Garlic Steak

This garlic steak recipe keeps things dead simple. Round steak gets marinated in a mix of steak sauce, oil, cracked black pepper, and crushed garlic, then broiled until it hits that sweet spot between rare and medium-rare. Five ingredients, zero fuss.

The steak sauce is pulling a lot of weight in this marinade. It brings acid, sweetness, and umami all at once, which tenderizes the round steak while building a flavor base that crushed garlic and cracked pepper punch up even further. Round steak is a leaner, tougher cut, so that hour of marinating is doing real work to break down the muscle fibers.

Broiling puts intense, direct heat on the steak from above, which gives you a charred, caramelized surface while keeping the interior pink. Position the meat 3 to 4 inches from the heat source. Any closer and the outside burns before the center warms through. One flip halfway is all you need.

Chef Tips

• Marinate at least one full hour. This cut needs the time. If you can leave it overnight, even better.
• Pat the steak dry before broiling. Excess marinade on the surface steams instead of searing, and you lose that crust.
• Use a meat thermometer. Pull at 130°F (54°C) for medium-rare. The steak will carry over a few degrees while resting.
• Let it rest 5 minutes before slicing. Cut against the grain for the most tender bite, especially with round steak.

Variations

• Grill version: This marinade works just as well on a hot grill. Same timing, same distance from heat.
• Asian-inspired: Swap the steak sauce for soy sauce and add a teaspoon of sesame oil and a pinch of ginger.