The best oil for steak is a neutral, high smoke point oil such as rice bran, canola or peanut for the sear, with butter added only at the end for flavour.
That split gives you a deep crust without a smoky kitchen or a bitter edge, and all the richness of butter without burning it.
This guide compares ten common cooking fats on smoke point, flavour and best use, then covers how much to use, the olive oil debate and what changes on the BBQ.
What Is the Best Oil for Steak?
For a pan sear, choose a refined oil with a smoke point comfortably above 200°C and a mild taste, then switch to butter once the heat comes down. A searing pan runs hotter than most everyday cooking, and a fat that smokes early breaks down, leaves an acrid taste on the crust and sets off the smoke alarm.
So, what oil to cook steak in if you only buy one bottle? Rice bran or canola. Both are inexpensive, neutral and sold in every supermarket, and either one suits the job whether you are still learning how to cook steak or searing a thick cut for guests.
Refined peanut and refined avocado oil take even more heat, which helps with very thick steaks or the final sear of a reverse sear. Grapeseed and light olive oil also do the job, with a little less headroom.
Flavour matters as much as heat. Neutral oils let the beef lead, while tallow and ghee add richness of their own, and extra virgin olive oil brings a fruity, peppery note that does not always survive a ripping hot pan.
Smoke Points and Flavour Compared: 10 Common Fats
Refined oils and clarified fats handle searing heat best, while butter and unrefined oils are better kept for lower heat or finishing. The figures below are approximate ranges drawn from published smoke point tables, and they shift with brand, refinement and the age of the oil.
| Fat | Approx. smoke point | Flavour | Best use for steak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canola oil | About 205 to 230°C | Neutral | Everyday pan searing |
| Rice bran oil | About 230 to 255°C | Neutral, clean | Searing, thick steaks |
| Peanut oil (refined) | About 225 to 230°C | Mild, faintly nutty | Searing, flat plate BBQ |
| Grapeseed oil | About 200 to 215°C | Light, neutral | Searing thinner steaks |
| Avocado oil (refined) | About 250 to 270°C | Mild, buttery | Hardest sears, reverse sear finish |
| Light olive oil | About 200 to 240°C | Mild, faint olive | Searing when you prefer olive oil |
| Extra virgin olive oil | About 175 to 210°C | Fruity, peppery | Moderate heat, drizzling to finish |
| Beef tallow | Varies with how it is rendered | Rich, beefy | Cast iron searing, BBQ |
| Ghee | About 190 to 250°C | Nutty, buttery | Searing with butter flavour |
| Butter | About 150 to 175°C | Rich, creamy | Basting at the end only |
Check labels before you buy. Refined avocado oil is pale and neutral, but the green, cold-pressed style is a different product that consumer group CHOICE describes as a low-heat oil. Unrefined peanut oil also smokes far earlier than refined.
Should You Oil the Steak or the Pan?
Either works in a pan, but oiling the steak gives you more control over the amount and keeps smoke down, which is why it is the standard approach on a BBQ.
To oil the steak, pat it dry with paper towel, rub a teaspoon or so of oil over the surface, then lay it in the preheated pan. If you season ahead with a homemade steak seasoning blend, give it time to work, dab away any moisture on the surface, then oil the steak just before it goes in.
To oil the pan instead, heat it first, add the oil and tilt to coat the base, then add the steak as soon as the oil shimmers.
Whichever method you pick, do not double up. An oiled steak in an oiled pan quickly turns a sear into a shallow fry.
How Much Oil Should You Use for Steak?
About a tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan is plenty for one or two steaks: you want a thin, shimmering film, not a pool. Too much oil spits, smokes and leaves a greasy, patchy crust.
Marbling changes the amount you need. A well-marbled scotch fillet renders fat of its own as it cooks, while a porterhouse with a strip of fat along one side can be stood on that edge for a minute or two first, so the rendered fat helps with the searing.
Heavily marbled wagyu steaks need even less help. Their fat melts quickly in a hot pan, so a light wipe of oil is usually enough, and you may need to tip off some of the excess fat partway through cooking.
Is Olive Oil Good for Steak? The Extra Virgin Debate
Light olive oil is a sound choice for searing, and extra virgin olive oil works at moderate heat, but in a smoking hot pan it can turn bitter and lose the flavour you paid for. Its published smoke point sits lower than most neutral oils, at roughly 175 to 210°C, which is why using olive oil for steak divides cooks.
Smoke point is not the whole story, though. CHOICE notes that research now points to oxidative stability, meaning how well an oil resists breaking down under heat, as the more important factor.
In an Australian laboratory study, extra virgin olive oil produced fewer harmful polar compounds than canola, grapeseed or rice bran oil when heated, despite its lower smoke point. The lab works in olive oil testing and one trial ran for six hours at 180°C, far longer than any sear, but extra virgin is clearly not the hazard it is often made out to be.
The practical verdict: reach for light olive oil if you want olive oil for searing, and save good extra virgin for medium heat, thinner steaks or a drizzle over sliced steak at the table. On Australian labels, light refers to flavour and colour, not kilojoules.
Butter or Oil for Steak? Finish with Butter, Garlic and Thyme
Use oil for the sear and butter for the finish, because butter starts to burn at roughly 150 to 175°C, well below searing heat. Added at the start, its milk solids scorch long before the crust is ready.
Once the steak has a good crust, lower the heat to medium and add a knob of butter, a couple of crushed garlic cloves and a few sprigs of thyme. Tilt the pan so the foaming butter pools at one side, then spoon it over the steak continuously for the final two to four minutes, turning once.
That is the classic garlic butter steak finish, and it suits any cut thick enough to take a few minutes of basting without overcooking. If the butter darkens straight away, lift the pan off the heat for a moment.
Want butter flavour from the start? Ghee is clarified butter with the milk solids removed, so it copes with searing heat and keeps a nutty, buttery taste. Rendered beef tallow goes further in the savoury direction, and a thin film in a hot cast iron pan helps build a deep, even crust.
Best Oil for Steak on the BBQ or Grill
On a BBQ, brush a thin coat of high smoke point oil onto the steak rather than the grill, since oil poured onto hot bars or a flat plate burns off quickly and can cause flames to flare. Canola, rice bran and refined peanut oil all suit the strong, direct heat of a gas or charcoal grill.
The same rule holds for every style of cooking steak on the BBQ, from a gas hood to a charcoal kettle or flat plate: oil the meat, not the metal. A light coat also helps stop lean cuts sticking to the bars.
Melted tallow is worth a try here too, brushed on just before the steak hits the grill for a beefier crust. Keep butter away from open flames, where it drips and flares, and let a slice of garlic butter melt over the steak while it rests instead.
Conclusion
For the sear, a neutral, high smoke point oil such as rice bran or canola suits almost every steak, with butter, garlic and thyme saved for the finish.
Light olive oil, ghee and tallow are worthy swaps, while extra virgin is best kept for gentler heat and drizzling.
Then pick a well-marbled cut from Cost Cut Meats, packed chilled and delivered Australia-wide except the NT.
