I'm fully in my "bites" era, and succulent Garlic Butter Steak Bites are today's obsession: 1-inch cubes of sirloin seared hard in a screaming-hot pan, then finished in a fragrant garlic-shallot butter with thyme and a splash of Worcestershire. They're on the table in 15 minutes, my kids demolish them, and they're genuinely addictive. If you love a garlic-butter situation, my The Ultimate Garlic Shrimp Scampi runs on the same flavor engine, my Marinated Grilled Steak Skewers are the grill-season sibling, and my 50 Easy Dinner Ideas roundup has a whole roster of dinners this fast.
Garlic Butter Steak Bites at a Glance
- 🕒 Total Time: 15 minutes (10 min prep + 5 min cook)
- 👪 Servings: 6
- 🍝 Cuisine Type: American
- 🧂 Flavor Profile: Deeply seared sirloin in a garlic-shallot butter with fresh thyme and a savory Worcestershire backbone
- 📖 Dietary Info: Contains beef and dairy (butter); gluten-free as long as your Worcestershire is GF (most major brands are)
- 📦 Storage Notes: Refrigerate airtight for 3 to 4 days; reheat fast in a hot skillet for 1 to 2 minutes (the microwave turns them gray and chewy); freezing not recommended, the sear doesn't survive
- ⭐Why You'll Love It: Steakhouse flavor in 15 minutes with one pan. The garlic-shallot butter turns into an instant pan sauce, the kids eat them because everything bite-size is more fun, and they're just as good over polenta as they are straight off the fork standing at the stove.
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Why I Love This Recipe
Anything that takes 10 minutes of prep and 5ish minutes of cook time is a win in my book. And when that recipe is packed with flavor, you better believe it's going into my monthly dinner rotation. These steak bites are succulent and tender and the perfect protein on any dinner plate. Serve it up over polenta, rice, mashed potatoes or risotto and you're in business.
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Ingredients
- Sirloin Steak
- Olive Oil
- Gaby’s Everyday Seasoning
- Unsalted Butter
- Shallot
- Salt & Pepper
- Thyme
- Garlic Cloves
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Polenta, Risotto or Mashed Potatoes
*For a full list of ingredients and instructions please see recipe card below
Substitutions & Swaps
🥩 Steak
- Sirloin (called for) - The best flavor-to-price ratio for bites; tender without being precious
- Ribeye - Richer and more marbled; render it a touch longer so the fat earns its keep
- Tenderloin (filet) - The most tender bite there is; it's lean, so pull it a shade earlier
- NY strip - Great beefy middle ground; trim the outer fat cap before cubing
- Skip pre-cut "stew meat" - It's chuck meant for braising; it stays tough in a 5-minute sear no matter what you do
🧈 Butter
- Unsalted butter (called for) - You control the salt; the seasoning blend brings plenty
- Ghee - Higher smoke point; the move if you want to sear and baste in the same fat
- Herb compound butter - If you have a log in the freezer, this is its moment
🧂 Seasoning
- Gaby's Everyday Seasoning (called for) - The house blend does the work here
- DIY blend - Kosher salt, cracked pepper, garlic powder, and a pinch of smoked paprika gets you close
- Montreal steak seasoning - Coarser and punchier; use a light hand, it's salty
🌿 Aromatics & Sauce
- Shallot - Swap finely diced red onion 1:1 if that's what's in the basket
- Thyme - Rosemary works; chop it fine and use half as much, it's louder
- Worcestershire - Soy sauce plus a small squeeze of lemon covers the umami-and-tang job
- Garlic - Fresh cloves only; garlic powder can't survive the butter-baste moment this sauce is built on
🍽️ Serving
- Cheesy polenta or mashed potatoes - The classic landing pad for the garlic butter
- Risotto - Goat cheese or cacio e pepe versions both love this on top
- Crusty bread and a big salad - Bread for the pan sauce; the salad keeps it honest
How to Make Garlic Butter Steak Bites
Step 1: Slice steak into about 1-inch cubes and add to a bowl with the olive oil and Everyday Seasoning. Toss to combine.
Step 2: Heat a large cast iron skillet to medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add in an additional 2 tablespoons of oil and let heat until shimmering. Once shimmering, add in the cubes of steak and cook in small batches making sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook for about 1-2 minutes and then flip to get a great sear.
Step 3: Once steak is cooked, remove steak from the skillet and set aside. Reduce skillet heat to medium low and add in butter and shallots and season with salt and black pepper and cook for about 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add in the thyme, garlic and Worcestershire sauce and cook for about 30 seconds.
Step 4: Finish by adding back in the cooked steak bites and toss to combine.
🥩🧄🧈 Tips & Tricks for the Best Garlic Butter Steak Bites
A hard sear, a butter baste, and restraint: that's the whole game
- Pat the cubes bone-dry before seasoning. Surface moisture steams; dry meat sears. A paper towel is the cheapest upgrade in this recipe.
- Cut uniform 1-inch cubes. Mixed sizes mean the small ones are gray by the time the big ones hit temp.
- Let the steak sit out 20 minutes first. Fridge-cold centers stay raw while the outside overcooks trying to catch up.
- Get a good sear: the pan must be screaming hot. Cast iron over high until the oil shimmers and just starts to smoke. That is when the crust happens.
- Sear in a single layer, in batches. Crowding drops the pan temp and you end up steaming gray cubes. Two rounds beats one soggy one.
- Don't mess with the steak. Set the cubes down and leave them a full 2 minutes before turning. Fidgeting is how you lose the crust.
- Butter, garlic, and shallot go in AFTER the sear. Garlic burns bitter at searing temps. Drop the heat, add the butter and aromatics, and let them bloom in the residual heat.
- Tilt and baste for the last minute. Spoon the foaming garlic butter over the bites; that's the steakhouse move that gets the sauce into every crevice.
- Pull at 130°F for medium. Bites are small and carry over fast; 130 in the pan is 135 to 140 on the plate.
- Rest 3 minutes, then pour the pan butter over the top. The juices settle back in and the Worcestershire-spiked butter becomes the sauce. Bread on standby.
FAQs
What are garlic butter steak bites?
Garlic butter steak bites are 1-inch cubes of steak (I use sirloin) seared hard in a hot pan and finished in a garlic-shallot butter sauce with thyme and Worcestershire. They're a 15-minute dinner best served over polenta, risotto, or mashed potatoes.
What is the best cut of steak for steak bites?
Sirloin is the sweet spot: tender, beefy, and reasonably priced. Tenderloin is the most tender and ribeye the richest, but skip pre-cut stew meat entirely; it's braising chuck and stays tough in a fast sear.
How do you cook steak bites without overcooking them?
Screaming-hot pan, single layer, about 2 minutes per side, and pull them at 130°F for medium. Small cubes carry over fast, so err on pulling early; the butter baste finishes them.
What do you serve with steak bites?
Cheesy polenta, mashed potatoes, or risotto are the classic landing pads for the garlic butter. Crusty bread and a big salad round it out; the pan sauce demands the bread.
How do you store and reheat leftover steak bites?
Airtight in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat in a hot skillet for 1 to 2 minutes, just to warm through; the microwave turns them gray and chewy.
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If you tried this recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting today
Garlic Butter Steak Bites
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds sirloin steak
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for drizzling, plus more for cooking
- 1½ tablespoons Gaby’s Everyday Seasoning
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 shallot finely chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons thyme finely chopped
- 6 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- Polenta or Mashed Potatoes for serving
Instructions
- Cut the steak into roughly 1-inch cubes and add to a bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the Gaby's Everyday Seasoning, gently toss to combine.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet to medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add in an additional 2 tablespoons of oil. Once the oil is shimmering, add in the cubes of steak bites and cook in small batches making sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook for about 1-2 minutes and then flip to get a great sear and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes.
- Once steak is cooked, remove steak from the skillet and set aside on a clean plate. Reduce heat to medium low and add in the butter and shallots and season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Cook for about 1-2 minutes until fragrant the shallots are fragrant. Add in the thyme, garlic and Worcestershire sauce and cook for about 30 seconds more. Add the steak bites back in the butter mixture and toss to combine.
An absolute GO TO!! I’ve made this so often that I don’t even need the recipe anymore!
I never leave comments, but this was so, so good, I just have to! And I just shared it with my daughter.
Thank you so much!
so so happy!
This is such an easy go to recipe! It's delicious and hits just right every time! It's on our dinner rotation every other week! You can even make it after drinking half a bottle of wine by the fire pit lol!
Made these garlic butter steak bites for dinner and they were a huge hit — juicy, flavorful, and the garlic butter sauce was perfect. My family couldn’t get enough!
So fast to put together. This recipe is so flavorful and delicious. We served over garlic mashed potatoes and YUM. I did have a little oil separating from the garlic, onion and thyme so wondering if I was supposed to drain the bit of oil left from sauteed onion♀️ in any event this will be on repeat it’s that yummy! Thank you for another fast and satisfying meal Gaby!!
A-mazing! Easy weeknight meal, perfect for fall.
I made this recipe tonight. It was delicious and easy to make. I made grits with a little cheese and butter to top with the steak. I’ll definitely make this again. Husband loved it too.
We made this last night with rice underneath! It was delicious!!!!!
What seasoning can be used if I don't have your everyday seasoning?
Kristy, I substituted Montreal Seasoning. It was delicious!
Does sirloin steak refer to top sirloin?
This looks delicious and I can't wait to try it!!
Top is my preference but either will work! xx
Tried to get your spice rub but it's sold out... any idea when it'll be available again?
I just made this for dinner last night. And it was super yummy and a hit.
I feel like this recipe needs its moment! I needed a quick dinner recipe with steak tips and after a quick search of your site, I found this recipe and it was AMAZING! My son will only eat steak with your everyday seasoning so this was a double win! Thank you for saving me on a Monday night! You never disappoint!