22 Delicious Side Dishes for Steak

They Go Perfectly With a Hunk of Meat

By
Cathy Jacobs
Cathy Jacobs
Cathy Jacobs
A freelance journalist and avid home cook, Cathy Jacobs has more than 10 years of food writing experience, with a focus on curating approachable menus and recipe collections.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 04/12/20
Classic Wedge Salad

Leah Maroney

Want to serve a homemade steakhouse dinner with all the trimmings for a romantic date night or other special occasions? Take a look at these delicious bistro-inspired side dishes that can make meat even better. From rich and creamy gratins to roasted vegetables and winning salads, these are our favorite side dishes to serve with steak.

  • 01 of 22

    Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

    Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    Roasted garlic adds bold flavor to creamy mashed potatoes in this popular recipe. For a richer mash, feel free to use a combination of milk and heavy cream, instead of milk alone. A few tablespoons of cream cheese will also add creaminess and tangy flavor that matches well with cooked beef.

  • 02 of 22

    Mushrooms Bordelaise

    Mushrooms Bordelaise

    NightAndDayImages/Getty Images

    Rustic and saucy, mushrooms Bordelaise makes a delicious accompaniment to a steak dinner. You will use both the mushroom caps and stems for this recipe, which calls for pan-sauteing the vegetables in butter and olive oil with some parsley and garlic for seasoning. Serve atop the meat, or plated on the side.

  • 03 of 22

    Macaroni and Cheese With Bacon

    Macaroni and Cheese With Bacon

    The Spruce

    After the meat, macaroni and cheese is one of the most popular items on steakhouse menus. This tasty version adds smoky bacon to pasta and cheese sauce, and tops it with crunchy, buttered breadcrumbs, for a fantastic play of textures. Use a sharp or aged cheddar cheese for maximum flavor.

  • 04 of 22

    Duck Fat Fries

    Duck Fat Fries
    Elaine Lemm

    If you are looking for a little "extra" in your fries, try these duck fat fries. A staple in French bistro cuisine, they are crisp, golden, and delicately flavored from the duck fat, which is a perfect fat for deep-frying due to its high melting point.

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  • 05 of 22

    Classic Popovers

    Classic Popovers

    The Spruce/Diana Rattray

    These moist, golden puffs with an airy center and a nicely crusty exterior are a restaurant-style side dish for serving with steak. This recipe yields six popovers, but can easily be multiplied to make more. While you might be tempted to open the oven door and peek at them while baking, don't do it! Constant heat is essential to achieving an even rise.

  • 06 of 22

    Classic Wedge Salad

    Classic Wedge Salad

    The Spruce / Leah Maroney

    A wedge salad is the traditional starter when you dine out on steaks. Prepare it for your table with this classic recipe that loads up a crisp iceberg lettuce wedge with crumbled bacon, chopped tomatoes, and tangy pickled onions, drizzled in an easy blue cheese dressing.

  • 07 of 22

    Baked Sweet Potato Fries

    Baked Seet Potato Fries-

    The Spruce/Emily Hawkes

    If you hunger for the crisp, saltiness of French fries with steak, these easy baked sweet potato fries offer a low-fat, vitamin-rich alternative that will satisfy your craving. Dried cumin and paprika add extra flavor, but you could stick with sea salt if you prefer a more basic fry.

  • 08 of 22

    Instant Pot Scalloped Potatoes

    Instant Pot Scalloped Potatoes

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    Creamy, cheesy instant pot scalloped potatoes are super tasty, and take the stress out of timing your sides when you're cooking steak to temperature. When the timer goes off, just layer the prepared spuds into a casserole dish and pop them under the broiler to brown for a few minutes while you rest the steaks.

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  • 09 of 22

    Roasted Whole Artichokes

    Roasted Whole Artichokes

    The Spruce

    Roasting whole artichokes in the oven in foil packets with just a little olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt for flavoring is a clever way to steam them whole, and enhance their green, celery-like taste. They make a gorgeous statement on the plate alongside beef and mashed or roasted potatoes.

  • 10 of 22

    Cauliflower Cheese Bread

    cauliflower-cheese-bread-4772741-09

     The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

    Instead of classic garlic bread, try this cauliflower cheese bread. The dough is made with cauliflower, so it's gluten-free. The flavor is amazing and the garlic and cheese are the perfect match for a juicy steak. With the help of a food processor, this tasty bread is ready in no time.

