 minutes total.
3. Add oil. Swirl in 1 tablespoon of high smoke point oil.
4. Lay it away from you. Place the steak in the pan with the edge closest to you going down first. Hot oil then splashes away from your hand.
5. Leave it alone. Let it sear without moving for 2 minutes. It should sizzle loudly the whole time. A quiet pan means it is too cool.
6. Flip. Turn the steak once the bottom is deep brown and releases on its own.
7. Render the fat cap. For a strip or ribeye, stand the steak on its fatty edge for 30 to 60 seconds.
8. Check the temperature. Push the thermometer in from the side to the center. Pull the steak 5°F below your target.
9. Rest. Move it to a board or rack for 5 minutes.

Long locking tongs make every one of these steps safer. The OXO Good Grips 16-Inch Locking Tongs keep your wrist well back from the spitting fat. They are strong enough to hold a thick steak upright on its edge. A thin metal turner from our metal spatula set guide also helps when a crust sticks for a moment.

One Flip or Many?

Both work. One flip is simpler. Flipping every 30 to 60 seconds cooks thick steaks more evenly, with a thinner gray band under the crust.

How to Cook Steak in Cast Iron With Butter, Garlic and Thyme

Butter basting adds a nutty, rich flavor and helps brown any pale spots on the crust. The trick is timing. Butter goes in only at the end, once the steak is nearly done.

1. When the steak is about 10°F below your pull temperature, turn the heat to medium.
2. Add 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 or 3 smashed garlic cloves and 3 or 4 sprigs of thyme. Rosemary also works.
3. Once the butter foams, tilt the skillet toward you so the butter pools at the low side.
4. Spoon the foaming butter over the top of the steak again and again for 30 to 60 seconds.
5. Pull the steak and spoon a little of the butter and garlic over it while it rests.

Tilting a hot skillet means holding a hot handle. The Lancaster leather skillet handle cover is thick vegetable-tanned leather with heat-resistant stitching. It is made for stovetop use, so slip it off before the pan goes in the oven. A pair of gloves from our heat-resistant cooking gloves guide covers you for oven work.

If the butter turns dark brown and smells sharp, lower the heat right away.

How to Cook Steak in a Cast Iron Skillet and Oven

Steaks thicker than about 1 1/4 inches need the oven. On the stove alone, the crust burns before the center warms through.

1. Heat the oven to 400°F with a rack in the middle.
2. Sear the steak in the hot skillet for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until both sides are deep brown.
3. Move the whole skillet to the oven.
4. Roast 4 to 6 minutes for a 1 1/2-inch steak, or 6 to 8 minutes for 2 inches. Check the temperature after 4 minutes.
5. Take the skillet out with an oven mitt and leave the mitt on the handle. The handle stays dangerously hot for a long time.
6. Back on the stove, you can baste with butter for 30 seconds, then rest the steak.

If grease spatters on the oven floor, our guide on how to clean an oven handles it. In a small kitchen, the one pan meals for one guide has more ways to cook a full dinner in the same skillet.

The Reverse Sear for Thick Steaks

The reverse sear flips the usual order. You cook the steak gently in a low oven first, then sear it hard at the end. The result is pink from edge to edge with almost no gray band. It is the best method for steaks 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick and for lean cuts like filet.

1. Heat the oven to 250°F.
2. Set the salted steak on a wire rack over a sheet pan.
3. Bake until the center reads 115 to 120°F for medium rare. This takes about 40 to 60 minutes, depending on thickness.
4. While it finishes, preheat the skillet on medium-high.
5. Sear 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per side, then 30 seconds on the edges.
6. Serve right away. The steak rested in the low oven, so it needs little or no extra rest.

A sous vide cooker does the same gentle first step in a water bath.

Steak Doneness Temperatures: Pull Temps vs Final Temps

A steak keeps cooking after it leaves the pan. This is called carryover cooking. Thin steaks rise about 3 to 5°F while resting, and thick steaks from the oven can rise 5 to 10°F. So you take the steak off before it hits your target.

Doneness	Pull From the Heat	Final Temp After Resting	What It Looks Like
Rare	115 to 120°F	120 to 125°F	Bright red, cool center
Medium rare	125°F	130 to 135°F	Warm red to pink center
Medium	135°F	140 to 145°F	Pink center, firmer
Medium well	145°F	150 to 155°F	Slight pink, mostly brown
Well done	155°F	160°F and up	Brown all through

A food safety note: the USDA safe minimum for whole cuts of beef, such as steaks, is 145°F with a 3-minute rest. Rarer steaks are a common choice, but anyone pregnant, very young, older or with a weak immune system should stick to 145°F. Ground beef is different and should reach 160°F.

To read the temperature, slide the probe in from the side so the tip sits in the thickest part. Keep it away from bone and fat, which read differently. If you also cook outdoors, a leave-in probe from our meat thermometer guide handles long cooks on the grill.

Resting and Slicing Against the Grain

Rest a 1-inch steak for about 5 minutes and a thick one for 8 to 10. Resting lets the juices settle into the meat. Rest it on a wire rack or a board, not on a plate where the bottom crust sits in liquid. Do not wrap it tightly in foil, or the crust steams soft.

Then slice against the grain. The grain is the direction the long muscle fibers run, and you can see them as faint lines across the meat. Cut across those lines, not along them. Each bite then has short fibers and feels far more tender. This matters most for flank, skirt and strip.

Use a sharp knife on a board that does not slide. A dull blade tears the crust off. Our chef knife guide and cutting board guide cover both, and how to sharpen a kitchen knife keeps the edge you have in shape.

At the table, a proper steak knife makes a difference. The Hoshanho 4.5-inch Steak Knife Set of 6 has fully serrated blades angled to 15°. Serrated teeth keep cutting through a crust long after a plain table knife goes dull. If drawer space is short, see how to store knives without a knife block.

