Perfectly grilled New York strip steaks taste even better when topped with a homemade bacon butter. This recipe is keto-friendly, great for company or a romantic dinner, and extremely easy to make. To enjoy it on a weeknight, just make the bacon butter a day in advance. Make extra, as it’s delicious on everything!
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
Bacon Butter
The first step in this recipe is to make the bacon butter. Before you do anything else, set a stick of butter out to soften. Then, start making bacon (How to Cook Bacon). Homemade or store-bought. Frying it in a cast iron pan is my method of choice for this recipe, as the rendered fat will be used later. If you prefer oven bacon you can go that route as well, but make sure not to line your baking sheet with anything absorbent (like paper towels). Reserve 2 tablespoons of rendered fat and allow it to cool to room temperature.
Put the stick of butter into the bowl of a stand mixer or food processor. Whip or mix until it takes on a creamed consistency. Add the reserved bacon fat and mix it in. Crumble in 6 pieces of bacon and several good twists of fresh cracked black pepper. Mix on low until everything is incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to set. It will need at least 30 minutes, but can be made up to a week in advance.
Once you’ve tried this butter on a few things, you’ll likely want to double the recipe. Spread it on bread, melt it over popcorn, and use it to cook vegetables or fry eggs in the morning. Try it in buttercream frosting, or use it to baste your Thanksgiving turkey. I literally cannot imagine a recipe in which bacon butter wouldn’t be an improvement over regular butter. Whip some up and start experimenting!
New York Strip Steaks
As reported by The Spruce Eats, the strip steak comes from the beef short loin. The short loin consists of two cuts of meat, the strip and the tenderloin, separated by the thoracic vertebrae. When sold as a single cut of meat, the strip and tenderloin together are a T-bone or porterhouse. A Kansas City strip typically has the bone left on, while a New York strip is served boneless. The muscle that makes up the strip steak is the longissimus dorsi – the same primary muscle in a ribeye steak. The longissimus dorsi muscle is tender due to a good amount of marbling (fat), and typically contains little connective tissue.
Strip steaks are best cooked on the grill, under the broiler, or in a cast-iron pan on the stovetop. I split the difference here (due to an uninvited April blizzard), and cooked mine on my Lodge cast-iron grill pan indoors. Start by setting your steaks out on the counter, and season them early. After reading Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat, I’ve started salting my meat as early as possible. Here I use a simple seasoning of salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Leave them out while you make the bacon butter to allow them to come to room temperature.
Heat your grill or grill pan to a medium-high heat. Sear the steaks on each side, then turn the heat down to medium. Cook for a total of 4-6 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the steaks, to achieve medium rare. Pull them off at an internal temperature of about 130F for medium rare, as measured by an instant read thermometer. Before your last flip, melt a tablespoon of bacon butter on top of each steak. Let it melt, flip them, and add another tablespoon. Let this melt into the meat as it reaches its final temperature, and serve.
What should you serve with these steaks with bacon butter? We had grilled asparagus (also with bacon butter) and garlicky portobello mushrooms, but you could try brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes, broccoli and rice, or go steakhouse traditional with a baked potato and a green salad. I hope your family enjoys them as much as mine did!
Grilled Strip Steaks with Bacon Butter
Ingredients
Bacon Butter
- 1 stick butter, unsalted softened
- 6 pieces bacon
- freshly cracked black pepper
Grilled Strip Steaks
- 4 strip steaks preferably at least 1″ thick
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp oil or bacon fat
Instructions
Bacon Butter
- Cook bacon, preferably in a cast-iron pan on the stovetop, until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon fat and allow to cool to room temperature
- Cream butter in stand mixer (or food processor). Add reserved bacon fat and mix well on medium. Crumble in cooked bacon and mix on low.
- Use spatula to spoon bacon butter into a small bowl. Cover and chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Grilled Strip Steaks
- Remove steaks from fridge (preferably before starting bacon). Season well with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Allow to come to room temperature for 20-30 minutes.
- Heat grill or grill pan to medium-high heat. Oil grill to prevent sticking.
- Sear steaks for 1-2 minutes on each side over medium-high. Turn heat down to medium. Turn steaks 1/4 turn after first flip to produce cross-hatch markings. Cook for a total of 4-6 minutes per side, or until internal temperature reaches 130 degrees.
- Top each steak with 1 tablespoon of bacon butter prior to last flip. Allow to melt and turn steaks over. Top each with an additional tablespoon of butter and remove when they reach temperature.
- Allow steaks to rest for 5-10 minutes, and serve.