Sizzling Asian Beef Steak with Mirin Butter Sauce
A quick and impressive steak dinner with a glossy, buttery Asian-inspired sauce made from soy, mirin, and sake. Perfect for a weeknight treat or a special meal.
- Prep5 min
- Cook10 min
- Total15 min
- DifficultyEasy
- Servings2
This steak recipe is all about the sauce—a simple blend of soy, mirin, and sake that transforms into a rich, buttery glaze. The technique is straightforward: sear the steak to your liking, rest it, then whip up the sauce in the same pan for extra flavor.
Serve it with plain white rice and finely shredded cabbage for a classic Japanese-inspired plate. It's a fast, elegant dish that feels far more elaborate than its 15-minute prep and cook time suggest.
Ingredients
Servings
Converted amounts are rounded.
Method
- Take the steaks out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking (or 10 minutes on a very hot day).
- In a small bowl, mix the soy sauce, mirin, and sake.
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until it starts to smoke. Add the steaks and cook to your preferred doneness. For 150g/5oz steaks that are about 3cm/1.25" thick, cook 3 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the second for medium-rare.
- Transfer the steaks to a plate and cover loosely with foil. Let them rest for 5 minutes.
- Let the skillet cool slightly, then return it to the stove over medium-high heat. Pour in the sauce and bring to a simmer, then add the butter. Once the butter melts and blends into the sauce, immediately remove the skillet from the heat.
- Stir in the garlic, ginger, and 2 teaspoons of the chopped shallots (reserve the rest for garnish). The sauce should thicken slightly; if not, keep stirring—it will thicken more as it cools.
- Place the steaks on plates and spoon the sauce over them. Serve with finely shredded cabbage without dressing (a typical Japanese side) and white rice, plus some edamame on the side.
💡 Tips
- For a richer flavor, use a cast-iron skillet if you have one.
- If you can't find mirin, you can substitute with a mix of 1 tbsp rice vinegar and 1 tsp sugar.
- Let the steak rest properly; this keeps it juicy.
Inspired by a recipe from RecipeTin Eats