Recipes › Easy comfort dinners› Pan-seared steak with crispy potatoes and herb butter
Easy comfort dinners · Medium · Serves 2

Pan-seared steak with crispy potatoes and herb butter

A weekend-feeling steak dinner from one skillet: deeply seared steak rested under herb butter, with crispy smashed potatoes crisped in the same pan. About forty minutes, big payoff.

Anna Lind Harper
by Anna Lind Harper
Tested twice · Published 2026-06-15
A sliced, deeply seared steak fanned on a warm cream-speckled stoneware plate on a white marble counter, showing a rosy medium-rare center, topped with a melting disc of herb butter and flaky salt, with a pile of crispy smashed baby potatoes alongside and scattered fresh thyme and chopped parsley. A halved lemon and a folded striped cream-and-blue linen tea towel rest beside the plate. Soft warm evening light.
Prep
15 min
Cook
25 min
Serves
2
Difficulty
medium

This is my version of a steakhouse dinner at home, and it leans on one cast iron skillet doing double duty. The potatoes get parboiled and smashed, then crisped in the pan first. The steak sears hard in the same skillet, rests under a knob of herb butter, and the whole thing feels far fancier than the effort it takes.

Nothing here is technical. The two things that matter are a very hot pan and letting the steak rest. Do those, and a good steak basically cooks itself. The herb butter melting into the resting juices is the part everyone remembers.

“A steakhouse dinner from one cast iron pan. A very hot skillet and a real rest do most of the work.”
Why this one earns a weeknight

What you'll love about it

  • 01One cast iron skillet does the potatoes and the steak, so cleanup stays sane.
  • 02It feels like a restaurant dinner but takes about forty minutes start to finish.
  • 03High protein and genuinely satisfying, with no special equipment.
  • 04The herb butter is a thirty-second upgrade that makes the whole plate.
Anna, a 26-year-old home cook with long honey-blonde wavy hair wearing a sage green cardigan over a white tee, standing at her stove spooning a melting spoonful of herb butter over two deeply seared steaks resting in a cast iron skillet, focused and calm. Warm evening light, a marble subway-tile backsplash behind the stove, a small dish of chopped herbs on the counter.
Top the steaks with herb butter the moment they come off the heat, then let them rest. The butter melts into the juices while they sit.
Ingredients

For the steak

  • 2steaks, ribeye or New York strip, about 1 inch thick, patted very dry
  • 1 tspkosher salt
  • ½ tspblack pepper
  • 1 Tbspneutral oil

For the herb butter

  • 3 Tbspunsalted butter, softened
  • 1garlic clove, grated
  • 1 Tbspfresh herbs, parsley, chives, or thyme, finely chopped

For the crispy potatoes

  • 1 lbbaby potatoes
  • 2 Tbspolive oil
  • to tastekosher salt and black pepper
Method

How I make it

  1. 01
    Boil and smash the potatoes.
    Boil the baby potatoes in salted water until fork-tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well and let them steam dry for a minute. Press each one gently with the bottom of a glass to smash it flat.
    A pair of hands in white linen button-down sleeves rolled to three-quarter forearm length pressing a boiled baby potato flat with the bottom of a drinking glass on a white marble counter, several already-smashed potatoes beside on a parchment-lined tray. Soft kitchen light.
    Smash the boiled potatoes flat before they hit the pan; more surface area means more crispy edges.
  2. 02
    Make the herb butter.
    Mash the softened butter with the grated garlic, chopped herbs, and a pinch of salt. Set aside at room temperature.
  3. 03
    Crisp the potatoes.
    Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high. Add the smashed potatoes in a single layer and crisp for 4 to 5 minutes per side, until deeply golden. Season with salt and pepper, then move to a plate and keep warm.
  4. 04
    Sear the steak.
    Pat the steaks dry again and season well with salt and pepper. Add the neutral oil to the same hot skillet and lay in the steaks. Sear 3 to 4 minutes per side without moving, until a deep brown crust forms and they reach 130°F for medium-rare. Work in batches if your pan is crowded.
  5. 05
    Rest under herb butter.
    Move the steaks to a board or warm plate, top each with a spoonful of herb butter, and let rest for at least 5 minutes. This is not optional; the rest is what keeps them juicy.
  6. 06
    Slice and serve.
    Slice the steaks against the grain and serve with the crispy potatoes, spooning the melted herb butter and resting juices over the top.
Macro close-up of a sliced seared steak showing a rosy medium-rare center and a deep brown crust, with a melting disc of herb butter on top, flaky salt, and a scatter of chopped parsley. A few crispy smashed potatoes sit softly out of focus behind.
A note from Anna

Two things make or break this. First, get the pan properly hot and pat the steaks bone-dry, or you will steam instead of sear and lose the crust. Second, actually rest the steak for the full five minutes. I know it is hard to wait. If you slice in early, the juices run out onto the board instead of staying in the meat, and you can't get them back. Use a thermometer if you have one; 130°F off the heat lands at a perfect medium-rare after resting.

What to serve with it

Round out the table.

  • ·01
    A sharp green salad
    Bitter greens with a mustardy vinaigrette cut the richness.
  • ·02
    Grilled or roasted asparagus
    It cooks in the time the steak rests.
  • ·03
    A glass of red
    Whatever you like to drink works here.
Storage & reheating

Keeping the leftovers good.

Fridge: Steak and potatoes keep for 3 days in a sealed container.

Reheat: Potatoes crisp back up in a hot skillet or air fryer. Reheat sliced steak gently, just to take the chill off, so it does not overcook.

Make ahead: Boil and smash the potatoes and make the herb butter earlier in the day.

Freezer: Cooked steak freezes for up to 2 months; potatoes lose their crisp.

Recipe card

Pan-seared steak with crispy potatoes and herb butter

A weekend-feeling steak dinner from one skillet: deeply seared steak rested under herb butter, with crispy smashed potatoes crisped in the same pan. About forty minutes, big payoff.

Prep
15 min
Cook
25 min
Serves
2
Total
40 min
Ingredients
  • 2 steaks, ribeye or New York strip, about 1 inch thick, patted very dry
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp neutral oil
  • 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 garlic clove, grated
  • 1 Tbsp fresh herbs, parsley, chives, or thyme, finely chopped
  • 1 lb baby potatoes
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • to taste kosher salt and black pepper
Method (short version)
  1. 01Boil and smash the potatoes.
  2. 02Make the herb butter.
  3. 03Crisp the potatoes.
  4. 04Sear the steak.
  5. 05Rest under herb butter.
  6. 06Slice and serve.

Nutrition information is an estimate. See full nutrition disclaimer.

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