Reheating leftover steak can dramatically impact the steak—but it doesn’t have to! And while we firmly believe that there are no “right” and “wrongs” in cooking, there is a “best” way to reheat steak. We’re sharing the BEST way to reheat steak plus a couple other methods for when you’re in a pinch.
The Best Way for Reheating Steak
We’ve got a lot of steak recipes and steak tutorials (like what steak grades mean) on Zestful Kitchen—and we test each recipe multiple times which means we’re bound to have leftover steak from time to time. So after testing a variety of reheating methods with leftover steak, we’ve honed in on the perfect method for how to warm up steak.
The key is to reheat it at a low temperature to gently bring it up to temperature without overcooking it, then quickly searing it to re-establish a crust. This means no microwave! We don’t recommend reheating steak in the microwave because the intense microwaves will overcook the steak.
How to Reheat a Steak in Oven (Best Method)
- Heat your oven to 250ºF with a rack set in the middle position. Place the leftover steaks on a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet.
- Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and warm the steaks until they reach an internal temperature of 110ºF on an instant-read thermometer. Account for 15 minutes per ¾-inch of thickness—though timings will vary so keep an eye on it!
- Pat the steaks dry with a paper towel. Heat a splash of neutral high-heat cooking oil (vegetable or avocado oil) in a skillet over high heat until nearly smoking. Add the warm steaks to the skillet and sear briefly on both sides just until crisp, about 60 seconds per side.
- As with a freshly cooked steak, let the reheated steak rest for about 5 minutes before serving. The reheated steaks should register between 125ºF and 130ºF for medium-rare.
How to Reheat Steak On the Stovetop
For thinner cuts of steak, this is a great option. Plus you don’t have to turn your oven on—win win!
- Bring the steak up to room temperature (about 30 minutes).
- Pat the steaks dry with a paper towel. Heat a splash of neutral high-heat cooking oil (vegetable or avocado oil) in a skillet over high heat until nearly smoking. Add the room temperature steaks to the skillet and sear briefly on both sides just until crisp, about 60 seconds per side.
- As with a freshly cooked steak, let the reheated steak rest for about 5 minutes before serving. The reheated steaks should register between 125ºF and 130ºF for medium-rare.
Reheating Steak In Airfryer
An airfryer is essentially a small convection oven—i.e. an oven with a heating element and fan to circulate the hot air around the food. Air fryers heat up quickly and cook food rapidly. It’s a great option for reheating steak.
- Heat your airfryer to 350ºF.
- Add the leftover steaks to the air fryer basket and secure in airfryer.
- Heat leftover steaks in airfryer for about 5 minutes or until the steaks register between 125ºF and 130ºF. If you’re using thinner steaks, start checking them at 3 minutes. If you’re using thicker steaks, you may need 2 or so more minutes.
- As with a freshly cooked steak, let the reheated steak rest for about 5 minutes before serving. The reheated steaks should register between 125ºF and 130ºF for medium-rare.
How Long is Cooked Steak Good For?
Cooked steak will last up to 3 days when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to Reheat Steak in Microwave?
Like we said earlier, we don’t recommend reheating steak in the microwave. It’s a surefire way to overcook it. But a lot of our readers ask how to reheat steak in the microwave. So if you’ve gotta do it, here’s what we recommend doing.
- Place steak on a plate and cover loosely with a damp paper towel.
- Reheat steak in microwave in 30 second increments on 50% power, just until warmed through.
Steak Recipes to Try
What to Do with Leftover Steak
There are so many ways to use leftover steak—and these leftover steak recipes are a great place to start.
One of my favorite ways to use leftover steak is to top it with a savory Gochujang Sauce then serve it with some fried eggs for a Steak and Eggs dinner (or brunch). This method is great for a skirt steak.
Spoon our Creamy Mushroom Sauce for Steak over the reheated steak and pair it with salt and vinegar oven fries for a delicious Steak Frites dinner (we like ribeye for this). Or pile the steak into charred corn tortillas with a charred scallion salsa for some delicious steak tacos.
Make a Thai Steak Salad with thinly sliced top sirloin.
This sponsored post is in partnership with the Iowa Beef Council. As always the thoughts, opinions, recipe, photos and content are all my own.