  • 11 of 22

    Creamed Spinach With Parmesan Cheese

    Creamed Spinach With Parmesan Cheese

     The Spruce/Diana Rattray

    Creamed spinach is a classic side dish for steak that is easy to make at home with thawed frozen spinach. You need only 20 minutes to create a tasty white sauce for the greens, with Parmesan cheese, nutmeg, and optional garlic.

  • 12 of 22

    Air Fryer Baked Potatoes

    air-fryer-baked-potato-4777826-06

     The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

    Air fryer baked potatoes serve up the perfect balance of fluffy insides and crispy skin. Use russet potatoes for the best results, and rub them with olive oil and salt before you cook them to enhance the flavor and crunch. They cook in about 40 minutes and save you from turning on the oven. Enjoy them simply or load them up with your favorite potato toppings.

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  • 13 of 22

    Onion Rings

    Onion Rings

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    When it comes to sides for grilled beef, the world is divided into French fry people and onion ring people. If you're one of the latter, consider this your go-to recipe for perfect deep-fried onion rings every time. The secret to their success is the cornmeal in the batter, which adds welcome crispiness to the coating.

  • 14 of 22

    Easy Parisian Potatoes

    Easy Parisian Potatoes

    Solnuha/Getty Images

    Crispy, golden brown and buttery, Parisian potatoes are a sophisticated side for beef. Use a melon baller to carve perfectly shaped balls from large, waxy potatoes, and bake them in the oven with a little oil (or duck fat, if you feel like splurging), butter, salt, and pepper.

  • 15 of 22

    Balsamic Roasted Vegetables

    Balsamic Roasted Vegetables

    Diana Miller/Getty Images

    Aged balsamic vinegar adds a tangy depth of flavor to oven-roasted root vegetables, helping them to stand up to the bold taste of cooked beef. Fresh or dried herbs add extra flavor to this comforting, budget-friendly side dish.

  • 16 of 22

    Braised Belgian Endives

    Braised Belgian Endives

    The Spruce/Ulyana Verbytska

    Simmering Belgian endives in a bit of butter and lemon juice softens their crispy leaves, and transforms their bitter taste, so they become tender and almost sweet. Serve them hot or warm to accompany grilled meat, with a little optional cracked black pepper on top.

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  • 17 of 22

    Instant Pot French Onion Soup

    Instant Pot French Onion Soup

    The Spruce / Diana Rattray

    When you're cooking a romantic dinner for two, go all out by starting the meal with traditional bistro-style French onion soup. The instant pot makes it a snap to prepare, and it needs only a few minutes under the broiler at the end of cooking (in individual oven-safe bowls) to brown the cheesy garlic toasts on top.

  • 18 of 22

    Cheesy Muffin Tin Potato Stacks

    Cheesy Muffin Tin Potato Stacks

    Vera Lair/Stocksy United

    Watch your dinner guests' eyes light up when they see these cute little stacks of crispy potato slices on their plates. Make them easily by layering thinly-sliced potato rounds in muffin tins, along with garlic-infused butter, cream, thyme, salt, and pepper, and baking for 45 minutes. Leftovers make a great alternative to hash browns at breakfast, too!

  • 19 of 22

    Roasted Broccoli Rabe

    Roasted Broccoli Rabe

    The Spruce / Molly Watson

    Roasting tender broccoli rabe greens turns their edges crispy and mellows their flavor. Serve them to round out a meat and potatoes dinner, topping the cooked stalks with a spritz of optional lemon juice just before serving for added zing.

  • 20 of 22

    Toasted Garlic Bread

    Toasted Garlic Bread

    Cultura/BRETT STEVENS/Riser/Getty Images

    Buttery, fragrant, toasted garlic bread is always welcome on the plate, and makes a great vessel for sopping up pan sauces. Use a French baguette or long Italian loaf for this easy 10-minute recipe that only gets better with optional melted cheese on top.

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  • 21 of 22

    Bacon Roasted Brussels Sprouts

    Bacon Roasted Brussels Sprouts

    The Spruce

    Even people who claim not to like Brussels sprouts have been known to gobble up this recipe. Oven-roasting sprouts with smoky bacon and garlic lends them fantastic flavor and a crispy, caramelized coating that is hard to resist. Finish with a sprinkle of kosher salt and serve hot.

  • 22 of 22

    French Green Vegetable Gratin

    French Green Vegetable Gratin

    Diana Miller/Getty Images

    Wondering how to get kids and adults alike to eat green vegetables? Try cooking broccoli, spinach, and zucchini into a rich gratin with a delicious, homemade cheese sauce, and watch as they are devoured. The recipe adds just a hint of poultry seasoning, for a hint of savory flavor that matches well with meat dinners.