Garlic-Rubbed New York Steaks with Savory Tarragon Butter

Okay, so the unofficial official start to the summer grilling season is Memorial Day, who says we can’t start grilling sooner? After all, Memorial Day is the unofficial start. Anytime the weather is right, it’s grilling season!

Hubby is my grilling master. He can grill up just about anything to perfection. And this beautiful New York Steak was no exception. Once again, we made a great team. I made the Savory Butter, and prepared the steaks with a flavorful rub before grilling. Hubby did the actual grilling. Both are equally important. A well seasoned steak cooked to the point of shoe leather is a very bad thing. A steak grilled to perfection but without seasoning to enhance its natural goodness equally misses the mark. Yeah, Hubby and I make a good team.

These steaks are well seasoned, grilled to perfection and slathered with a wonderful finishing butter that brings yet another flavor to the palate party. The rub kisses the steaks with a wonderful garlic flavor, while the salt in the rub breaks down the proteins and helps to tenderize the meat. The charring imparts that wonderful smoky flavor that only fire-grilling can provide. And the savory butter – oh my! The crushed garlic, the licorice goodness of the fresh tarragon – dancing together in perfect harmony. The butter will be more than you’ll need for the steaks. Freeze it for later use – it goes beautifully on just about any grilled meat or as a base a herb butter sauce.

Garlic-Rubbed New York Steaks with Savory Tarragon Butter
Ingredients – Savory Tarragon Butter
½ Cup Butter, softened
2 Garlic Cloves, pressed
1 Tablespoon Fresh Tarragon, chopped

Ingredients – Garlic Rub
2 Tablespoons Fine Garlic Powder
2 Tablespoons Sea Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper

Ingredients – Steak
4 New York Steaks, bone-in
Olive Oil

TO MAKE SAVORY BUTTER: Combine butter, garlic and Tarragon. Refrigerate until semi-firm. Remove from refrigerator, form into a log, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm. When ready to use, cut rounds from log and allow butter to melt over grilled steaks.

TO MAKE GARLIC RUB: Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside until ready to use.

TO PREPARE STEAKS: With a paper towel, blot steaks dry. Brush steaks with olive oil. Rub with dry rub to coat, then press into the meat. Let steaks rest on the counter for at least an 1 hour.

TO GRILL THE STEAK: Build a nice bed of coals in the grill. Cover and let warm about 5 minutes before placing steaks on the grill.

Place the steaks on the grill with tongs to sear. (NEVER pierce the skin of the steaks with a fork!) For medium steak, sear 3-4 minutes per side, then move to warming rack and continue to grill while searing medium-rare steaks 3-4 minutes per side.

Lower coals (or raise grate depending upon grill) and continue to grill about 5 minutes longer, turning medium-rare steak once mid-way through.

Remove from grill, pat with savory butter and tent for about 5-10 minutes before serving.

Note: If you have a large metal mixing bowl, this works well to tent the steaks. Place steaks on a plate, place the bowl up-side-down over the plate and let rest.