I rarely buy steak to prepare at home because the idea of it never really entices me. The one time I got really excited about buying them was last year when Kaia started solids, and I really wanted her to gnaw on a big juicy hunk of steak herself. Of course, she really enjoyed it and got good iron out of it, and it also, as an added bonus, made for a good photo and video opportunity. We also were gifted a sous vide precision cooker for our wedding, but alas, I’ve only ever used it twice, both times to make steak, and I feel like I’ve found methods using both the oven and a cast iron pan that yield fairly similar, if not just similarly satisfying, results.

This time, I got sirloin steaks on sale at Whole Foods and marinated them Thai-style. I cooked them at a low temperature in the oven for about 25 minutes, then pulled them out and pan-seared them on my cast iron pan for about 90 seconds on each side. Then, I topped the steaks with a Thai tamarind sauce mixed with roasted and pounded ground sticky rice. It was definitely quite satisfying, and I think it’s also telling that Kaia saw the steaks right out of the oven and tried to grab one before they were finished searing. My baby’s appetite is slowly but surely coming back after this little sick spell, and it’s being helped along with homemade Thai style steak.