How to Sear Steak Without Smoking Out Your Apartment

A little smoke is normal. A smoke alarm going off every time is not. In a small apartment kitchen, these steps make the biggest difference.

• Turn the range hood on high before the pan heats. It needs a head start to pull smoke away. A hood that vents outside works far better than one that recirculates.
• Open a window and create a draft. A box fan in a far window, blowing out, pulls air through the kitchen.
• Dry the steak well. Surface water turns to steam and carries smoke and grease into the room.
• Use less oil, and the right oil. A thin film of high smoke point oil smokes much less than a puddle.
• Stay at medium-high. Full blast rarely makes a better crust than medium-high after a good preheat.
• Trim thick fat. Large flaps of fat on the edge render and smoke for the entire cook.
• Keep the stove clean. Old grease on the burners and in the hood filter smokes every time the pan gets hot.
• Never disable a smoke alarm. Fan the air near it instead, and fix the causes above.

A splatter screen keeps grease on the stove and off your walls and hood. The OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Splatter Screen has a fine mesh and a handle that folds flat, so it slides into a narrow drawer.

For more on hoods, our range hood ventilation guide for small kitchens explains vented and ductless hoods. A greasy filter barely pulls any air, so see how often to clean a range hood filter. If you are shopping for a hood, start with our guide to the best under-cabinet range hood. For gas stoves, our guide to cleaning gas stove burners and grates clears the old grease that adds to the smoke.

If indoor searing is not an option in your building, an outdoor grill is the next best thing. Read the balcony grilling safety rules before you buy one.

A Two-Minute Pan Sauce

The brown bits stuck to the pan after cooking are called fond, and they hold a lot of flavor. While the steak rests, turn them into a quick sauce.

1. Pour off all but about 1 teaspoon of fat. Keep the heat at medium.
2. Add 1 finely chopped shallot and stir for 1 minute.
3. Pour in 1/2 cup of beef broth or red wine. Scrape the bottom with a wooden spoon as it bubbles.
4. Let it boil until about half the liquid is gone, 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon of cold butter and any juice from the resting steak.
6. Season with salt and pepper and spoon it over the sliced steak.

Keep sauces with wine or vinegar short, around 5 minutes, since long simmering with acid can wear on the seasoning.

Cleaning the Skillet After Steak

Clean the pan while it is still warm, not hot. Pour the cooled fat into a can or jar for the trash, never down the drain. Rinse with hot water and scrub off any stuck bits. A little dish soap is fine.

For stuck fond, the Lancaster Chainmail Scrubber is a 4 by 5-inch sheet of food-grade stainless steel rings. It lifts burnt-on bits without scraping off good seasoning, and it goes in the dishwasher.

Dry the skillet on a warm burner for a minute and wipe a very thin layer of oil over the inside. If the surface looks dull or patchy after a few steak nights, our guide on how to season a cast iron skillet explains how to rebuild it. When it is clean and dry, our tips to store pots and pans in a small kitchen help you find a home for a heavy skillet.

Why Your Steak Turned Gray: Fixes for Common Mistakes

• Gray, pale crust. The pan was not hot enough or the steak was wet. Preheat longer and pat it dry.
• Burnt outside, raw inside. The steak was too thick for the stovetop alone. Finish it in the oven or use the reverse sear.
• Thick gray band under the crust. The heat was too high for too long. Flip more often or use the reverse sear.
• Steak stuck to the pan. You tried to flip too soon. A good crust releases on its own after 2 or 3 minutes.
• Overcooked center. You pulled it at the final temperature instead of 5°F below. Carryover cooking pushed it past.
• Tough, chewy slices. You cut with the grain. Turn the steak and slice across the fibers.
• Bitter butter. You added it too early. Butter belongs in the last 1 to 2 minutes, over medium heat.
• Crowded pan. Two big steaks in a 10-inch skillet steam each other. Cook them one at a time or use a 12-inch pan.

A loud, steady sizzle is right; a weak hiss means the pan is too cool. Our guide to what your cookware sounds are telling you explains more. With only two burners, see how to cook a full meal with only two burners for timing the sides around the steak.

Related Guides

• Lancaster Cast Iron Review
• Lodge Cast Iron Skillet Review
• How to Season a Cast Iron Skillet
• What Can I Cook in an Electric Skillet?
• Griswold Cast Iron Skillet Review
• Stargazer Cast Iron Skillet
• How to Use an Electric Grill

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do you cook a steak in cast iron for medium rare?

A 1-inch steak in a well-heated skillet takes about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Pull it off when a thermometer in the center reads 125°F. It will climb to about 130 to 135°F while it rests for 5 minutes.

Should I use butter or oil to cook steak in cast iron?

Start with oil and add butter at the end. A high smoke point oil handles the searing heat. Butter burns at that heat, so add it in the last 1 to 2 minutes with garlic and thyme and spoon it over the steak.

Do you need to finish steak in the oven?

Only for steaks thicker than about 1 1/4 inches. Thinner steaks cook through on the stove before the crust burns. Thick steaks get a hard sear on the stove, then 4 to 8 minutes in a 400°F oven to reach the right inside temperature.

How do I cook steak in cast iron without so much smoke?

Pat the steak very dry, use a thin film of high smoke point oil, and turn the range hood on high before the pan heats. Open a window, keep the heat at medium-high instead of maximum, and add butter only near the end.

How do you cook a thin steak in a cast iron skillet?

Get the pan very hot, dry the steak well, and cook it hard and fast. A 1/2-inch steak needs only 1 to 2 minutes per side. Skip butter basting and the oven, because the inside cooks through almost as soon as the crust forms.