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These tender and juicy garlic butter steak bites with hints of rosemary will become a favorite recipe for all your gatherings. Ready in less than 30 minutes, it’s equally perfect for special occasions or weeknight dinners.
If you’ve been around here a while, you know I’m basically obsessed with garlic butter sauce. There’s my garlic butter shrimp pasta, my garlic butter chicken, garlic butter carrots… yeah, it’s a whole thing. And now? Steak bites. LOVE.
Served in garlicky rosemary butter, these steak bites are seared until caramelized and juicy. It’s the kind of dinner that looks fancy but comes together in less than 30 minutes. With just a handful of ingredients and a good thick-cut steak, you’ll end up with tender bites swimming in an aromatic pool of butter + flavor. Total star of the dinner table.
Why I Love This Steak Bites Recipe
- Fancy but easy. Made with garlic, butter, and a bit of rosemary, this dish is a homemade fancy dinner that’s very easy to make.
- Perfect for special occasions. This steak recipe makes enough for two people and looks impressive on a plate, making it ideal for celebrations like birthday dinners, anniversaries, etc. If you’re expecting more people over, just double or triple the recipe.
- Quick. With about a 6-minute cooking time, you’ll be putting this dish on the table before you know it. And you’ll have enough time to make buttery mashed potatoes or Instant Pot jasmine rice to serve with them.
- Juicy. Quickly cooked over high heat and basted in butter, you won’t believe how juicy these garlic butter steak bites are.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This is the perfect mix of ingredients to ensure each bite of steak is as tender and delicious as it gets, from your choice of steak to the herbs and oils that bring out its best flavor.
- Rib eye steak: Sirloin is a common substitute because it’s tender and flavorful. However, tenderloin or New York strip steak work, too, as long as they are the right thickness.
- Salt and Black Pepper: A simple seasoning to enhance the flavor of the meat.
- Olive oil: Vegetable, corn, and canola oil work too.
- Unsalted butter: Feel free to use salted butter, but reduce the salt in the rest of the recipe.
- Garlic cloves: I don’t recommend using garlic powder, but if that’s all you have, it’s totally okay. Shallots are an excellent alternative.
- Dried rosemary: Dried thyme works too.
- Fresh parsley: Used as a garnish to add a pop of color.
Recipe Tips
Things like choosing the right pan and not over-stirring can make a world of difference. Here are several tips to help you make the juiciest steak bites.
- Use a non-stick pan. Avoid any sticking by using a non-stick pan from the get-go.
- Rest it. Let your steak rest for 5-10 minutes after cooking it so that the juices can redistribute throughout. This will make your steak bites extra juicy.
- Add spices. Season the steak bites with 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika or 1/4 teaspoon of ground cumin for added flavor.
- Sear. You don’t need to endlessly stir the pan. In fact, to make your steak juicy and tender, avoid moving or turning the steak bites as much. You should only flip them when they’re nicely browned and seared.
Serving Suggestions
For an easy meal, you can complement these garlic butter steak bites with creamy avocado pasta on the side. For salad options, try this tomato salad with sweet onions, crunchy broccoli salad, or my creamy potato salad.
If you really want to impress, serve this steak recipe with roasted mushrooms with Parmesan, roasted artichokes, or Parmesan truffle fries.
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Garlic Butter Steak Bites
Ingredients
- 1 pound ribeye steak, pounded to 1/2″ thickness and cut into 1.5″ cubes
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- chopped fresh parsley,, for garnish
Instructions
- Season the steak. Sprinkle the cubed steak with salt and pepper to taste on all sides.
- Heat up the skillet and cooking oil. Place a large pan or a cast iron skillet over high heat. Let it heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot. Add the olive oil and let it heat for another minute.
- Cook. Add the steak pieces and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, occasionally stirring, until browned on all sides. Remove the steak from the pan and set it aside.
- Make the garlic butter sauce. Add the butter to the same pan and let it melt completely. Gently scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic and dried rosemary. Stir constantly and cook the mixture for 30 seconds or until nice and fragrant. Don't burn the garlic.
- Combine. Return the cooked steak bites to the pan and baste them in the garlic butter for 1 to 2 minutes for a medium-rare steak. Please feel free to baste for an additional minute or so if you like your steak a little more cooked.
- Serve. Remove the skillet from the heat. Taste the steak bites for salt and pepper and adjust. Garnish them with fresh parsley; serve.
Equipment
Notes
- Steak: I used rib eye steak for this recipe, but you could also use a sirloin, a new york strip, or a tenderloin.
- Butter: Feel free to use salted butter if that is what you have, but remember to use less salt on the steak tips.
- Garlic: Use fresh garlic cloves and not garlic powder. You can also try this recipe with finely minced shallots.
- Herbs: We like dried rosemary in this recipe, but you can use whatever you prefer, including a blend of your favorite dried herbs and spices.
- Skillet: I use my cast iron skillet for all-things-steak. If you don’t have one, use a nonstick pan.
- Don’t overcook the steak tips. Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check for doneness; 130˚F for medium-rare and 150˚F for well done.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
How to Make Garlic Butter Steak Bites
This recipe is as easy as seasoning the meat, searing the steak, melting the butter, and combining it all together!
- Season the meat. Generously season the meat with salt and pepper to taste on all sides. Set it aside.
- Prepare the pan. Place a large pan over medium-high heat; a cast iron skillet is preferred. Let it heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the olive oil and let it heat for a minute. Don’t skip this step because cold oil won’t make beautifully seared steak bites. It needs to be hot. However, if your pan is smoking, reduce the heat.
- Brown the steak. Add the meat and let it cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until browned on all sides. Remove it from the pan and set it aside.
- Melt the butter. Add the butter to the same pan and let it melt completely. Gently scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic and dried rosemary. Stir. Cook the mixture for 30 seconds or until nice and fragrant. Don’t let the garlic burn.
- Baste it. Return the cooked steak bites to the pan and baste them in the garlic butter for 1-2 minutes for a medium rare. Baste for an additional 1-2 minutes if you like your steak more cooked. Basting refers to spooning a sauce over an ingredient as it cooks.
- Serve. Remove it from the heat. Season with more salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the dish with fresh parsley to taste.
How to Store & Reheat Leftovers
Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Transfer them to the fridge to thaw overnight before serving. To reheat, place the steak bites in a pan over medium heat for 5 minutes or until warm. You can also sprinkle them with 1 teaspoon of water or beef broth and microwave them for 1 to 2 minutes.
This recipe is easy to make and delicious to eat! I used sirloin steak and served it over riced cauliflower.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank YOU! 😊 Great choice with the sirloin and riced cauliflower.
Excellent! Easy to prepare, flavorful, definitely a top recipe to keep.
I’m glad you found it excellent and easy to prepare! It’s great to hear it’s a top recipe for you. Enjoy! Thank YOU! 🙂
These steak bites are amazing!!!
It was amazing!!
The Garlic steak bites were amazing. The flavor was amazing and the steak was tender. I used NY strip streak and salted butter. I served it with brown rice and a side salad. The family said it was a for sure do over. Thank you for the recipe!!!
This was excellent! My family loved it. I will definitely make this again.
This is my type of dinner! I am making it tonight!
Such an amazing meal for weeknights! Thanks for the recipe!
Looks beyond delicious! Adding on our must make list!
Oh, boy do those look good. All I need now is some egg noodles!
Can I use Round Steak?