Oven Rib-Eye Steaks with Cream Sauce

Name: Oven Rib-Eye Steaks with Cream Sauce
Prep time: 4 min
Cook time: 14 min
Ingredients: 2 rib-eye steaks, 1 1/4 inches thick (about 1 1/4 lb total); 1 tbsp avocado oil; 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt; 1 tsp coarsely cracked black pepper; 3 tbsp butter; 1 shallot, minced; 6 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced; 2/3 cup heavy cream; 1 tbsp Dijon mustard; 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, plus 2 sprigs

⏲ ~18 min total · prep 4 · cook 14 · 4 servings

Lunch⏱ 45 min total🔥 8.6g net carbs

By the KFI Test Kitchen · Tested & approved by Jason Lieu, KFI recipe editor

Published Sep 15, 2026 · Updated Sep 15, 2026

Ingredients

2 rib-eye steaks, 1 1/4 inches thick (about 1 1/4 lb total)
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp coarsely cracked black pepper
3 tbsp butter
1 shallot, minced
6 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, plus 2 sprigs

Instructions

Salt the steaks all over and leave them on the counter for 20 minutes — they cook more evenly and the dried surface sears darker.
Heat a dry cast-iron skillet over high until a drop of water skitters and vanishes, about 4 minutes; add the oil, lay in the pepper-crusted steaks, and sear undisturbed 2 minutes per side for a hard brown crust.
Add the butter and thyme sprigs, tilt the pan, and spoon the foaming butter over the steaks for 45 seconds.
Transfer the skillet to a 400°F oven for 6-9 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part reads 120-125°F for medium-rare.
Move the steaks to a cutting board, tent loosely with foil, and rest 8 minutes — the temperature climbs another 5 degrees as they sit.
Set the skillet over medium heat, cook the shallot 1 minute, then the mushrooms 4-5 minutes, stirring once, until browned and their released liquid has cooked off.
Stir in the Dijon, cream, and thyme leaves and simmer 2-3 minutes, scraping the crusty fond from the pan, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon; season, carve the steaks against the grain, and spoon the sauce over.

Why this recipe works

Cast iron and patience Four minutes of preheating gets the dry skillet hot enough that a water drop skitters, and two undisturbed minutes per side builds a hard brown crust.
Butter baste, then oven Forty-five seconds of foaming butter spooned over the crust, then 6 to 9 minutes at 400°F to land at medium-rare. Stovetop alone burns the crust before the center catches up.
Fond becomes sauce The Dijon cream scrapes the crusty bits off the skillet, and those browned flecks are the difference between a sauce and warm cream.

Tips for making this recipe well

Salt 20 minutes ahead

Steaks salted on the counter for 20 minutes cook more evenly and sear darker on the dried surface. Straight-from-the-fridge steaks fight the pan.

Aim for 120 to 125°F

Pull the steaks at that range for medium-rare and let the 8-minute rest carry them up about 5 degrees, as the recipe notes. Slicing in to check doneness wastes the crust you paid for in butter.

Rest the full 8 minutes

Tent loosely with foil, not tight, so the crust does not steam soft. The juices settle back into the meat instead of running onto the board.

Cook the mushrooms properly

Give the shallot its minute, then the mushrooms 4 to 5 minutes until browned and their liquid has cooked off. Mushrooms rushed or crowded go gray and watery.

Reduce to a spoon coat

Two to 3 minutes of simmering thickens the cream until it coats the back of a spoon. Under-thickened sauce slides off the sliced steak and puddles.

Serving suggestions

Dijon mustard is doing quiet work here, standing in the cream sauce where flour would thicken a lesser version. Carve the rested steaks against the grain, fan the slices, and spoon the mushroom cream over generously. At 8.6 net carbs a serving, the pan sauce is included in the math. Anything green and snappy works alongside; the skillet already did its part.

Storage and meal prep

Steak leftovers keep 3 to 4 days covered in the fridge, with the sauce in its own container for the same stretch. Reheat the beef briefly and gently; rib-eye is fatty enough to stay tender, but a hard reheat renders it greasy. The sauce warms well on the stove with a splash of water if it has thickened overnight. Freezing the cooked steaks for 2 to 3 months is possible, though the cream sauce is better made fresh, so store them separately if the freezer is the plan.

Variations worth trying

Swap the mushroom Creminis can yield to shiitakes or sliced portobellos; brown them the same way before the cream goes in.
Brandy finish A splash of brandy deglazed with the shallot deepens the sauce; let it cook off before the cream.
Peppercorn version Crush green peppercorns into the sauce with the Dijon for a steakhouse lean.
Rosemary baste Rosemary stands in for the thyme sprigs in the butter baste if that is what the windowsill offers.

Frequently asked questions

What if my steaks are thicker than 1 1/4 inches?

Add oven time rather than pan time; the crust should never pay for the center. Check the thickest part starting at 6 minutes and pull at 120 to 125°F.

Can I skip the oven and finish on the stove?

You can, over lower heat with frequent turning, but the crust keeps browning while the center creeps up. The oven finishes the middle without touching the crust.

Why rest the steaks at all?

The 8-minute rest lets the juices redistribute so they stay in the meat when carved. The recipe notes the temperature climbs about 5 degrees during that time, which is built into the pull temperature.

My cream sauce looks thin. What now?

Keep it at a steady simmer; 2 to 3 more minutes reduces and tightens it to a spoon-coating thickness. The Dijon also helps it hold together, so make sure it gets whisked in fully.

Is medium-rare the only option?

The recipe targets 120 to 125°F for medium-rare, and the timing scales from there. Add oven minutes in small increments for medium, and expect a firmer chew past that.

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