Pan Fried Pork Shoulder Steak

Ready in a mere 30 minutes and served with a simple green salad, it’s a quick and easy meal that deeply satisfies. Pork chops are one of my favorite cuts of meat. They are wonderfully flavorful and very easy to make. So when I ordered them online a few weeks ago and received pork shoulder steaks instead, I was annoyed. That is, until I opened the package and looked at them. Wow! Big gorgeous steaks, about ½-inch thick, they are as well-marbled as a ribeye and have a nice strip of fat on the edge similar to a New York Strip. Lightly seasoned and cooked in a cast-iron skillet, they are actually better than pork chops because they are fattier and juicier.

Ingredients

If you like recipes with a short ingredient list, you will love this one! All you need to cook these gorgeous steaks are the steaks themselves, salt and pepper, a few spices, and a little bit of oil (you can find the exact measurements in the recipe card below). The spices I like to use are garlic powder, paprika, and ground cumin. You can experiment with adding a bit of onion powder and dried thyme. As for the meat, you’ll need to ask your butcher for “pork shoulder blade steaks,” though they are sometimes sold already packaged. They’re typically 1 ¼ lb. each and about ¾-inch thick. If your butcher doesn’t have any pre-cut steaks, you can ask them to cut them for you from a pork shoulder roast.

Instructions

Making these juicy steaks is truly easy. The detailed instructions are listed in the recipe card below. Here’s an overview of the steps: Your first step is to mix the spices in a small bowl, then rub the spice mixture all over the steaks. Next, heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, about 3 minutes. Add the oil, then add the steaks.Cook the steaks until browned, about 2 minutes per side, plus a few seconds on the fat strip if they have one. Now lower the heat to medium-low and continue to cook the steaks until they reach an internal temperature of 145F as measured in the thickest part. This should take about 5 more minutes per side. Transfer the cooked steaks to a platter. Loosely cover them with foil and allow them to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Expert tip

These steaks are BIG. So you might find that your skillet can only accommodate one steak at a time. If that’s the case, either use a cast-iron double-burner griddle, use two skillets, or cook the steaks one at a time and keep the cooked one in a warm (150F) oven while you cook the second one.

Frequently asked questions

Variations

The best way to vary the basic recipe is to experiment with different spices. Unlike a beef steak, which only needs kosher salt and black pepper, a pork steak does benefit from a sprinkling of spices. I love the combination of garlic powder, paprika, and cumin, but you can use whatever you like. As mentioned above, onion powder and dried thyme are nice additions.

Serving suggestions

These steaks ate big, fatty, and rich. I like to pair them with a super simple side dish, and I almost always opt for this arugula salad. They are also good with steamed veggies - try them with steamed broccoli or with steamed asparagus.