This Grilled T-Bone Steak recipe features a sweet-and-savory butter glaze that caramelizes into irresistible deliciousness from the flame of the grill. But what makes it EXTRA special is how the hot grilled steak is then sliced on a cutting board, on top of a fresh lemon-herb board sauce. When we entertain, this unique recipe makes people SO HAPPY!
This Grilled T-Bone Steak with Board Sauce has become our family’s signature steak recipe. Blake started experimenting with this grilled steak idea back in 2018, riffing on a technique by BBQ expert Adam Perry Lang that uses “board sauces” or “board dressings” — basically, an olive oil-based sauce with herbs and other aromatics chopped together on the cutting board where you rest and slice the grilled steak. This method lets you capture and reincorporate the flavorful beef juices, layering flavor upon flavor upon flavor. The result is so fantastic, both of our daughters requested this steak for their high school graduation dinner celebrations with family and friends! I’d place this in the category of Grilled Beer Can Chicken: a new spin on a classic that will change the way you grill from here on out.
Why This Has Become Our Signature Steak Recipe
Blake has grilled this T-bone steak in rain or shine, and even in the frigid, snowy darkness when dear friends joined us for New Year’s Eve dinner and games. Until now, our “recipe card” has been a series of stained and smudged handwritten adjustments that I’ve saved over the years. We are thrilled to be sharing the recipe in its perfected form!
- Something truly special. This isn’t the quickest or easiest way to grill steak, but it is the most spectacular. And if you think that sounds like an exaggeration, give this recipe a try and get back to me!
- Juicy, succulent, flavorful perfection. The board sauce gets soaked up by the steak, ensuring it’s ultra tender, juicy, and loaded with flavor. You get smokiness from the grill, richness from the sweet-and-savory butter glaze, fresh herbaceous flavor, and a little pop of brightness from the lemon — I just can’t put into words how delicious it all is!
- Customizable. Just like how Blake tweaked the board sauce over the years, you too can put your own spin on this recipe to make it your own by using different herbs and aromatics.
What You’ll Need
This is one of those recipes where you’ll want to seek out especially good quality steaks – because this is one incredibly special recipe! Scroll down to the printable recipe card to find the exact ingredient quantities and full recipe instructions.
Steak:
- Steaks – Our recipe calls for two T-bone steaks totaling 2½ to 3 pounds altogether.
- Salt & pepper – We use Morton kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Olive oil – Use your favorite olive oil for cooking.
- Garlic – Smash the garlic cloves so they infuse the steaks with flavor as you grill them.
Glaze:
- Worcestershire sauce – A classic pairing with steak that adds lots of umami depth.
- Light brown sugar – As with our Sugar Grilled Steak recipe, sugar has the uncanny ability to make savory beef extra delicious.
- Butter – Use unsalted butter, as sodium is included elsewhere in the recipe.
Board Sauce:
- Shallot – Shallot has a milder flavor than onion and garlic.
- Lemon – You’ll need the zest only. I like to serve this grilled T-bone steak recipe alongside my Grilled Vegetable Salad With Lemon Vinaigrette, which uses the juice from the zested lemon.
- Herbs – We use a mixture of parsley, rosemary, and thyme.
- Smoked salt – We use Maldon Smoked Sea Salt Flakes.
- Olive oil – For the base of the board sauce.
How to Make The Best Ever Grilled T-Bone Steak
Now, I’m not one to throw around the word “best” lightly — this recipe earns its title! Here’s a brief overview of what you’ll need to do, with the full instructions in the recipe card below.
- Salt the steaks. An hour before grilling, season the steaks with salt, then let them rest at room temperature.
- Make the glaze. After the steaks have been at room temperature for 30 minutes, make the glaze by shaking the ingredients in a jar with a lid.
- Prepare the board sauce. Dice the shallot on a cutting board with a juice-catching channel. Add the lemon zest, smoked salt, and herbs, then take a chef’s knife and chop everything together. Drizzle half the olive oil over the top and chop again, then repeat with the remaining olive oil.
- Prepare for grilling. Heat your grill to high and clean the grates. While you wait for the grill to reach temperature, season the steaks with pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
- Grill the steaks. Set the steaks on the grill and add a smashed garlic clove to the center of each. Brush the glaze over the tops and grill for 1½ minutes. Flip the steaks over and baste the other side, cooking for another 1½ minutes. Repeat this 4-5 times total, basting the whole time, until the steaks reach your desired level of doneness. Our goal is always medium-rare steak, for optimal flavor and texture, and this takes 6-7½ minutes total grilling time (assuming the steaks are the same thickness and total weight as listed in the recipe card).
- Finish. Let the steaks rest on the board sauce for 5 minutes, then slice them across the grain, into strips. Roll the sliced steak strips in the board sauce so they’re evenly coated.
- Serve. We ALWAYS serve this steak straight from the cutting board. This makes for a great presentation that truly makes our guests’ eyes light up! (But you can certainly transfer everything to a platter if you like.)
Tips & Variations
Here are a few additional pointers and some ideas to inspire you to put your own spin on this recipe.
- Improvise if you don’t have the right cutting board. If you don’t have a cutting board with a channel along the perimeter, set your cutting board inside a rimmed sheet pan. This way, the juices won’t run onto your counter. If you fall in love with this recipe, like we have, then you could consider purchasing your own wood cutting board with channel.
