Steak Pizzaiola - (Carne alla Pizzaiola)

The easiest Steak Pizzaiola recipe made with juicy, perfectly cooked steak and a rich flavour-packed tomato sauce made with cherry tomatoes, olives, and capers. This super easy, stovetop recipe is ready in under 30 minutes. 

Steak Pizzaiola or Carne all Pizzaiola translates as "meat pizza style". Originating from Naples it traditionally consisted of cheaps cuts of meat served in a rich tomato sauce with lots of garlic and oregano.

It's super quick, easy and a great way to use cheap beef steaks and a few simple pantry ingredients.

If you're not familiar with Pizzaiola sauce it's like a flavour bomb in your mouth!

I absolutely LOVE it, a rich tomato sauce with white wine, herbs, garlic and salty olives and capers.

Add in some steak and you've got yourself one DELICIOUS yet effortless meal.

Better yet, it's easy enough to serve up on busy weeknights and impressive enough to share at your next dinner party!

Ingredients - What You Need

• Steak - you can use any steak you like for this recipe be it, sirloin, flat iron, skirt steak or rib eye. The important thing to remember is to use a steak that cooks quickly and not a slow cook stewing steak. I love to use thinly cut sirloin steak for this recipe because they're cheap and cheerful.
• Garlic - fresh and finely sliced (the more the better in my opinion)
• Cherry tomatoes - fresh cherry tomatoes are super sweet and delicious, use your favourite!
• Tomato paste - since this sauce is super quick tomato paste helps to add a rich flavour minus the effort.
• Vegetable stock - use high-quality vegetable or chicken stock for a flavour packed sauce!
• Olives & Capers - salty and delicious, black or green olives will do.
• Dried oregano 
• Fresh basil - for serving

How to Make Steak Pizzaiola - Step by Step

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet/frying pan. Once hot cook the steaks to your liking, see the notes below on steak cooking times. Once cooked, set the steaks aside on a plate (photo 1).

Turn the heat down to medium-low and add an extra drizzle of olive oil. Add the chopped garlic and fry for a few seconds until fragrant (photo 2).

Next, add the wine to deglaze the pan and scape/loosen any brown bits with a wooden spoon. Simmer for 1 minute (photo 3 - 4).

Add the cherry tomatoes and simmer until the skins start to wrinkle (about 5 minutes) (photo 5).

Add the olives, capers, tomato paste, oregano and stock, stir to combine everything and bring to a simmer. Simmer the tomato sauce gently for 10 minutes (photo 6-7).

Add the steaks back to the skillet with the sauce and cook until warmed through, serve garnished with some fresh basil (photo 8-9).

Serving Suggestions and Sides

I love to serve this steak and rich tomato sauce with some Italian roast potatoes or grilled veggies and salad. Some crusty bread is always a good idea to mop up every last drop of sauce!

Top Tips for Making Steak Pizzaiola

• Don't worry about the steak getting cold as you're cooking the sauce, it gets warmed back up in the sauce at the end.
• You can use any steak you like for this recipe just make sure they are quick-cook steaks and not stewing beef.
• You can use green or black olives for this recipe.
• If you want to omit the alcohol then replace it with extra chicken or veg stock.
• You can swap the steak for chicken or pork just make sure to cook it all the way through at the first stage of cooking and warm up in the sauce at the end.
• Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days in a sealed container, you can reheat it in a skillet until piping hot all the way through.
• You can also freeze this for up to 3 months, thaw completely then reheat.

More Italian Recipes You Might Like;

• Penne Pomodoro (Tomato Basil Pasta)
• Lobster Ravioli with Vodka Cream Sauce
• Baked Chicken Meatballs in a Rich Tomato Sauce
• Shrimp Linguine with Burst Tomatoes & Parsley
• Pasta With Puttanesca Sauce (Spaghetti Alla Puttanesca)

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5 from 6 votes

Steak Pizzaiola

The easiest Steak Pizzaiola recipe made with juicy, perfectly cooked steak and a rich flavour-packed tomato sauce made with cherry tomatoes, olives, and capers. This super easy, stovetop recipe is ready in under 30 minutes

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 17 minutes

Total Time 22 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 260kcal

Author Emily Kemp

Ingredients

• ▢ 4 steaks (I used thin cut sirloin)
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• ▢ 2 cups cherry tomatoes sliced in half (375g)
• ▢ ½ cup green olives (60g or a small handful)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon capers
• ▢ 1 cup vegetable or chicken stock (250ml)
• ▢ ⅓ cup white wine (80ml)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• ▢ 4-5 basil leaves for serving

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet/frying pan. Once hot cook the steaks to your liking, see the notes below on steak cooking times. For ¼ inch thick steaks I cook them for 30 seconds to 1 minute each side. Once cooked, set the steaks aside on a plate.
• Turn the heat down to medium-low and add an extra drizzle of olive oil. Add the chopped garlic and fry for a few seconds until fragrant.
• Next, add the wine to deglaze the pan and scape/loosen any brown bits with a wooden spoon. Simmer for 1 minute.
• Add the cherry tomatoes and simmer until the skin start to wrinkle (about 5 minutes).
• Add the olives, capers, tomato paste, oregano and stock, stir to combine everything and bring to a simmer. Simmer the tomato sauce gently for 10 minutes.
• Add the steaks back to the skillet with the sauce and cook until warmed through, serve garnished with some fresh basil.

Notes

• Don't worry about the steak getting cold as you're cooking the sauce, it gets warmed back up in the sauce at the end.
• You can use any steak you like for this recipe just make sure they are quick-cook steaks and not stewing beef.
• You can use green or black olives for this recipe.
• If you want to omit the alcohol then replace it with extra chicken or veg stock.
• You can swap the steak for chicken or pork just make sure to cook it all the way through at the first stage of cooking and warm up in the sauce at the end.
• Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days in a sealed container, you can reheat it in a skillet until piping hot all the way through.
• You can also freeze this for up to 3 months, thaw completely then reheat.

 
 

Steak Cooking Time ( for thin cut ¼ inch sirloin steaks)

These steaks are so thin you don't have much control when cooking them as you would thick cut steaks. I cook these steaks for 30 seconds to 1 minute each side then sit aside to rest before heating back up in the sauce. They won't be rare but any longer cooking they'll turn tough.

For Thick Cut Steaks (1 inch / 2 cm)

• Rare: ~ 1 and a half minutes each side
• Medium rare: ~ 2 minutes each side
• Medium: ~ 2 and a half minutes each side
• Well done: 4 minutes each side

Nutrition

Calories: 260kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 71mg | Sodium: 400mg | Potassium: 666mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 513IU | Vitamin C: 18mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 3mg

Helpful Info for All Recipes

• I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise
• When I use canned or jarred tomatoes of any kind I always use this brand for the best results and flavour
• All vegetables are medium sized unless stated otherwise
• All recipes are tested and developed using a fan (convection) oven
• Find out more about how nutrition is calculated.
• Check out our must have Italian Pantry Staples.
• You can also find all our Essential Kitchen Tools for Italian Cooking.

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