It will come as no surprise that my husband, Mr. Meat and Potatoes, prefers a steak over any other meal I can prepare. However, if you know me, you know that I am an insane frugalista, and I don’t want to shell out for a good steak too often. So when I see a good sale, I snatch them up, and when I can’t find a sale, I buy flat irons.

If you haven’t tried a flat iron steak yet, know that they come highly recommended from our household. It will say on the package that it is a “marinating” steak, but I am not much of a marinator of meats. I don’t have time. In order to marinate a steak long enough to really have an effect on its tenderness, you have to start it fairly early, and since I’m afflicted with the ADD, I never remember to do it in time.

But I don’t think any steak needs marinating, if you cook it the way I do: namely, quicky, in butter. The trick to the flat iron steak is to get a crispy outside and leave the inside quite rare. If you do not like your steaks pink inside, this is probably not a cut of meat for you. Although, I’d venture to say that if you don’t like your steaks pink inside, there really isn’t a cut of meat for you, because even the finest of steaks get tough when they’re overcooked. But you know, I realize I live in Kansas, and I try really hard not to wince in pain when I hear someone order a well done T Bone. Just know I die a little inside, every time.

So, to cook a flat iron, (or any steak, really) Stuke-style, you heat up a couple of pats of butter in a skillet over medium high heat. I cut the flat iron in half, as I find that I can control the temp of the entire steak better if it’s not so long and awkward. Plus, it’s going to serve two. Liberally salt and pepper the steak (or, use Montreal Steak Seaoning from McCormicks, like we often do), and toss it in the skillet. I do about two minutes per side over the high heat, and then I reduce the heat to medium low and do another five minutes or so on each side. Add more butter if necessary.

This method works great for any steak, if you don’t have the time or wherewithal to fire up a grill. Sometimes I prefer to pan fry a steak because of the drippings. The stuff that is left behind in the pan after cooking a steak in a little butter? That is the stuff I dream about at night. It is called “fond,” and it is the stuff that flavor was born in.

Now, steak purists will say you don’t need a sauce or any sort of fancy ecoutrement to a good steak, and they’re right. However, since we have steak so frequently at our house, sometimes I like to whip up a little sauce, just for the sake of variety. And because I cannot leave well enough alone.

You don’t have to bury your steak in sauce, but sometimes it’s nice to bring a little extra something to the meat and potato party. Sometimes, I have fresh herbs that need to be put to good use, or I saw a picture in a magazine that inspired me, because “look how pretty that green sauce looks on that plate!” and “I want to make a fancy plate!” Or, like recently, a restaurant inspires me. I had a steak at Spencer Steakhouse in Omaha this weekend, and it was good. But what was really, really good, was the mushroom demi glace they served next to it.

In order to make a good sauce to go with a steak, you have to pan fry. Because you want that fond. You want to make a “pan sauce,” which basically just means deglazing the pan after you cook a steak, and letting the liquid reduce down to a flavor-packed thick liquid to serve alongside your hunk of meat. Pan sauces can be super simple: just pour some red wine in the hot pan and deglaze, then raise the temperature and reduce. Or, they can get more complicated if you introduce several flavors to the party. No matter what, you can’t go wrong and it’s bound to impress even the most skeptical guests.

Tonight, I wanted to make something extra nice for Mr. Meat and Potatoes because I had run away from him and the baby all weekend so I could cavort in the metropolis of Omaha with my girlfriends, so I had some making up to do. I had two KC strips thawed and ready to go, so I tried out two different pan sauces, based on what I could drag out of the fridge and pantry. Steak number one got wasabi cream sauce, and steak number two got a whiskey glaze. Both were superb, if I do say so myself, but I believe the wasabi sauce won my heart. It’s got a little kick, though, so it will only work for those of you who like, or even love, wasabi.

To start, heat a couple of tablespoons of butter in a skillet, and make sure it’s not the non-stick variety. This is one of those times in life when you actually want some things to stick to the pan. When it’s good and hot, almost smoking (butter has a low smoke point, by the way, so be sure not to burn it), plop your steaks in. Of course, I had pre-seasoned them with Montreal Steak Seasoning, but you can use whatever you prefer.

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Two minutes on each side, and you should have a nice crispy outside. Then reduce your heat and cook the steaks for about four more minutes per side, depending on thickness.

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You want to cook your steaks rarer than you usually prefer, because you’re going to have to put them in a warm oven while you finish your sauces, and this can take a few minutes.

Once you have your steaks cooked to the temperature you need, pop them in a 250 degree oven to wait. Pour any grease out of the pan, turn up the heat again, and then you’re ready to deglaze.

For both sauces, I deglazed with beef stock which I had saved from my last pot roast adventure. It has extra good flavor due to all the cooking herbs, but if you don’t have that, just use the stuff from a box.

For the wasabi sauce, I poured a cup of beef broth in and whisked until I’d broken all the bits of brown goodness free from the bottom of the pan. Then I added several tablespoons of wasabi paste, and whisked again.

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Next, I added a tablespoon of soy sauce and half a cup of heavy cream, stirred it all together, and allowed it to come to a boil. Then I reduced the heat, and let it simmer until it got thick, but not too thick. A good test is if it will coat the back of a spoon. Easy!

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For the whiskey sauce, I deglazed again with beef stock, this time about two cups. I needed more volume because I wasn’t going to be adding any cream. Then I added a half a cup of Jack Daniels, a quarter cup of apple juice, and some very thinly sliced onion. Again, I raised the temp and waited for it to reduce – a lot. I wanted more of a glaze than a runny sauce, so I was patient with this one. It took about five minutes.

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The beauty of this meal is that it can be done so quickly. I had potatoes baking in advance, and for a vegetable I just steamed some sugar snap peas and threw a little soy sauce and brown sugar on them for a glaze. The steaks and sauces took a total of twenty minutes, so the whole thing was ready in under half an hour, and boy did it look (and taste) fancy. Which is really what I am going for on Monday night. Fancy. That’s how we roll.