Smoked Tomahawk Steaks

This delicious smoked steak recipe boasts the flavors of garlic, onion, rosemary, garlic, and more, for a robust taste. Smoked tomahawk steaks are just so good.

If you love beef dishes, why not also try this slow cooker Mexican shredded beef, some crispy ginger beef, or perhaps these garlic butter steak bites.

Why You’ll Love It

So delicious: You’re going to love the rich, meaty flavors in this tomahawk steak recipe – the garlic, herbs, butter, and of course the tender smoky beef!
Simple to prepare: After seasoning the steaks and adding herbs and garlic, you simply need to pop them in a prepared smoker and let them smoke perfectly while you work on your side dishes.
A meaty, satisfying eat: There’s no way you’re still going to be hungry after treating your taste buds to this richly flavored steak!

Smoked Cowboy Steak Ingredients

A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

Steaks: Reverse seared and smoked tomahawk steaks are made with bone-in ribeye steak. In fact, tomahawk is just another way of referring to ribeye (steak from the rib area) that has the bone left in. This is no ‘petit filet mignon’ since tomahawk steaks aren’t known for being dainty! In fact the average tomahawk weighs between 30 and 45 ounces and is a couple of inches thick! Buy yours from a trusted butcher to ensure you’re getting good quality meat.
Herbs: Oregano, parsley and rosemary add wonderfully aromatic flavors to the meat. I used dried oregano and parsley along with fresh rosemary sprigs.
Garlic: A classic flavoring for steak.

How to Reverse Sear Smoked Tomahawk Steak

For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.

Brine your steaks: Sprinkle salt over the steaks and then let them sit in the refrigerator for an hour. This is so the salt draws out the moisture from the beef and then dissolves back into it, resulting in a juicier steak.
Let it warm up: Let the meat come to room temperature after this. This should take between 30 and 45 minutes since the bone-in ribeye steak is so large and thick.
Prepare the grill: Now add mesquite pellets to the auger in your Traeger grill or pellet smoker and heat it up.
Get the tomahawk ready: Brush oil over each cowboy steak then add the seasonings. Add the garlic and butter as well as the rosemary.
Smoke the steaks: Put a meat thermometer probe in one of your steaks and then put the meat on a greased grill grate. Close the Traeger grill or pellet smoker lid and cook the smoked beef recipe until the meat is done to your liking. I like to get mine to 110 degrees and it takes about an hour and a half. But yours might be different.
Broil them: Next you will broil the smoked tomahawk steaks under a preheated broiler. Give the meat about 3 minutes on each side and keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
Let the meat rest: It’s important (very important!) to let the reverse seared meat rest before slicing it against the grain, to ensure it remains juicy and delicious. You can then serve the steak as it is or with some garlic butter on top.

Substitutions and Variations

Seasonings: If you want, you can tweak the seasonings. A pinch of paprika or cayenne pepper would be good. Readymade steak rubs can vary from mediocre to delicious, so if you have one you love you could use that. Personally, I prefer combining my own seasonings, like in this recipe.

Serving Suggestions

Appetizer: Begin your meal with one of these spring appetizers.
Side dishes: Mexican street style corn, crispy smashed potato salad or a Hawaiian macaroni salad would pair very nicely with these smoked tomahawk steaks.
Dessert: Finish with this mouthwatering drumstick pie.

How to Store Smoked Tomahawk Steaks

Store: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and eat within 3 or 4 days.
Freeze: You can freeze the cooked steak in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Thaw: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight.
Reheat: You can warm it back up in your air fryer, in the oven or just throw it back on the smoker.