Pan-Seared T-Bone with Butter and Garlic

How to prepare pan-seared t-bone with butter and garlic

1. For this quick technique, choose a steak about 2.5-3cm thick. If it's thinner, the meat will cook too fast but near the bone it will remain undercooked, and if it's thicker we need a different cooking technique.
   
   A T-bone contains two types of meat (see the first photo below with explanations):
   - on one side of the bone is a smaller, rounder piece, this is the tenderloin (the most tender cut of beef)
   - on the other side is a larger piece marbled with fat, including more fat on the outside; this is the strip steak
   If the tenderloin piece is larger and whole, the T-bone is called Porterhouse. What I cooked now is actually a Porterhouse.
   Being two different pieces of meat, they will behave slightly differently when cooking, in that the tenderloin will cook faster than the strip. If you leave the steak whole in the pan until the end, you'll have the strip cooked medium-rare and the tenderloin medium. If you want the tenderloin rarer too, you'll need to cut it off the bone a bit earlier and leave the rest in the pan.
   In this recipe I left everything in the pan until the end. If I was making it on the grill, I would remove the tenderloin earlier.
2. The theory is more complicated, the practice much simpler 😊
   Take the steak out of the refrigerator and season generously with salt on both sides.
3. Place a cast iron or non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Take the steak and hold it with your hand in the pan on the fatty side (the side edge of the strip; see in photo 1 and 2). You'll need to hold it by hand in this position until some fat melts in the pan and the edge browns. It will take about 3-5 minutes.
   
4. When you have enough fat that the pan is greased all over, lay the steak flat on one side. Fry over medium heat for 1 minute. Flip and leave for 1 minute on the other side too.
   Repeat once more for 1 minute / side. So far the steak has been 2 minutes / side total.
5. Flip again and add the butter pieces around the steak. Shake the pan with back-and-forth motions so the melting butter gets underneath too and doesn't burn. If the pan seems too hot, lower the heat. Fry like this for 30 seconds.
6. Flip and fry for 30 seconds on the second side too.
8. Tilt the pan slightly so the butter pools on one side. Add the crushed garlic, chili and thyme sprig to the butter. Shake the pan to mix well. Fry like this, with aromatics, for another 30 seconds, during which use a spoon to baste the top of the steak with the aromatic butter (keep the pan slightly tilted so you can scoop the butter).
9. Remove the steak from the pan immediately and let it rest for 2-3 minutes before cutting. If desired, place a small piece of butter on top when bringing it to the table.
   
10. Cut the meat off the bone. Slice each piece into thin slices, holding the knife perpendicular to the grain. If desired, you can place the pieces separately (strip and tenderloin) or mix them.
11. Drizzle the meat slices with sauce from the pan and then grind salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.
    

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