- Don’t skip letting the steaks come to room temperature. Set a timer on your phone if you think you might forget to take them out. It really makes a difference, allowing your steak to cook more evenly.
- And don’t skimp on the brushing & flipping! While grilling the steaks, you’ll brush on glaze and flip them a number of times. And while that might seem like a lot of work over a hot grill, it’s crucial in building the layers of flavor. Do NOT cheat on this and think you’ll still achieve the same end result!
- Swap in garlic for the shallot. Another way to do the board sauce is to use garlic cloves. Crush them and then mince them with the fresh herbs.
- Try your favorite herbs. If you have an herb garden, this is an excellent recipe for putting your bounty to use!
- Make it chimichurri style. Try using cilantro and oregano for the herbs, garlic instead of shallot, adding a splash of red wine vinegar, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.
- Scale the recipe up or down. When we served this steak recipe for our daughters’ grad dinners, Blake was grilling for 15-20 people each time. We usually figure 6-8 ounces per person, and then add a little extra (because I never want to not have enough + the leftovers are awesome). Just remember that the large T-shaped bone accounts for some of the overall weight of each steak.
- Use a different cut of beef. We also make this recipe using boneless ribeye steaks, which works just as well.
What to Serve With Grilled Steak
When we’ve got the grill fired up for this T-bone steak recipe, we usually cook our sides on there too. Pick one, two, or three – they’re ALL good!
- Grilled Potato Salad
- Grilled Romaine Salad with homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
- Grilled Vegetable Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
- Grilled Peach Salad
- Grilled Potato Packets (in foil packets)
- Grilled Red Potatoes
- Grilled Vegetables
- Grilled Asparagus
- Grilled Mini Sweet Peppers with Goat Cheese
- Grilled Creamed Corn
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- Refrigerator: Transfer leftovers from this grilled T-bone steak recipe to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Wrap the steak in plastic wrap, followed by foil, or place the plastic-wrapped steak in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To reheat: Warm up the steak in a skillet set over medium heat with a drizzle of oil. Cook until warmed through.
Grilled T-Bone Steak Recipe
Yield: 4 generous servings
This Grilled T-Bone Steak recipe is my family's absolute favorite! Letting it soak up the herby sauce on the cutting board makes it uniquely delicious.
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Ingredients
Steak
- 2 T-bone steaks, about 1¼" thick and 2½ to 3 pounds total weight
- 1½ tablespoons Morton kosher salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 large garlic cloves, lightly smashed
Glaze
- ⅓ cup Worcestershire sauce
- ⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Board Sauce
- 1 medium shallot
- fresh lemon zest from 1 large lemon
- ½ cup lightly packed herb leaves: a mixture of parsley, rosemary, and thyme
- ½ teaspoon Maldon Smoked Sea Salt Flakes
- ¼ cup olive oil
Instructions
- 1 hour before grilling: Season the steaks with salt on both sides. For the size of steaks listed, be sure to use the specified quantity of Morton kosher salt (alter for different steak size and/or type of salt). Let steak rest at cool room temperature to dry brine, which allows the salt to get deep down into the meat, not just rest on top. This method also holds onto moisture longer by altering the protein.
- 30 minutes before grilling: Combine glaze ingredients in a jar and screw on a tight-fitting lid. Shake vigorously to combine. Set aside.
- On a wooden cutting & carving board (with a juice-catching channel around the perimeter), dice the shallot. Add the lemon zest over the top, followed by the smoked salt, and then the herb leaves. Use a chef's knife to chop everything together, until herb leaves are roughly chopped. Drizzle half the olive oil over the top and chop again. Drizzle remaining olive oil over the top and chop again, until herbs are small-chopped. Let mixture sit while you light the grill.
- Light the grill, heating to high heat = 550° to 600° F. Clean grates well.
- While grill heats up, season the steaks heavily with freshly cracked black pepper on both sides. Then drizzle 1 teaspoon of olive oil over each side of both steaks (to use up the entire ¼ cup of olive oil).
- Once grill is hot, place steaks on grill grates. Add a smashed garlic clove to the top center of each steak. Use a brush to continuously baste prepared glaze over the steaks and garlic for 1½ minutes. Use a tongs to move the garlic clove from steak #1 to the top of steak #2, and then flip steak #1. Do the same with steak #2. Then continuously baste both steaks and garlic with glaze again for 1½ minutes. Repeat this process 4-5 times total, for 6-7½ minutes total grilling time, for medium-rare steak (assuming the steaks are the same thickness and total weight as listed in the recipe card). The continuous basting will create deepened layers of flavor; I know this is labor-intensive grilling, but do not skimp on this – it's worth it, I promise! Remove steaks and place them on top of the board sauce to rest for 5 minutes.
- Use a chef's knife to cut steaks across the grain into ¼"-½" slices. Use the knife to roll the steak slices in the board sauce to coat them evenly.
Nutrition Information:
Calories: 1040kcal Carbohydrates: 24g Protein: 59g Fat: 78g Saturated Fat: 26g Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g Monounsaturated Fat: 40g Trans Fat: 0.3g Cholesterol: 181mg Sodium: 3370mg Potassium: 1156mg Fiber: 0.5g Sugar: 21g Vitamin A: 913IU Vitamin C: 14mg Calcium: 77mg Iron: 8mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by Spoonacular. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again with your own favorite calculator.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a comment below. And share a photo on Instagram with the hashtag #afarmgirlsdabbles or tag @farmgirlsdabble!
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