This marinated grilled Porterhouse steak with herb butter maxes out on flavor with minimal effort. When you need a relaxing night at the grill, this Porterhouse is a great “go-to” option. Bonus: who can get tired of herb butter dripping on steak? Seriously!
Porterhouse steaks can run a bit more expensive, but when broken down by how much actual meat you get and the high quality of the cut, you can shake off any hesitation. This cut of meat rules when it comes to grilling.
It’s a real treat, and as long as you follow a few simple rules, it will always turn out juicy and tasty!
🥩 Ingredients
🛒Porterhouse Steak – This steak comes from the short loin and has a T-shaped bone in the center of it. It is a very tender steak. The filet is on one side of the bone and a strip steak on the other.
You can see now how this can feed more than one person already. All that meat nestled close to the bone results in high flavor and tenderness!
There is a slight difference when picking up a Porterhouse vs a T-Bone at the butcher or grocery store but they will cook essentially the same way.
🛒Marinade – A quick flavor infusion is like a magic trick for the tastiest, juiciest Porterhouse steak. We used simple ingredients to highlight the natural taste of the meat:
- Olive oil
- Sea salt (or Kosher salt)
- Black pepper
- Minced garlic
🛒Herb Butter – I use fresh herbs from my garden, but dried herbs work just as well if you are grilling in the winter. This adds such a tremendous, rich flavor that it will be your go-to choice for topping.
- Butter
- Rosemary
- Chives
- Thyme
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
🔥 Instructions
🌿Herb Butter
👉Step 1: Add the rosemary, chives, thyme, salt, pepper, and a stick of room-temperature butter in a food processor.
👉Step 2: Give it a few short pulses until everything is evenly combined. Don’t process it too much – we still want a bit of texture from the fresh herbs.
👉Step 3: Store in the fridge and take it out to soften a bit before you start grilling the steak.
🥣 Marinade
👉Step 1: Add the olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and minced garlic to a ziploc bag or bowl.
👉Step 2: Mix well and place the steak in the marinade, ensuring it’s evenly coated. Seal the bag or cover the bowl, depending on which one you’re using, and let the steak marinate for 30-60 minutes.
I like to use Ziploc bags for this as I can zip it up and then move the marinade around the steak several times. I kept the ingredients mild as the porterhouse is so flavorful that I didn’t want to overpower it.
♨️ Grilling
👉Step 1: Heat the grill to 375-400°F. The grill should be hot enough to sear and close the pores quickly. This will help to trap the juices inside the meat. If you cook it at a lower temperature, like 325°F, the steak will bake and won’t give you the results you are looking for. Always wait for the grill to heat up.
Tip: Use a GrillGrate while cooking. The fins become superheated and leave the steak with a mouthwatering char. It also helps minimize flare-ups by slowing fat drippings from reaching the hot coal.
👉Step 2: Remove the steak from the marinade and place it on the grill. Cook for 6-10 minutes on each side, depending on thickness and the desired doneness. That might feel longer than normal but the porterhouse steaks are generally cut thicker. Medium rare is 130-135°F and medium is 140-145°F.
Note: Use a temperature probe to make sure your meat doesn’t overcook. Everyone’s grill is slightly different so you may need less time. Check early and often. This is a fast grill! When I cooked this porterhouse, I targeted a solid medium which was 6 minutes on each side.
👉Step 3: Remove the steak when it is 5 degrees lower than the desired final temperature and let it rest for 10 minutes. The temperature will continue to rise for a few minutes as it rests. Think of this as taking the cookies out of the oven early so they don’t overcook on the cookie sheet.
👉Step 4: After 10 minutes of resting, slice it, spread (dollop, slather, or brush) the herb butter on the steak, and serve.
💡 Expert Tips
Grilling up this steak will quickly become a favorite because it is so easy, can feed a lot of people, and tastes amazing.
📌Remove From Fridge Early | Bring the steak to room temperature by removing it from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before you are ready to grill. This allows the steak to come up in temperature to be ready to meet the heat of the grill.
If the steak is put on the grill fresh from the refrigerator, it creates an unpleasant tough outer crust.
📌Grill Over High Heat | You don’t want to slow cook a Porterhouse. Make sure the grill is preheated at 375-400°F to sear the meat fast and lock in those juices.
I don’t recommend getting past medium rare (130-135°F) to medium doneness (140-145°F) for this steak if you want it to be juicy and tender.
📌Flip Once | The goal is to cook this fast, and flipping too often will slow down the process. Once the crust is formed on one side, flip and allow the same thing to happen on the other side. Remove when the steak reaches your desired doneness. That’s it!
🧈 Herb Butter Variations
The flavors you add to the herb butter can transform this dish. I don’t recommend using too strong spices, as Porterhouse steaks are known for their amazing flavor and it would be a shame to hide it.
