How to Reheat a Steak Like a Pro

You don’t often cook a steak with the expectation that you won't finish it, but it happens — at a barbecue, dinner party, or anytime your eyes are bigger than your stomach. And restaurant portions are big enough that it’s easy to find yourself with a hunk of meat in a doggy bag sitting in your refrigerator a few days later, with no plan of how to use it. 

There are plenty of uses for leftover steak that don’t call for reheating it. Salad is a great option; Justin Chapple’s Juicy Steak and Tomato Salad is one that calls for leftover steak; chef Sang Yoon’s Flatiron Steak Salad with Thai Dressing is another. Or make a steak sandwich like Kay Chun’s Short Rib Banh Mi with Quick Pickles and Fresh Herbs or David Burke’s Steak-and-Egg Salad Sandwiches. 

These options call for chilled or room temperature steak, and are also ideal for leftover steak that is already sliced. But if you want to reheat a whole steak (or a good-sized portion of one), the best way to go about it is to mimic the steps used to prepare one of our most popular recipes: the Reverse Sear Steak. This method takes a few minutes, but gives you a reheated steak that isn't gray inside, tough, rubbery, or otherwise unappealing.

How to reheat steak

First, pull your steak from the refrigerator, and let it sit at room temperature for an hour, so it loses some of the chill. Meanwhile, heat your oven to 250°F, and place your steak on a baking sheet, preferably on a wire rack. Place the steak in the oven and let it reheat slowly, until the steak reaches about 100°F — the time will vary depending on how thick the steak is, but plan on this taking about 20 to 30 minutes. 

Finally, heat olive oil or grapeseed oil in a cast-iron skillet over high heat until the oil shimmers and just begins to smoke, about 2 minutes. You want your pan ripping hot, so that you can sear it quickly without cooking the interior of the meat. Add the steak to the pan, and sear it until browned, about 1 minute per side.

Transfer the steak to a cutting board, and let it rest for five to 10 minutes (again, this depends on the size and thickness of the steak). Then, slice the steak and serve it with a sauce, next to some veggies or potatoes, or atop a salad. It’s ready for anything.