Liven up your steak dinner with this easy and delicious coffee marinated steak. Easy and quick to cook and reverse seared for maximum flavor and tenderness. It's perfect to cook for date night or to enjoy as part of a big feast.
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This recipe was first published in January 2016 and has been updated with more photos, tips and an improved recipe.
Ok, it sounds a bit of a strange mix, but stick with me on this one 'cos it's delish! Coffee Marinated Steak is the future, people!
One of my favorite coooking reference books is The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit. It's an amazing book that pairs different flavours together, ones that you may not think of, I highly recommend it to any budding cook! That's where I stumbled upon pairing coffee and beef. I've been mulling over a recipe for a while for this combination, and here it is!
The coffee adds an amazing earthy richness to the steak. It's not crazy overpowering, it just gives a great depth to every bite. I also reversed seared the steak which is an amazing fool proof way to cook steak perfectly every single time.
It's quick enough to cook to serve as a weeknight meal and fancy enough to serve for date night or for a weekend feast with all the trimmings.
If coffee is the one true love of your life, be sure to check out my Baileys Dalgona Coffee and Coffee Smoothie.
Ingredients for the coffee marinade
This simple marinade takes minutes to make with simple ingredients and the results are divine!
- Coffee: I used instant coffee mixed with hot water, but you can also use brewed coffee.
- Oil: I used olive oil, but other oils like canola or vegetable will do just fine. Marinades need a little oil in them to help round out the flavors.
- Worcestershire Sauce: Worcestershire sauce is one of my most used condiments! It's tangy, sweet and slightly spiced and it works wonderfully with the other ingredients.
- Garlic: Use freshly minced garlic for the best flavors.
- Black Pepper: Freshly ground black pepper adds a nice bite that works really well with the subtle coffee flavor.
- Fresh Thyme: This dish is pretty earthy and thyme has a similar flavor profile and adds an extra level of herby-ness.
How to make coffee steak
Be sure to scroll down for the full recipe!
- Marinate the steak for at least 2 hours (photo 1).
- Place in a baking tin and bake for around 15 minutes (photo 2 & 3).
- Sear the oven cooked steak in a pan for a couple of minutes on each side.
- Rest and serve.
Why reverse sear steak?
Reverse searing is now my go to method whenever I cook steak. It comes out so perfectly every time and it's dead easy to get it just the way you like. It helps to achieve that awesome crust whilst not overcooking the meat in the middle. It takes a few minutes longer and it is so worth it.
Of course you can cook this steak just on the stovetop, or sear it first and then cook it in the oven, but if you haven't tried this method before, it's more than worth a try!
Internal temperatures for steak
One of my must haves for cooking steak perfectly is to get an instant read thermometer. Do it, do it now, and thank me later! This takes all the guess work out of cooking that perfect steak. Place the thermometer into the thickest part of the steak when you are checking it. The temperatures you are aiming for for each stage of cooking are:
| In The Oven | In The Pan | |
| Medium Rare | 90-95F (32-35c) | 120-125F (49-52c) |
| Medium | 100-105F (38-41c) | 130F (50c) |
| Medium Well | 120-125F (49-52c) | 135-140F (57-60c) |
You can obviously do your steak well done if you really want to, I mean, you do you! If you do decide to go well done, you are looking for a final temp of 155F (68c) and up.
Frequently Asked Questions
When it comes to reverse searing, thicker is better. You want to use steak at least 1 ½ inches thick. For these photos I used a rib grilling steak, but other cuts like sirloin, fillet mignon or rib eye are also perfect choices.
Steak can be marinaded from 30 minutes to up to 8 hours. I recommend for this recipe give it at least 2 hours to let that coffee flavor develop. The longer you leave it the more flavorful it will be. There's no acid in this marinade, so if you want to leave it overnight it won't break down the meat.