With that said, here are some herbs and spices that will perfectly highlight this steak:
- Rosemary
- Thyme
- Oregano
- Chives
- Parsley
- Tarragon
- Chili Flakes or Cayenne Pepper
- Smoked Paprika
- Mustard Powder
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
The Porterhouse steak has a scrumptious, rich flavor. We like to lighten it up every once in a while by pairing it with grilled veggie sides.
Grilled roasted root veggies, grilled Brussels sprouts kebabs, grilled sweet onions, and grilled beer corn on the cob are some of my go-to sides for BBQ meats.
Avocado corn salsa is a similar complement and I have made it for so many grilled and smoked steaks – it was always a hit!
Of course, a starchy side next to it, like these smoked fingerling potatoes or grilled baby potato skewers, and you have a top-notch comfort meal.
And you definitely can’t go wrong if you serve your grilled Porterhouse next to a loaf of fresh bread. Okay….not all of us are so lucky to have artisan bread available nearby, but rest assured, a simple no-knead Dutch oven bread or some homemade soft pretzel bites will be met with the same enthusiasm, if not more.
❓ Recipe FAQ
YES! YES! YES! It’s a game-changer to marinate the steak. If you just start cooking it right away, you’ll see that it’s not as tender or flavorful. I promise it’s worth it to marinate it. You can let it sit for 30 minutes instead of a full hour if you are in a hurry.
I always aim for medium rare to medium but this will be up to you and your preferences. Here are the different temps:
120-125 degrees – Rare
130-135 degrees – Medium Rare
140-145 degrees – Medium
150-155 degrees – Well
160-165 degrees – Well Done
I don’t recommend cooking it higher than 165 degrees just because it’s going to lose all the juiciness!
The best way to reheat it is to add some oil or butter to a hot skillet and cook over medium-high heat. Once it’s hot, it’s time to eat it. You don’t want to really cook it, just warm it up.
Additionally, you can warm it in the microwave until it’s hot. This method is fine, but it’s not as delicious as pan heating.
We have taken tough or overcooked red meat and turned it into our hiking sandwich mix.
We combine the chopped up tough meat with onions and pickles in a food processor.
Mix until it crumbles up nicely. You can either freeze it until you are ready to use it or you can add mayonnaise and serve on bread, crackers or bagels. This is, hands down, our favorite hiking meal as it keeps you fueled for a very long time.
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Grilled Porterhouse Steak with Herb Butter
Ingredients
Steak
Marinade
- ¼ cup Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Sea Salt coarse ground
- ½ tsp Black Pepper coarse ground
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
Herb Butter
- 1 stick Butter softened
- ¼ cup Fresh Herbs I used rosemary, chives and thyme
- ½ tsp Sea Salt coarse ground
- ½ tsp Black Pepper coarse ground
Instructions
Herb Butter
- Add the softened butter, herbs, salt and pepper to a small food processor.
- Give it a few short pulses until everything is evenly combined. Don’t process it too much – we still want a bit of texture from the fresh herbs.
- Store in the fridge and take it out to soften a bit before you start grilling the steak.
Marinating
- Add the olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and minced garlic to a ziploc bag or bowl.
- Mix well and place the steak in the marinade, ensuring it’s evenly coated. Seal the bag or cover the bowl, depending on which one you’re using, and let the steak marinate for 30-60 minutes.
Grilling
- Heat grill to 375-400°F.
- Remove the steak from the marinade and place it on the grill. Cook for 6-10 minutes on each side. Flip only once, and after the first side has a formed crust.
- Use a temperature probe to make sure your meat doesn't overcook. Medium rare is 130-135°F and medium is 135-145°F.
- Remove steak from the grill when it is 5 degrees lower than the desired final temperature and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Then, slice the steak, brush or slather it with herb butter, and serve.
Notes
- 120-130°F – Rare
- 130-135°F – Medium Rare
- 135-145°F – Medium
- 145-155°F – Well
- 155-165°F – Well Done
Nutrition
Jason’s been firing up the grill for over 30 years after graduating from the US Coast Guard Academy. His love of finely-grilled steak and chicken led him to buy his first Weber grill to put on his apartment patio in 1992. Each military move led to a new grill (a mixture of gas and charcoal) until he fell in love with the Big Green Egg in 2008. Since then, he has added another 4 grills to the collection. Yes, he has a problem. Jason loves smoking in the ceramic BGE with exotic woods including olive wood from Egypt and hard to find varieties such as sassafras and orange wood. Jason takes the term “foodie” to a whole new level, jumping at the chance to take food tours and cooking classes during foreign travels. These have provided inspiration to incorporate new ideas into recipes when he gets back home. He has been featured in Fox News, Parade, Yahoo News, Kansas City Living and more. After retiring from the military and moving to southwest Florida, he has focused grilling and smoking locally sourced meats and fish (read: he likes to catch his own fish!)
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