Even if you love winter, there are probably a few things you miss about the warmer weather. Wearing shorts. Ice cream on hot days. Going to the beach. Grilling steaks outdoors.

Steaks cooked on the grill are certainly delicious, but just because it’s cold outside doesn’t mean you can’t have a great steak at home. You just need to learn to use your oven to do it! Here are a few tips to get you started so you can soon be enjoying a delicious steak for dinner.

• Buy Good Quality Beef: You want to purchase good quality steaks when you’re cooking them indoors. If you’ve got a local butcher, stop by and see them and see what they recommend. If you’re going to be buying meat from your local grocery store, think about one of the following cuts: filet mignon, ribeye, T-bone, sirloin, or strip steak. Additionally, go for a thick-cut steak, which can help to ensure you don’t overcook it.
• Properly Season Your Steak: Seasoning steaks are always a matter of personal preference. Salt, pepper, and garlic powder will provide plenty of flavors. Or, you might choose a prepared seasoning such as Montreal Steak seasoning or Williams-Sonoma Steakhouse Rub.
• Let It Come to Room Temperature: Yes, you want to let your steaks come to room temperature. This means you will need to pull your steaks out of the refrigerator 30-45 minutes before you plan to start cooking. The reason behind this is to help your steak cook more evenly.
• Choose Your Cooking Process: There are several ways you can go about cooking your steak, but let’s focus on the two most popular methods.
  • Cook Your Steak in a Pan: This is a simple but extremely effective way to cook a steak. Grab a pan, some oil that can handle high temperatures, and your seasoned steaks. Preheat your pan so that it’s good and hot. This will help you get a great sear. When the pan is hot, add a little oil to keep your steak from sticking. (Don’t go overboard with the oil.) Add your steak to the pan and let it cook on one side and then flip. 
  • Cook Your Steak Using Your Broiler: The broiler is often underutilized in the kitchen, but it’s another great way to cook a steak. You’ll want to put your rack to the top of your oven so that your steaks will be about 4 inches away from the heating element. Set your oven to Broil (High) and let the oven warm up. Place your steaks on the broiler pan and cook one side and then flip to the other. (You should only flip your steaks once.)
• Rest Your Steak: Once your steaks are cooked to your desired temperature (a wireless meat thermometer is a great help to determine the temperature of your meat), let them rest for about 5 minutes. This will allow your steaks to hold onto more of their juices before you slice them.
• Slice Your Steak Against the Grain: When you slice your steak against the grain, you cut through the fibers, which shortens them and makes your meat easier to chew. 
• Compound Butters: If you’ve been to a steakhouse, your meat may have been served with compound butter. Often this is just a mixture of butter, herbs, and seasonings – and it’s a perfect way to enhance the flavor of your steak. Boulder Locavore has eight recipes for herb butter – and you’ll want to try all eight of them. 

Don’t wait until summer to cook a fabulous steak. Use these tips to cook one right in your own kitchen and enjoy all the flavors of a perfectly seasoned cut of beef.