Pan Seared Steak with Sweet & Sour sauce

Last week the Kitchen Witch had house guests. We cooked and ate to our hearts content. This was one of the delicious things we made. The recipe was discovered on The Steamy Kitchen's blog and what a discovery it is indeed! It was SO GOOD, even the uber picky 3 yr olds liked it! Seared steaks, rich sauce, what more can you ask for?

The sauce is what really sold me on this dish. It has lots of Asian flavors yet isn't 'Asian'. We paired the steak with Caesar salad and smashed potatoes, both of which will be posted in the next few days, and all the flavors paired nicely. We decided to quadruple the sauce for the steaks because 1/2 c sauce just didn't seem like enough for 4 people. Turns out that quadrupling the sauce was a bit excessive - doubling it would have been OK. I am posting the SINGLE batch of sauce recipe here, feel free to double, triple or quadruple it as you see fit. I just ask that you find a bowl big enough to hold it all, unlike the Kitchen Witch.

The key to success here is to have everything prepped and ready to go. The steaks cook faster than you'd think, so if you wait to slice your onions while they cook you run the risk of the steaks overcooking or the onions not being done in time. Either way isn't good. The onions need to be sliced very thin, a mandolin or sharp knife is essential here. The sauce was perfect, sweet, sour, fresh and different, and it complimented the rich beef perfectly. If beef isn't your thing you could put this sauce on chicken or pork, or make it for a stir fry.

Pan Seared Steak with Sweet and Sour Tomato and Onion Sauce
makes 4 steaks
Adapted from Steamy Kitchen

2T canola oil
Four 1 1/4 inch thick steaks, cut your choice (New York Strip was used), at room temperature
salt and pepper to season steaks
1 whole onion, sliced very thin
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 whole tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges each

Sauce (whisk in small bowl)
1 tablespoons ketchup
1 1/2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar (or white vinegar)
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon soy sauce

Prep the onions, tomatoes and garlic and set aside. Mix the sauce ingredients together as well so they're ready to go when the time comes.



Heat a large skillet over high heat until a bead of water sizzles upon contact and immediately evaporates. You want that pan super hot to get the best sear on the steaks as possible. Add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the pan and let the oil heat up. The Witch used a stainless steel pan rather than cast iron here because the sauce is acidic and it would have reacted with the iron pan. Please don't use teflon, it can't get hot enough to sear the steaks properly.

While the pan is heating, brush the remaining 1 tablespoon of cooking oil on each side of the steaks. Season with salt and pepper and carefully lay them in the hot pan, not touching. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until you reach your desired level of doneness. Instant read thermometer should read 120F at the center of the steak for medium-rare. Keep in mind that the steaks will continue cooking while resting, so if 130F is your target temp, pull the steaks at 125F.



Remove steaks to a plate and tent loosely with tin foil. Return the skillet to medium heat. You should still have some oil left in the pan. Add the garlic and onions to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Push the garlic/onions to one side of the pan and add the tomato wedges. Cook the tomatoes 1 minute.



Add the sauce mixture and simmer until slightly thickened and the tomatoes and onions are nicely coated with the sauce.



Now you’ll have to taste and adjust – how sweet and how sour is a personal preference, plus your tomato may be juicy sweet or a bit acidic. (Make sure you taste a bit of the tomato too)

* Too puckery acidic? Add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar
* Not sour enough? Add 1/4 teaspoon of rice vinegar
* Need a little more salt? Add 1/4 teaspoon of soy sauce
* Sweet and Sour too strong? Add 1 tablespoon water

Pour the sweet and sour tomato onion sauce on top of steaks.



Nutrition Facts provided by SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 602.5
Total Fat 28.2 g
Saturated Fat 0.5 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.2 g
Monounsaturated Fat 4.2 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 866.0 mg
Potassium 273.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate 16.8 g
Dietary Fiber 1.7 g
Sugars 8.5 g
Protein 65.4 g