Remove steaks from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Let sit at room temperature until ready to cook.

Heat a seasoned cast iron skillet over medium high heat until smoking hot.

Brush the hot pan with the vegetable oil.

Salt and pepper one side of the steaks, then place seasoned side down into the pan. Season the other side (now facing up) with more salt and pepper.

Time the steaks for two minutes, then flip the steak with tongs. Add the butter, olive oil, thyme and garlic to the pan and cook two more minutes while basting continually with a long-handled spoon.

Flip again and cook for two more minutes, still basting as you cook.

Flip one last time and with tongs, remove and discard garlic and thyme.

At this point, pick a steak up with tongs and insert a probe thermometer in through one side.

Follow the temperature chart below and continue to cook to desired internal temperature while you continue to baste.  (Note that your steaks will continue to cook off heat as they rest.) Rest your steaks for 10 minutes.

• For Rare, stop cooking at 120-130 F. After resting for 10 minutes, the meat will be red inside.
• For Medium Rare, stop cooking at 130-135 F. After resting, the meat will be pink inside.
• For Medium, stop cooking at 135-145 F. After resting, the meat will have some pink and brown color.
• For Well Done, stop cooking at 145-155 F. After resting, the meat will be mostly brown.
• For Very Well Done, stop cooking at 155-165 F. After resting, the meat will be completely brown with no pink.

Our one-pound steaks, 1 ¼ inches thick to start, reached 134 degrees F after seven minutes. We removed them to a platter, covered loosely with foil and set the timer for ten minutes. Then we moved them to our cutting board, and started slicing from one end to the other on a bias cut with a long-bladed slicing knife.

Any residual juice left in the platter should be poured or brushed over sliced portions.

If using our steak butter, place a slice of butter onto the steak when they are moved from the pan to the platter. Add another slice of butter as you serve if you’d like. Any melted steak butter from the serving platter can be poured over portions.