The Underrated Steak Cut A Ruth's Chris Steakhouse Chef Wishes More Customers Would Order

Ruth's Chris Steakhouse is a highly respected chain with strict quality standards. The brand's selection of steaks offers all the classic favorites, including an underrated steak highlighted by the chef who prepares it. We spoke with A.J. Graf, executive chef of Ruth's Chris Steak House at The Plaza at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, Arkansas, who reveals that the porterhouse steak for two is an exceptional meal that he wishes more customers would order.

"The porterhouse is a 40-ounce bone-in cut that features a tender filet on one side and a flavorful New York strip on the other," Graf explains. Both the filet and New York strip are prized cuts with different flavor and texture profiles. While the filet has a buttery flavor and super tender texture, the New York strip has an intense umami-rich beefiness, heartier chew, and a flavorful fatty edge. A bone-in porterhouse is even more delicious because the bone insulates and conducts heat, which helps both sides cook more evenly despite their size differences.

But what is the best way to order or serve a porterhouse? Graf recommends the steak medium rare, as it's the sweet spot for both flavor and texture. This way, it provides just enough heat to render the fat for optimum flavor while ensuring it maintains that melt-in-your-mouth tenderness that makes a steak so special.

No steak dinner is complete without drink pairings and luxurious steakhouse sides, and Graf recommends you pair the porterhouse steak with "a beautiful glass of Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon and a side of Sweet Potato Casserole." In a ranking of Ruth's Chris steakhouse sides, the sweet potato casserole came in first place for its perfect dessert-like decadence and perfect execution. Furthermore, an ultra-rich, bold steak flavor needs an equally robust wine pairing, and a Cabernet Sauvignon is certainly up to the task; its high tannin content enhances a steak's richness, its high acidity helps cut through the steak's buttery, fatty heaviness, and it's a full-bodied wine that'll stand up to steak's dominating flavor.

While we appreciate Graf's ordering tips, you can always recreate the porterhouse experience at home by making one yourself. Cook a porterhouse like Martha Stewart by searing it on both sides, then throwing it under the broiler. You can also grill a porterhouse using the rule of three; you can use the hottest zone of the grill to sear the steak for 3 minutes on each side, then move the steak to the indirect heat zone to cook for another 3 minutes per side. A cut of steak as fine as the porterhouse doesn't need much embellishment to shine. And to that effect, you can make your porterhouse steak taste like Ruth's Chris with a simple seasoning of kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper.