21 Steak Dinner Ideas for Date Night & Beyond

Cooking steak is easily one of the fastest ways to get dinner on the table—15 minutes tops, in many cases. Whether you're a fan of skirt steaks, filet mignon, or chicken-fried steak, and serving with balsamic vinegar, greens beans, blue cheese, or in a steak sandwich, a perfectly cooked steak can be a thing of wonder. But there's no need to reserve it for special occasions. Pull out these perfect steak dinner ideas for date nights, weeknights, and more.

Before there were scented foams, supplementary truffle fees, and marathon tasting menus, there was the steakhouse. There were dark upholstered leather booths and waiters in tuxes, tiny lamps perched atop white linen tablecloths and old-school crème brûlée for dessert. There was Don Draper.

Steak is the original romantic dinner. Rich and uncomplicated, the perfect steak is good on its own and stellar with a sizable pat of compound butter and creamed spinach for good measure. Whether you embrace the porterhouse or slice it over a salad, here are 20 ways to recreate it at home for date night and beyond.

1. Sunday Steak With French Butter by thirschfeld

This recipe has been a Food52 favorite since 2012, and with good reason: Community member thirschfeld walks us through his foolproof method for cooking porterhouse steaks, complete with an aromatic compound butter.

2. Cowboy Rubbed Rib Eye with Chocolate Stout Pan Sauce by Aliwaks

Toasted spices—including ground coffee, cumin, and paprika—encrust this gorgeous rib eye, imparting deep, smoky flavor.

3. Carne Asada con Rajas by Waverly

Feed a crowd with this garlic, soy sauce, and lime juice–marinated flank steak, thinly sliced and served with peppers and onions.

4. Miso-Marinated Flat Iron Steak With Yuzu Kosho by Treble723

Turn a basic flat iron steak into an uber-special dinner, thanks to Treble723's inspired marinade: All you need is miso paste, sake, mirin, brown sugar, and yuzu kosho (a citrus pepper paste you can find in Asian grocery stores and online).

5. Porcini & Rosemary Crusted Beef Tenderloin With Port Wine Sauce by TasteFood

Is there anything more stunning than a beef tenderloin? True to its name, it's arguably the most tender part of the beef. And there couldn't be a worthier (and more classic) complement than rosemary and port.

6. Spicy Thai Steak Salad by Merav

Fish sauce, lime juice, and chiles add vim and vigor to thinly sliced ribbons of steak. Just be sure to cut the steak against the grain (that is, perpendicular to the direction that the strands are running).

7. Sugar Steak With Bourbon by Amanda Hesser

"Sugar steak is very much what it sounds like: steak that's blanketed with a sugar rub and grilled," writes Food52 co-founder and CEO Amanda Hesser. And the rub couldn't be simpler: 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1/4 cup bourbon, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and some salt.

8. Grilled Steak Salad With Italian Salsa Verde by Sarah | strawberryplum

This Italian-inspired salsa verde—fresh herbs, anchovies, capers, and walnuts, blended into a fragrant emulsion—is the perfect counterpoint to the rich, smoky fattiness of the grilled steak. Enjoy over a bed of greens and lunch is served.

9. Our Best Philly Cheesesteak by Josh Cohen

Test Kitchen Director Josh Cohen perfected the Philly cheesesteak sandwich. His version stars two cheeses and thinly sliced boneless rib eye—and it is, arguably, the most delicious way to eat this cut of steak.

10. Oven Rib-Eye Steak by Chris Hunnicutt

Unless you're a more traditional rib-eye fan. In that case, this may be the steak dinner for you: Use the even heat of the oven (and follow this fan-favorite recipe to a T) for perfectly cooked rib-eye steak—side of mushrooms and cheese sauce to boot.

11. Steak Dinner for One With Fish Sauce & Lime Butter by Eric Kim

A boneless New York strip cooks through in mere moments—but here, it's Table for One columnist Eric Kim's sweet, tangy, umami-rich fish sauce and lime butter that takes this steak dinner over the top.

12. Kombucha-Marinated Steak With Smashed Cucumber Salad by Rebecca Firkser

What do you get when you marinate flank steak in kombucha? This amazing weeknight number, complete with a smashed cucumber salad that's to die for.

13. Dry-Aged Strip Steaks Without Drying or Aging by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough

The secret to "dry-aged" flavor without the dry-aging? Porcini mushroom powder.

14. Grilled Skirt Steak Salad With Fish Sauce Vinaigrette by EmilyC

Another fish-sauce wonder, this flavor-packed skirt steak salad comes courtesy of Emily Connor, who marinates her meat after it's been grilled. The steak cooks and tastes better that way, she says.

15. Matcha Steak by Lynne Curry

This steak dinner idea calls for rib-eye, New York strip, or top sirloin—depending on your preference. But the real draw of this recipe is the matcha marinade and matcha finishing salt, which both add deep, umamied resonance to the meat.

16. Steak au Poivre by Merrill Stubbs

"This steak au poivre, served a perfect medium rare with a creamy, pepper-infused pan sauce, will always hold a place in my heart," writes our co-founder Merrill Stubbs. "True to my Anglican roots, I have a fondness for sherry and cream, which make up nearly half the ingredient list of a proper au poivre. To me, this is about as good as a pan sauce gets: a silky reduction of stock with a swirl of spirits and fat to soften the sting of the pepper and shallots."

17. Bloody Good Steak by connoisseur

Here's a tried and true steak dinner idea for your back pocket. As simple as this recipe is, its effect on the Food52 community (at least those who've tasted it) is great: Freshly crushed peppercorns, olive oil, and salt season the flank steak like Stubbs' au poivre, but it's the aged balsamic vinegar that really makes the dish.

18. Chicken-Fried Steak Katsu With Milk Gravy by Eric Kim

Chicken-fried steak lovers can rejoice in this take on the Southern classic. Cube steak gets dredged in panko bread crumbs and fried until crispy.

19. Broiled New York Strip Steak by coffeefoodwrite

Food52 readers love this broiled steak recipe for its foolproof ease and low-effort, high-impact flavor. Here are some of the words of praise in the recipe's comments section: "Came out perfect!"; "This was fabulous"; and "This is a great recipe. Easy and spot on for flavor."

20. Grilled Skirt Steak With Greek Salsa by thirschfeld

The grilled steak is, of course, delicious—but the Greek salsa that strews the plate is the real star here.

21. Mustard-Crusted Filet Mignon by Grant Melton

The key to a perfectly cooked filet mignon? Don't overcook it! For a nice medium-rare, recipe author Grant Melton recommends about 3 to 4 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of your filet; the trick is to let the steak rest and carry-over cook in its own residual heat.

How do you like to cook your steak? Rare, medium-rare, medium, medium-well, or well-done? Let us know in the comments below!

This article was originally published in 2014 and has since been updated with new information and recipes.