Steak and egg sandwich, done properly. A rib eye rubbed with coffee and paprika, onions caramelised in its own fat, two basted eggs on garlic-buttered ciabatta. Makes two, takes half an hour.
The recipe comes from Idiot Sandwich, Gordon Ramsay’s sandwich cookbook. The coffee is the bit that surprises people: two teaspoons of ground coffee go into the dry rub with smoked paprika and ancho chilli. It doesn’t taste of coffee, it just makes the crust taste deeper.
Nothing gets cooked on its own here. Onions and smashed garlic go in around the steak so they soften in the rendered fat. The steak then rests underneath all of it while the juices soak back in.
Cooked this recipe? Send a photo or tell me what you changed at fans@gordonramsayrecipes.uk and I’ll share your experience live on this page.
Steak and Egg Sandwich
Course: BreakfastCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Medium2
sandwiches10
minutes20
minutes1650
kcal30 min
Rib eye with a coffee and paprika rub, seared with onions and garlic in the same pan, sliced and stacked on garlic-buttered ciabatta with butter-basted eggs. From Gordon Ramsay’s Idiot Sandwich.
Ingredients
- For the rub:
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp ground coffee
2 tsp ancho chilli powder
- For the steak:
1 bone-in rib eye or boneless sirloin, about 340 to 455g (12 to 16 oz)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large white onion, thickly sliced
5 large garlic cloves, smashed
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 to 2 spring onions, whites and greens separated, sliced 6mm thick
Juice of 1 lime
- For the ciabatta:
4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 large or 2 small pieces of ciabatta
- For the eggs:
2 tsp olive oil
4 large eggs
2 tbsp unsalted butter
The reserved spring onion greens
- To finish:
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
Sea salt and ground black pepper
Directions
- Make the rub: Mix the smoked paprika, ground coffee and ancho chilli in a small bowl. Only half of it goes on the steak, so keep the rest back for the bread.
- Season and sear: Take the steak out of the fridge 15 minutes ahead so the fat softens. Salt it, then press a quarter of the rub into each side. Get a cast-iron pan hot over a medium-high heat, add the olive oil, and lay the steak in the middle once the oil shimmers.
- Cook the onions around it: Tuck the onion slices and smashed garlic into the space around the steak. Add the butter and let it melt around everything. Give the steak 3 to 4 minutes until a crust forms underneath.
- Flip and finish: Turn the steak and keep the onions moving in the rendered fat. Add the spring onion whites and cook another 3 to 4 minutes, until the steak hits 54°C (130°F) or wherever you like it. Squeeze the lime over and take the pan off the heat.
- Rest under the onions: Move the steak to a tray and tip the onions and pan juices over the top. Leave it 5 minutes, then slice about 6mm thick. Wipe the pan and set it back over a medium heat.
- Toast the ciabatta: Mash the softened butter with the minced garlic and whatever rub is left. Split the ciabatta, spread the cut sides, and toast them face down in the pan for about 3 minutes until golden and crisp.
- Baste the eggs: Heat a large non-stick pan over a medium heat with a teaspoon of the olive oil. Crack in two eggs, salt them lightly, then add a tablespoon of butter and let it melt. Scatter over half the spring onion greens and spoon the foaming butter over the eggs for about 3 minutes, until the whites set and the yolks are still jammy. Repeat for the other two.
- Build: Steak on the bottom half, then the onions, then two eggs. Scatter over the coriander and put the lid on.
Notes
- The rub makes more than the steak needs on purpose. A quarter goes on each side and the rest ends up in the garlic butter, so the bread tastes of the same coffee and paprika as the meat. Calories are worked out from the ingredients, and it is a big sandwich.
FAQs
Why is there coffee in a steak rub?
Coffee deepens the crust without making the steak taste of coffee. Two teaspoons of ground coffee go into the rub with smoked paprika and ancho chilli.
It works because coffee is bitter and roasted, and against beef fat and paprika that reads as savoury depth. The book jokes about NASA choosing steak and eggs for astronauts, then admits flavour was the real reason.
Can you use the leftover steak rub?
The leftover rub goes into the garlic butter for the ciabatta. Only half of it is used on the steak, a quarter pressed into each side.
So the bread ends up carrying the same coffee and paprika as the meat, and nothing goes in the bin. Toast the buttered cut sides face down in the pan you cooked the steak in, once you have wiped it out.
Why cook the onions in the same pan as the steak?
The onions cook in the fat the steak renders, which is why they go in around it rather than before or after. Butter goes in with them and melts around everything.
The spring onion whites join near the end, once the steak has flipped. They only need a few minutes and would burn if they went in at the start.
Why rest the steak under the onions?
The onions and pan juices get poured over the steak while it rests, not served beside it. Five minutes with that on top and the meat takes some of it back in as the fibres relax.
It keeps everything warm without more cooking. Slice about 6mm thick once the time is up, and any juice left on the tray goes into the sandwich too.
How do you get jammy yolks in a fried egg?
Baste the eggs with foaming butter for about three minutes rather than frying them flat. A tablespoon of butter goes into the pan once the eggs are down.
That sets the top of the white from above while the yolk stays loose underneath. I’d do two at a time rather than all four, since four in one pan tend to run together.
What steak is best for a steak and egg sandwich?
Bone-in rib eye or boneless sirloin, 340 to 455g, which is the choice the book gives. Rib eye has more fat running through it, and that matters when the onions are cooking in whatever renders out.
Take it out of the fridge 15 minutes before, which softens the fat cap so it renders properly. And 54°C is medium-rare, so pull it earlier if you like it rarer.
