Eating doesn’t have to be boring on the carnivore diet! Sure, your options are limited on this elimination diet, but with a little creativity, you can add some delicious variety to your meals.
Steak is one of the staples of the carnivore diet, so we’re going to show you all the ways you can spice things up.
Here are a few golden rules for keeping steak interesting on carnivore:
- Eat grass-fed, grass-finished steak for the best taste and nutrition.
- Don’t under salt or under season your meat.
- Mix up your cuts.
- Cook your steak in different ways (sautee, bake, sous vide, smoke, etc.)
- Make carnivore steak snacks ahead of time.
- Use beef broths and thinly cut steak to create simple soups.
Carnivore diet steak recipes
Here are a few of our favorite carnivore diet steak recipes. We’ve collected a variety of cooking methods and types of steak to make eating with variety easier.
1. Bone-in ribeye with roasted garlic butter
Why not start with a bang. Treat yourself to a delicious ribeye with homemade garlic butter and settle into a delicious meal you can make again and again. Just sub bacon grease for the avocado oil and skip the garlic and herbs.
2. Homemade smoky grass-fed steak jerky
Having carnivore-friendly snacks is the key to consistency. Your cravings and hunger may fluctuate during carnivore, especially at the beginning. Make some healthy grass-fed beef jerky from flank steak to have on hand when you get snacky.
3. Chicharron de ribeye (crispy deep-fried steak cubes)
Chicharron brings me joy every time I have it. The crispy exterior, the tender interior. It’s a wonderful way to eat steak. This recipe uses lard or tallow for frying, making it perfect for carnivore (assuming you skip the guac!)
4. Organ meat and steak burger
Organ meats are nutritional powerhouses and making burgers that are a combination of ground steak and organ meats is a wonderful way to get more nutritional impact from your meals. Plus they are delicious! Just use a ground beef blend that includes sirloin (or grind your own), and you’ll be all set.
5. Baked keto meatballs
You’ll have to choose if you want to add the cheese and dairy, but having these baked meatballs from Low Carb Spark is a great main or more substantial snack to make. You could also make a meatball soup by dropping some fresh ones in a meaty broth! Yum!
6. Herb bone marrow butter
While this isn’t steak, it is perfect to make for steaks. Make a big batch of this butter at the beginning of your carnivore journey, stick it in the freezer or fridge, and pull it out when you need it.
7. Smoked tri-tip steak
A tri-tip is one of my favorite cuts, and it doesn’t get any better than smoking it. Smoking steaks switches up the flavor too, which helps reduce the feeling of monotony you can have on carnivore.
8. Tomahawk steak with herb butter
Is there a more satisfying-looking steak than a tomahawk on a plate? I don’t think so. This recipe from Carley Smith shows you how to cook one just right.
9. Steak and sour cream scrambled eggs
Make these scrambled eggs from Baked It With Love alongside a skillet steak for an easy morning breakfast. You could even toss the cooked meat right in the eggs if you’d like.
10. Smoked baby back ribs
Ribs always feel like a treat, shy not smoke some up on a Saturday and treat yourself? Don’t forget to salt these in advance — that’s part of the secret for tender ribs.
11. Sous vide steaks
This guide from Serious Eats will cover all the bases when it comes to sous viding steaks. This method is great for retaining moisture, and you can get really consistent results with a sous vide. Remember to cut across the grain when it is finished!
12. Strip steak with gorgonzola butter
This recipe from GrassFedBeef shows you how to make a New York Strip Steak the right way, complete with a delicious gorgonzola butter. Skip the herbs if you like, and enjoy.
What ingredients can you use for carnivore steak recipes?
Feeling like freestyling your own recipes? You can use any meat or product sourced directly from animals, but how strict you are on some ingredients depends on the level of elimination diet you are on.
What you can eat alongside your steaks:
- Other beef cuts, lamb, pork, venison, chicken, turkey, bison, and any other meat.
- Fish like salmon, mackerel, tuna, crab, and so on.
- Eggs.
- Yogurt, butter, heavy cream, cheese, kefir, sour cream, and any other dairy products in moderation*.
- Bone marrow, lard, bacon fat, bone broth, and any other animal-derived products.
- Zero-carb and low-carb seasonings like salt, black pepper, thyme, basil, coriander, tarragon, mint, cinnamon, and ginger.
- Oregano, paprika, cumin, and cayenne have slightly more carbs, but are also low-carb options when used in smaller amounts*.
- Water.
* We’re presenting a sort of middle way here. Some people restrict themselves more than others when approaching elimination diets like Carnivore. For example, some people also cut dairy to avoid any potential inflammation. Others allow some dairy and are liberal with seasonings and herbs in cooking. Your choice should be decided by you and your nutritional professional. It’s also worth noting that some doctors make the case that dried herbs are problematic and if you’re going to include herbs to grow your own or use fresh instead.
What you can’t eat alongside your steaks:
- Apples, oranges, pineapples, bananas, berries, and all other fruits.
- Asparagus, mushrooms, broccoli, and all other vegetables.
- A lot of high-lactose dairy like milk, yogurt, and soft cheese.
- Beans, peas, and any legumes.
- All nuts and seeds.
- Any grains and bread.
- All alcohol.
- All sugars including honey and maple syrup.
- Any beverages besides water.
Sourcing matters on carnivore
The carnivore diet is everywhere these days, and with so many people exhibiting food allergies, it is no surprise that elimination diets to test what people may be reacting to are in the zeitgeist. The key to any good diet, however, is the quality of food you’re eating. The best diets can be ruined by sub-par ingredients full of antibiotics, hormones, or other additives. You should start with clean and sustainable sources, otherwise, you may never know what is ailing you.
For example, not all fats are created equal. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), for instance, is a naturally-occurring trans fat (the good kind!) associated with many health benefits. This is not to be confused with manmade, industrial trans fats commonly found in hydrogenated vegetable oils, which have been connected to inflammation and obesity.
This is why buying grass-fed steak is important. The concentrations of CLAs depend on the animal’s diet, and studies suggest that CLAs are 300-500% higher in grass-fed and grass-finished beef and dairy cows than in their industrial counterparts.
Grass-fed and grass-finished steaks cook differently
If you choose to buy grass-fed, there are a few differences you need to know about when cooking it.
- Grass-fed cooks around 33% faster than grain-fed beef. Keep a close eye on it and pull it when it’s about 10 degrees below your target temperature.
- Grass-fed beef tastes best around medium-rare.
- Always let your grass-fed beef rest for a few minutes before slicing. This allows the proteins to relax and reabsorb some of the juices.
- To align with recipes, try dropping the temperature of your oven by 40-50 degrees. E.g. if the recipe calls for 50 minutes at 375 try 50 minutes at 325.
- Because it’s a leaner meat, grass-fed beef tends to tenderize and respond better to lower-heat cooking. This gives the existing fat more time to render.
Kick-off or continue your carnivore diet journey
The last thing you want to do is be stuck making decisions on sourcing and taste when dealing with the intensity of an elimination diet.
Start things off the right way with our carnivore collection — a batch of grass-fed, grass-finished, healthy-as-heck beef raised on incredible Tazmanian grass.
Nathan Phelps
Nathan Phelps owns and writes for Crafted Copy, a boutique copywriting shop that finds the perfect words for interesting products. He is also an ethical foodie, outdoors-aficionado, and hails from Nashville, TN. He splits his time between helping sustainable businesses find new customers and managing his ever-increasing list of hobbies, which include playing guitar, baking bread, and creating board games.
