As a kid growing up with 5 sisters (yep, poor Dad, completely outnumbered), our household was kept in order through routines. Sunday dinner was always steak for Mom and Dad, and either hot dogs or hamburgers for the kids. But as we grew older, our dad would occasionally offer steak to us, but we didn’t want anything to do with that RARE meat. Eww. What we didn’t know. My how times have changed…
This Coffee-Rubbed New York Strip Steak is a steak to fight over. The way we did once we found out that Mom and Dad were eating the good stuff while we continued the ignorant non-steak-eating life. It only took a taste. We had truly been missing the good stuff. Well, they had offered. And, we had turned them down. Well played, parents, well played! Needless to say, it didn’t take long before the steak portion of the platter grew and the hot dog area decreased markedly. Those were the days…
My kiddos, on the other hand, have never met a rare steak they didn’t love. Which is why when I saw this rub, I had to make it. It is a rub used by Chef Bobby Flay at his Mesa Grill restaurant, a blend of brilliant spices and coffee of all things. The coffee gives it a richness and kind of “anchors” the flavors of the smoky, spicy, and sweet spices that complement it. I would imagine you have most, if not all, of these spices in your spice rack right now.
So the rub is easy to prepare, just mix all of the spices in a bowl. Then rub it on the steak, after which the steak needs to set a while, so it can absorb these wonderful spices and they can fully adhere to it. Before cooking, be sure the steak at room temperature so it can cook as evenly as possible.
We use the indoor method for perfectly cooked Coffee-Rubbed New York Strip steak. Sometimes even during grilling season we use this method just because if does cook the steak so perfectly. This is where you sear the steaks in a smoking hot pan, about 2 minutes per side, then put it in the hot oven to finish, for just about 5 minutes per inch of thickness. And then, because this is so exhausting for the meat, it will need a 10 minute rest before you can even cut into it. Please rest the steak, it is tired. This will give you the most perfectly juicy medium-rare steak with little margin of error.
Enjoy!
Coffee Rubbed New York Strip Steak
Adapted from Bobby Flay as seen in Bon Appetit, April 2016
Ingredients
- 2 16-oz. New York Strip steaks, or other steaks, as desired. 1-in. Thick preferred
- 2 tbsp. Chile powder
- 2 tbsp. Finely ground coffee beans
- 5 tsp. Dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. Smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 tsp. Dried oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp. Ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp. Ground coriander
- 1 1/2 tsp. Mustard powder
- 1 tsp. Chile powder (can substitute 3/4 ground red pepper flakes)
- 1 tsp. Ground ginger
- 1 tbsp. Kosher salt plus more for seasoning
- 2 tbsp. Vegetable oil
Instructions
- Mix all the dry spices, including the 1 T Kosher salt, together in a bowl. Season the steaks generously with salt, then rub 5 tsp of the spice mix onto all sides of each steak.
- Place seasoned steaks on a wire rack set atop a rimmed baking sheet or platter. Leave at room temperature for 1-2 hours, or refrigerated for up to 6 hours. If refrigerated, let steaks come to room temperature before cooking.
- Preheat oven to 400F. Heat a large cast-iron skillet. Drizzle the oil in the skillet and sear steaks on each side to form a nice crust, about 2 minutes per side.
- Transfer skillet to oven. For Medium-Rare, cook steaks until they are 120F at the thickest part of the steak. This will take about 5 minutes for a 1" thick steak. When they are 120F, place on a cutting board, cover with foil. Let rest 10 minutes. Slice and serve.
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