STEAK AU POIVRE

HAPPY NEW YEAR! HAPPY 2014!


How to start the year is of course the menu I made for my family on New Year's Eve. I wanted to share this recipe as I was so excited with one of the presents I received last Christmas. I got 2 bottles of Mark & Spencers' wine, which includes this full bodied French red wine. I am not that kind of expert when it comes to wine since I do not drink alcohol. I did a little research and got me interested in using it for cooking.

Some says red wine best paired with red meat, like beef. Good thing I have been watching cooking shows and blogs so I came across this recipe and made some tweak. Steak au Poivre or Pepper Steak is a French dish that consists of a steak, usually filet mignon, coated with cracked peppercorns and then cooked to medium rare to medium. Typically the steak is seared over hot skillet with a small amount of oil and butter. The idea is to cook the meat quickly to make the crust and left to rest outside or over foil for few minutes before serving. The peppercorns, on the other hand, provides rich pungent flavor for beef. This kind of steak is often served with sauce made from the drippings from searing, reduced cognac, heavy cream, butter, shallots and mustard like Dijon.



But of course, not quite sure if my parents and brother would appreciate the authentic steak au poivre so I will be tweaking to their likeness. For instance, my mom wants well done meat unlike with my dad or both my parents should only take few or totally no cream for their diet.

Ingredients:

For the seasoning

4 pcs Beef Tenderloin. steak-cut, 1/2 inch

Spanish Paprika, ground

1 Tbsp Peppercorn, freshly cracked

 1 tsp Salt, freshly cracked

1 Tbsp Dried Rosemary

2 tsp Dried Oregano

For the sauce

drippings from seared meat

1 cup Beef Broth

1/2 cup Red Wine

1/4 stick of Butter, salted

Procedure:

1. Dry beef using paper towels.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine Spanish paprika, salt, rosemary, oregano and freshly cracked peppercorn. Fully coat meat with the seasoning, use your finger and gently rub your meat so as to absorb the flavors. Set aside.

3. Heat skillet over high heat. Add about 1 Tbsp olive oil. (You can check if the oil is hot using slices of garlic, when it sizzles, you are good to go. It can also give additional flavor with your meat).

4. Sear seasoned beef to desired doneness. (Approximately it would take for tenderloin between 5 to 6 minutes each side). Remove from skillet and let it rest for few minutes to let the juice goes back to the meat.

5. Using the same skillet, add beef broth and red wine. Bring to boil and simmer, without cover, until reduced by half. Add butter and stir quickly. Remove from heat. Top over the seared beef. Ready to serve.

Tip:

* Apart from beef tenderloin steaks, you can use top loin steaks and would require 6 to 7 minutes to cook for each side.

* Wanted a different alcohol-tasting sauce? Use cognac or any brandy that suits your taste. This requires flambe to let alcohol content evaporates, leaving the aroma and flavor onto the sauce.

* To have a creamy sauce for the beef, add about 1/4 cup heavy cream after the broth and wine have been reduced.

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