Porterhouse Steak substitute

Best substitute

T-bone steak

Use the same amount by weight as the porterhouse steak you are replacing

Best for grilling

Close match

Literally the same cut from a little further forward on the loin, so the strip side is identical and the only real difference is that the tenderloin section is smaller, sometimes barely a sliver.

Other porterhouse steak substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2One bone-in strip steak plus one filet mignon
Close match
Roughly equal weights, totaling the porterhouse weight
The most faithful substitute available, because you are serving the same two muscles that a porterhouse contains, just no longer joined by the bone.
What changes
Best for
steak for two, special occasion dinner, pan-searing, grilling
Cooking them separately is actually easier than cooking a porterhouse, since the filet no longer needs to be shielded from the hottest part of the grill. Pull the filet at 125F and the strip at 130F for medium-rare. The one thing you lose is the browned meat right against the bone, which many people consider the best bite on the whole steak.
3Boneless New York strip steak
Different texture
Use the same amount by weight
The strip half of a porterhouse on its own, so you keep the firm, beefy chew and the fat cap but lose the soft, mild tenderloin section, and the steak reads as one note instead of two.
What changes
Best for
grilling, pan-searing, steak dinner for one, steak sandwiches
Boneless steaks cook noticeably faster and more evenly than bone-in ones, so drop about two minutes per side compared with a porterhouse of the same thickness and start probing early. Because there is no bone insulating one side, you also get better crust coverage. Aim for a 1.25 to 1.5 inch thickness so it does not overcook while browning.
4Ribeye or bone-in ribeye (cowboy or tomahawk)
Close match
Use the same amount by weight
Fattier and softer eating with a distinctly richer, more buttery flavor, but with none of the lean-versus-tender contrast, so you trade variety for indulgence.
What changes
Best for
grilling, reverse sear, special occasion steak, steak for a crowd
The bone-in versions bring back the bone flavor a porterhouse offers and look just as dramatic on the plate. Because ribeye carries far more intramuscular fat, expect flare-ups on a grill and keep a cooler zone ready. Ribeye also stays palatable at medium, whereas the tenderloin side of a porterhouse turns dry and cottony past medium-rare.
5Top sirloin steak
Different texture
Use the same amount by weight
The budget option and the biggest step down: much leaner, chewier and cleaner tasting, so the meal becomes a good weeknight steak rather than a steakhouse centerpiece.
What changes
Best for
grilling on a budget, steak salad, steak bowls, feeding several people cheaply
Salt it at least 40 minutes ahead, cook to no more than 130F, rest it, then slice it thinly across the grain and fan it out. Finishing with a compound butter replaces some of the fat a porterhouse supplies on its own. Do not serve it as an uncut slab and expect porterhouse eating.
6Tri-tip or picanha, grill-roasted whole
Different texture
Use the same amount by weight
A different way to solve the same problem, which is feeding two to four people one impressive piece of beef; both cuts have a fat cap that bastes the meat and both slice into strips with a genuine beefy chew.
What changes
Best for
grilling for a group, reverse sear, steak sandwiches, budget steak dinner
Season heavily, sear the fat cap, then finish over indirect heat to 130F and rest 10 minutes before slicing across the grain. Neither cut is as tender as a porterhouse's filet side and neither has anything like a tenderloin's softness, but per pound they cost a fraction as much and they carve dramatically at the table.

What is Porterhouse Steak?

Porterhouse Steak is a thick steak cut across the back end of the short loin so that a T-shaped bone separates two different muscles, a firm beefy strip loin on one side and a generous piece of soft mild tenderloin on the other, which is why one steak feeds two people and why the two halves need slightly different handling.

Cooking tips

The reason a porterhouse is hard to cook is that it holds two muscles with two different needs on one bone. The tenderloin side is smaller and leaner and finishes first, so on a grill keep that side of the bone angled towards the cooler zone, and take your temperature reading in the tenderloin, not the strip. Pull the whole steak when the tenderloin reads 125F to 128F.
Buy thick or do not bother. A porterhouse under an inch and a quarter cannot develop a crust before the interior overcooks. Between 1.5 and 2 inches is the sweet spot, and that thickness makes a reverse sear the most reliable method: 250F oven or indirect grill until the center reads 115F, then 60 to 90 seconds a side over the hottest heat you can manage.
Salt a thick steak at least 45 minutes before it cooks, and up to overnight uncovered in the fridge. The surface dries, which means faster browning, and the salt has time to reach the interior. This matters more on bone-in steaks because you have less time at high heat before the outside burns.
Bistecca alla fiorentina is a porterhouse or T-bone treated with total restraint: salt, a very hot wood or charcoal fire, served rare with olive oil and lemon poured over the sliced meat at the table. If your recipe uses that name, do not marinate the steak and do not cook past rare, because the whole dish depends on that.
Carve it off the bone before serving. Run a knife down each side of the T, lift out the strip and the tenderloin, slice each across its own grain, then put the bone back on the platter. Everyone gets some of both muscles instead of one person getting the whole filet.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave the porterhouse out?

Not if it is the meal. What you can do is change the shape of the meal: a grill-roasted tri-tip, picanha or whole top sirloin feeds the same number of people from a single piece of beef at a much lower price. If you specifically want two textures on the plate, cook a strip steak and a filet together instead.

What is the difference between a porterhouse and a T-bone?

They come from the same muscle group and differ only in where on the short loin the cut was made. The tenderloin tapers towards the front of the animal, so steaks cut nearer the rear have a much bigger filet section. US grading requires the tenderloin to measure at least 1.25 inches wide for a steak to be called a porterhouse, and at least half an inch for a T-bone. Cook them identically.

Is a porterhouse just two steaks in one?

Effectively yes. On one side of the bone is the strip loin, the same muscle sold as a New York strip, firm and beefy with a fat cap. On the other is the tenderloin, sold on its own as filet mignon, very soft and very mild. That is why one porterhouse comfortably feeds two people and why the two sides need slightly different handling.

Can I use a boneless steak in a porterhouse recipe?

Yes, but adjust the timing. Bone-in steaks cook more slowly on the bone side, so a boneless strip of the same thickness will hit medium-rare a couple of minutes sooner per side. Rely on a thermometer rather than the recipe's clock, and pull at 130F for medium-rare with a 10-minute rest.

Why is my porterhouse tender on one side and tough on the other?

Because you cooked it as one thing. The tenderloin side finishes several degrees before the strip, so if you cook until the strip is perfect the filet is already overdone and dry, and if you cook to the filet the strip can feel underdone and chewy. Position the tenderloin away from the hottest heat, probe that side, and rest the steak at least 10 minutes so the temperature evens out.

Related substitutes

More meat & protein substitutes

Porterhouse Steak substitute

Other porterhouse steak substitutes

2One bone-in strip steak plus one filet mignon

3Boneless New York strip steak

4Ribeye or bone-in ribeye (cowboy or tomahawk)

5Top sirloin steak

6Tri-tip or picanha, grill-roasted whole