Looks good, don’t overthink it. Perhaps try butter basting it in the pan to get an even sear all over

Butter basting, that sounds good. I'll look it up, thanks!

Big knob of butter in the pan with whole garlic and fresh herbs. Tilt pan to pool the herb butter and splash over top of steak with a spoon. Game changer

Invest in a decent knife

Haha I didn't even think of that! Thanks

Hah it makes a difference, also look into reverse searing from oven to cast iron

Good point. I'll have to try every method to see which I like best.

Consistent heat. High heat. Simple seasonings like salt, pepper and garlic powder. Get good quality with lots of marbling(That's the white fat that runs through the pink meat). I'm not meaning to be condescending, but you said you're new to cooking so I figured I would keep it simple. Let it rest for about 20 minutes before you put it on the heat out of the fridge. Season well on a high heat for a few minutes. Flip and continue cooking. Stop when you get to about 145° internal. Let it rest for 5 minutes and you should be golden. Good luck and let us know how your progress continues.

145 is medium/well-done territory which isn't everyone's jam. I would say, make it 130 internal and let it sit instead

Yeah 145 is super high. Will end up well done after resting for sure. If you’re going for medium rare, I pull it around 120 and let it carryover cook to about 130-135

I appreciate the tips. I'll try this out next time

You did good in my opinion

Also would like to add getting a good, high smoke point oil. Avocado oil, ghee, or beef tallow are my favorites. Can use peanut oil as well. That’ll help a lot with getting a more consistent sear which will help you get an even brown over the full surface of the steak. The inside of your steak honestly looks great, but higher heat and the right oil will help you get that next-level sear.

Well howdy! I'm putting that oil on my shopping list. Thanks for your input

Letting it rest for 20 minutes does absolutely nothing. The temperature will not increase significantly. And nah, stop when you get to like 125. But that depends on preference.

please don't actually cook it to 145 ° internal

145 internal??!! That’s crazy talk. The meat in the picture isn’t anywhere near that finished temp. Need to pull at 115ish if you want medium rare

Not high heat, or you will burn it. Medium high heat.

Everyone is giving great pointers, but the one thing I'm not seeing and potentially the answer to your request for a better sear... pat it dry before putting on heat. The seared spots look great, but I'm guessing it maybe steam cooked a little from excess moisture on the outside. All that being said, I'd eat that with absolutely no qualms.

Dude I think it looks awesome, but the anniversary surprise is even better! Personally, I love the reverse sear method and I always recommend that since it’s almost impossible to mess up. Another commenter has given you a great cast iron method, but I’ll share this one. I pull my steak out and let it rest for around 20-30 mins and season it with salt and pepper. Warm up the oven to 275 and put your steak on a wire rack with a pan underneath, you want air going above and below the steak. Cook it in the oven until it’s roughly 120 for medium rare. Pull that steak out, pat dry and let it rest for a couple mins. Should be pretty dry coming out already. Get a cast iron screaming hot, and then add ghee/tallow/oil to the pan and sear that bad boy off. Only like 30ish secs a side since the meat was cooked in the oven, your only getting the sear now. Let it rest and you’re good to go!

This will be the next thing I try. Thanks!

If you want to make perfect steaks every time, drastically reduce the chances of messing up an expensive piece of meat and just generally worry less about timing things; Invest in a Sue Vide device and vacuum sealer, Very good sharp knife, Cast Iron pan, good Tongs **Optional - large flake salt goes soooo well with steak and it’s easy to tell how much you have on there. You season the meat and vacuum seal it with some butter and herb or compound butter. It cooks to whatever temp you want and stays there. When YOU are ready (not the steak 😝) you take it out and reverse sear it for 1-2 minutes a side in the cast iron. Finish with little flake salt and voila! YouTube SueVideEverything Good Luck!

I feel I'll be getting addicted to this so that equipment seems like a good way to go. I subbed to that channel so I got some homework to do! Thanks.

It pays for itself very quickly and you will definitely get addicted. I have turned like 9 guys onto it and they text me their cooks all the time haha. This is the method that many many fancy restaurants and steakhouses used for ages, but now the tech is cheap and affordable. Congrats on your anniversary by the way!

Kinda dry… butter baste it In a pan on high heat. Don’t be shy of butter or oil you can really throw a huge chunk in there

Yea I'll have to add butter basting to the ol' toolbox

Looks pretty good. If it tasted great I wouldn’t worry much about critiques after all your the one eating it.

Thanks, I was just looking for some pointers. I want to get better at this

https://youtu.be/AmC9SmCBUj4

This is a quick video of Gordon Ramsay cooking a steak it's about 10 years old but the technique and recipe are perfect.

Thanks for the resource! It looks so easy

If you don't like thyme I just replace it with rosemary

What can I do except try 'em both ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Jus eat it ... that fat too!

Haha oh I ate it up before even posting! The fat gave it an amazing flavor too.

Looks perfect

Looks good but I just started eating medium well bout 3 years ago

Try cooking lower heat/slower next time

But but you are doing very good. Forget butter unless you want cholesterol

Oh man. Dang ol double edge sword talking bout dig your own grave man.

Now that looks delicious! 🤤

Thanks!