How to Make the Best Cajun Ribeye Steak at Home — Big Poppa's Morton's-Inspired Recipe

It's Sunday night and Big Poppa's taking a run at Morton's Cajun ribeye — a steakhouse classic with a homemade spice blend that you can mix in five minutes and store in a jar. The technique is the real story here: instead of a standard sear-then-oven approach, Big Poppa roasts the Cash Cow and Cajun-rubbed Chairman's Reserve ribeyes on the cool side first, bringing them up to 112–120°F before moving to a 500°F sear zone. The result is bumper-to-bumper pink from edge to edge with a Cajun crust that would hold its own in any steakhouse. Served with a Desert Gold vegetable medley on the griddle — corn, spring beans, and mushrooms — this is a full Sunday dinner worth sitting down for.

The Cajun Blend: How to Build Morton's-Style Spice Mix at Home

This is a pantry blend you can put together in five minutes and store in a jar. Big Poppa's ratios, straight from the recipe: 1 tbsp paprika, 1 tbsp sea salt (kosher), 1 tbsp white pepper, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tbsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp cayenne, 3/4 tsp oregano, 3/4 tsp black pepper. The cayenne drops below the traditional amount for balance — enough heat to know it's there, not so much it overwhelms the ribeye. Mix it, pour it into an empty Sweet Money jar or any lidded container, and shake. It's ready immediately and stores for months.

Application sequence: coat the Chairman's Reserve ribeyes with avocado oil first (high smoke point, neutral flavor, ideal for a hot sear), apply Cash Cow as the base beef-amplifying layer, then coat generously with the Cajun blend. Seal in a bag and refrigerate — 30 minutes minimum, a couple of hours if you have time.

Why use avocado oil instead of other oils on a steak?

Avocado oil has one of the highest smoke points of any cooking oil — around 500°F — which means it doesn't burn or turn bitter when the steak hits a hot sear zone. It's also largely neutral in flavor, so it doesn't compete with the Cajun rub or Cash Cow. At the sear stage where you're hitting 500°F, the oil's smoke point matters. Olive oil would be smoking long before your crust forms.

Roast First, Sear Second: Why This Technique Beats the Standard Method

The roast-then-sear is the reverse of how most people were taught to cook a steak. The conventional approach — sear first, finish in the oven — sounds logical but creates a problem: the interior of the steak is still cold when the sear happens, which means by the time the center reaches temperature, the outer layers are overcooked. You get a gray ring of overcooked meat under the crust.

Roast first, sear second reverses that. The steaks go on the cool/off side of the grill at around 400°F surface temperature for 20–25 minutes, bringing the interior up to 112–120°F while barely touching the surface. Then they move to the 500°F zone for the sear. Because the interior is already close to final temperature, the sear creates the crust without overcooking the center. The result: bumper-to-bumper pink from edge to edge with a caramelized Cajun crust on every surface.

What internal temperature should you pull a Cajun ribeye?

Pull at 138°F after the sear phase. The roast phase gets you to 112–120°F; the sear adds the final degrees. At 138°F the steak is at the upper end of medium-rare heading into medium — still pink throughout, with enough fat rendered in the ribeye to be juicy and flavorful at that temperature. Rest briefly before slicing.

The Desert Gold Vegetable Medley: Griddle Side Dish That Earns Its Spot

Desert Gold is Big Poppa's California Mediterranean seasoning — sesame, lemon, garlic, salt, pepper — and it's the natural call for a vegetable medley that needs to complement a spiced ribeye without competing with it. Spring beans and fresh corn go into a bag with a splash of champagne citrus vinegar for acid, an avocado-olive oil blend for fat and flavor, and Desert Gold. The Jallelujah lime adds one more citrus layer at the end.

Mushrooms on the griddle follow the same rule as always: minimum oil, don't touch them, let them open up and caramelize in their own juices before the butter goes in. When the corn starts showing some brown color and the mushrooms are golden, pull everything together on the griddle and serve alongside the steak.

Full Recipe: Cajun Ribeye with Desert Gold Vegetable Medley

Cajun Blend (makes enough for 2–4 steaks):

• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp sea salt (kosher)
• 1 tbsp white pepper
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 3/4 tsp oregano
• 3/4 tsp black pepper

Steak:

• 2–4 Chairman's Reserve ribeyes
• Avocado oil (to coat)
• Cash Cow Seasoning (base layer)
• Cajun blend (generous coat)

Vegetable Medley:

• Spring beans and fresh corn
• Splash of champagne citrus vinegar
• Avocado-olive oil blend
• Desert Gold Seasoning
• Jallelujah lime (for finishing)
• Mushrooms, butter

1. Mix the Cajun blend. Combine all spices, mix well, and store in a jar.
2. Season the ribeyes. Coat with avocado oil, apply Cash Cow as the base layer, then coat generously with the Cajun blend. Seal in a bag and refrigerate at least 30 minutes, up to 2 hours.
3. Set up the grill with two zones. One side on high (500°F sear zone), one side off or very low (roast zone at ~400°F surface).
4. Roast on the cool side. Place steaks on the off/cool side. Insert a probe in one steak. Roast 20–25 minutes until internal temp reaches 112–120°F.
5. Move to the sear zone. Transfer to the 500°F side. Sear for the crust — flip and check regularly. Pull at 138°F internal.
6. Prep the vegetable medley. Combine spring beans and corn in a bag with citrus vinegar, avocado-olive oil, and Desert Gold. Cook mushrooms on the griddle with minimal oil until golden, then add butter. Add corn and beans. Finish with Jallelujah lime. Pull when corn shows some color.
7. Rest the steak and serve. Rest briefly before slicing. Serve alongside the vegetable medley.

Frequently Asked Questions: Cajun Ribeye Steak

Recipes We Think You'll Love

• The BEST Blackened Ribeye Steak Recipe
• Cash Cow Steakhouse Mushrooms
• The BEST Gas Grilled Steak | Big Poppa Smokers
• Browse All Big Poppa Smokers BBQ Recipes