Skillet Bourbon Steak Recipe - Sirloin Steak Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How to cook sirloin steak in pan? ›

Bring the pan up to a high heat, gradually rendering the fat down. Once the fat is nicely caramelized you can turn the steak to cook on one side, making sure your pan is smoking hot. Cook for a minute and a half on both sides, for a medium rare cook and then turn down the heat.

As a rough guide, each steak will take 3 mins in total for rare, 4-5 mins in total for medium and 7-8 mins for well done. If you have a digital cooking thermometer, the middle of the steak should be 50C for rare, 60C for medium and 70C for well done.

With more marbling, ribeye steaks are better known for their rich flavor and texture. However, dry-aging grilled sirloin steak can enhance its beefy taste without adding fat. Both ribeye and sirloin are wonderfully tender cuts, but ribeye has the edge here.

Best Cooking Method for Sirloin Steak

After years of cooking sirloin steak, the stove to oven method is the one I've deemed the very best for cooking thick steaks. The steak is cooked briefly on the stove to create a nice sear on the exterior. Then, it's finished at a high temperature in the oven.

You can buy bone-in or boneless sirloin, and either one works for pan frying. However, we do recommend choosing top sirloin rather than bottom sirloin. Bottom sirloin is usually the more affordable cut, but it's not as tender as top sirloin.

The long, slow cook time leaves lean meat, like sirloin, tough and chewy, while tougher cuts, like chuck, break down and become really tender. Follow this tip: When choosing the best meat for beef stew, stick with using chuck meat.

Top sirloin is basically a sirloin steak with the bones and bottom round muscles removed. You get a “premium” boneless cut with top sirloin, which makes for a superior eating experience. You may also see cuts labeled top sirloin, sirloin tip, top sirloin cap, or picanha.

Marinating before you cook your top sirloin steak will enhance its flavor and give it a more tender texture. As the steak absorbs the marinade, the steak becomes richer and better. If your top sirloin steak recipe has citrusy ingredients, the acidity will also help break down the fibers and tenderize the steak cuts.

For medium-rare – Heat a medium-sized heavy-bottomed frying pan over a high heat. Drizzle the oil over the steaks and sprinkle on the salt and pepper – massage the oil, salt and pepper into both sides of the steaks. Place the steaks in the pan and cook for 3 minutes, turning every minute.

Why is my sirloin tough? ›

Quick Answer. Your steak is chewy and tough most likely because the cut of steak was not tender to begin with. Another reason your steak is chewy and tough could be that you overcooked or undercooked the steak. Your steak could also be chewy and tough because you didn't let it rest long enough after cooking it.

Being lean, top sirloin rarely has enough fat content to change the texture. The soft, sometimes stringy texture of heavy marbling is not present in this cut. As long as the sirloin is not overcooked, it will still be tender and juicy. On top of all of this, sirloin is one of the most affordable cuts of steak.

Both types of steak offer great beef flavor. It's the top sirloin that wins in this category simply because of the greater marbling and fat content. Filet mignon steaks have a more delicate taste that is still mouth-watering, but not quite as intense as the sirloin cut.

Cooking Time

A medium-rare sirloin steak takes about 10-15 minutes to pan-sear. With resting time before and after cooking, plan on setting aside a little over one hour from start to finish. Higher levels of doneness may need a few more minutes to cook on low heat in the pan or to finish off in the oven.

For the perfect medium-rare steak, sear in a skillet for 8–13 minutes for a 1-inch steak, and 14–16 minutes for a 1½ inch steak, turning about 1 minute before the halfway point. A meat thermometer should read 130°F.