Rib Eye Steaks & Crispy Baked Potatoes

After a meager meat & potato diet for 10 days in Las Vegas at my son & family I am now getting back to normal. We don’t eat as many steaks as we did at a younger age. T-bones or porterhouse used to be my favorite, cut thick & cooked kinda well done. I have learned over the years they taste better when med. rare to rare. I still don’t want much red but a good pink is what I like. I favor a rib eye now, it is full of flavor, & besides I can’t eat a whole t-bone anymore.

I was too lazy to fire up the smoker for these so I opted for my favorite skillet method to cook. Would you believe I found this method in a fishing magazine? Season the steaks & let set at room temperature for ½ hour. Use your favorite seasoning; I used steak salt that had some, garlic, pepper, & onion in it. Start with a preheated 350 deg oven, heat a skillet, lightly coated with olive oil, on med high for 5 minutes. Sear steaks for 2 to 3 minutes on each side then pop skillet into the 350 deg oven. 4to 5 min. for rare, 6 to 8 minutes for medium & 10 to 12 minutes for well done. These rib eyes were not that thick so I seared them 2 ½ minutes on first side, 2 minutes on the second side & in the oven for 7 minutes. I let them rest on the plate while I plated the baked potatoes & steamed broccoli. The steaks were tasty, just a tad over but pink in the middle. You will have to experiment with the times to get it the way you like. I prefer to use 1 inch thick steaks; it is easier to get the doneness you want.

Broccoli was one side, I steamed it in my asparagus steamer for 5 minutes. I added a dash of lemon juice, salt & pepper. My baked potatoes I used med size baked for 1 ½ hours at 350 deg. with a potato rod inserted; they are an aluminum rod that transfers heat to the inside of the potato when baking. I found if I baked them at 350 deg. for 1 ½ hours I get a real crispy skin. After you eat the potato, you have a crispy potato skin to enjoy. If done right you can feel the skin crack when you pick them up with a hot pad.

Use caution though when removing the rod! I always wash my potatoes, insert the rod & poke 3 sets of holes with a pickle fork on each side. For the first time when I removed the rod from one potato, potato shot out like a jet, almost burning my hand, all over my big belly, on the floor & stove. I have been using the rods for at least 15 years & this is the first time it happened. I suppose it might be better to lay the potato down & poke it with a fork before removing the rod. There was still enough potato to enjoy though! :)

The rib eyes were tasty, the wife & I both enjoyed this meal.

The Rods I use.

The Steaks

Ready for the Oven

My Plate

Smokin Don