This coffee steak can easily be paired with all of your favorite veggie and potato side dishes. Try it with:
Roast Potatoes with Garlic, Herbs and Parmesan
Pak Choi (Bok Choy) with Garlic & Chilli
Roasted Whole Onions
Loaded Sweet Potato Dauphinoise
Any leftover steak can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days and can be added cold to salads or used in sandwiches.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Let the coffee cool to room temperature before adding the steak so that it doesn't start to cook!
- Let the steak come up to room temperature before placing it in the oven.
- When you sear the steak, have the pan as hot as you can to get those perfect crispy bits.
- Let the steak rest for at least 10 minutes before serving to let the juices redistribute.
Be sure to try out my other beef recipes!
- Marinated Beef Stir Fry
- Roasted Ground Beef Chili
- Mexican Chili Beef Enchiladas
- Beef Curry Stew with Coconut Milk
- Marinated Flank Steak (Carne Asada) Tacos
- Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Shells
I love hearing from you!! If you have tried this yummy coffee marinated steak, be sure to scroll down, give it a star rating and let me know what you thought!
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Coffee Marinated Steak
Ingredients
- 1 thick steak (or two smaller thick steaks) around 14 oz / 400g in total
- 2 tbsp instant coffee
- 1 cup boiling water (250ml)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Black pepper
- fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- Add the coffee to the boiling water and stir to dissolve. Let the coffee cool to room temperature (you can place it in the fridge for a few minutes to quicken the process).
- Stir the oil, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and black pepper into the coffee.
- Place the steak in the coffee marinade with a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
- Pre heat the oven to 275F / 135c.
- Place the steak in a small baking tin and place in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. For medium rare, the steak should register at 90-95F / 32-35c. Once done, remove the steak from the oven.
- Add a tablespoon of oil to a pan with the butter and place on a high heat.
- Once hot, place the steak in the pan. Cook on one side for 2 minutes.
- Flip the steak over and cook for another 2 minutes whilst basting the top side of the steak with the fat in the pan.
- Remove the steak, let rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.
Notes
- Let the coffee cool to room temperature before adding the steak so that it doesn't start to cook!
- Let the steak come up to room temperature before placing it in the oven.
- When you sear the steak, have the pan as hot as you can to get those perfect crispy bits.
- Let the steak rest for at least 10 minutes before serving to let the juices redistribute.
- Nutritional values are based on one of two servings and are an estimate only.
Neels van Eck says
Hi, so I tried making the marinade and when I tasted it, it is very bitter. Is tgis notmal? Will tge meat also come out this bitter?
Slow The Cook Down says
Hi Neels, the marinade is bitter by itself, but when the steak is cooked it is definitely much milder and you get more coffee than bitter. You could try adding a tablespoon of brown sugar if you prefer a little sweetness.
Julie Wilson says
Just WOW! This is quite possibly the best steak we've eaten. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
Slow The Cook Down says
So glad you enjoyed it Julie - it's hands down my favorite way to cook steak!
Tara | Deliciously Declassified says
I've been wanting to try a coffee and beef pairing because I love the Kona rubbed steak and a local steakhouse. Will give this a try! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
[email protected] says
You will have to let me know what you think! Thanks for visiting!
Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy says
I love using coffee with beef (and bison)....it really does the meat justice. Sounds amazing!!
[email protected] says
It really brings out the flavours, doesn't it?! Thanks for visiting!
swayam says
Lovely! I do a similar marinade with chicken 🙂 Yum!!
[email protected] says
mmm..chicken you say? Must give that a go!
Tracy | Baking Mischief says
I would never have thought to pair coffee and beef. That's such an interesting combo! This looks so good and sounds like an absolutely perfect Sunday dinner!
[email protected] says
You should give it a go! The coffee marinade really brings out the flavour of the beef
Cassandrea at chewsandbrews.ca says
Sounds amazing! I love coffee and beef together - I've made a couple coffee rubs for brisket and roast and the flavour is always epic!
[email protected] says
It brings out the flavour of the meat so well. More people should try it!