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Posts Tagged ‘Steak’

Bavette Steak with Black Lime & Maple Butter

Posted in Barbecue, Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 27 October 2022| Leave a Comment »

A delicious steak recipe from Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage. Ixta fries the steak in a pan over a high heat, we used a barbecue – fabulous flavours either way. You will need to grind about 3 black limes to get enough for the marinade and the butter.

Wine Suggestion: Thanks to our friends Tim & Mick, who’ve been travelling recently, we had an excellent Öküzgözü from Turkey which was regal, refined, and a delightful surprise. We wish we could remember the name of the winery as we forgot to take a picture and the bottle recycling was done the next day before we remembered! Full of black cherry, raspberry, and dark mulberry flavours; this was complex and had layers of dark chocolate, licorice, leather, tobacco, cloves, and something slightly herbal and minty, but we couldn’t put our finger on what.

Bavette steak with black lime & maple butter – serves 4

  • 500g bavette steak, cut into 3 equal pieces
  • 300g ripe tomatoes
  • ½ red onion
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

FOR THE MARINADE:

  • 1 tsp fine salt
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Urfa chili flakes (we used a mixture of smoked paprika and aleppo pepper)
  • 1½ tsp ground black lime
  • about 50 twists of black pepper

FOR THE SOY AND MAPLE BUTTER:

  • 40g ghee or unsalted butter
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
  • 2½ tsp maple syrup
  • ½ a small clove of garlic, finely grated
  • ¾ tsp ground black lime
  • ¾ tsp Urfa chilli flakes (see above)

Pat the steak dry and put into a large bowl. Add all the marinade ingredients and rub into the steaks. Leave aside for 10 minutes or up to 1 hour (you can do this further ahead and leave in the fridge but make sure you bring them back to room temperature before cooking).

Get your barbecue very hot, then sear the steaks for 2 minutes on each side, you want them dark brown on the outside but rare in the middle. Transfer to a warm plate and rest for 8 minutes, turning over halfway.

While the steaks are resting, slice the tomatoes and onions and arrange on a platter. Sprinkle with ½ tsp flaked salt.

Melt the ghee in a small saucepan over a medium heat. When it is melted and hot, remove from the heat and stir in the soy sauce, maple syrup, garlic, black lime and chilli flakes.

Slice the bavette against the grain and arrange over the onions and tomatoes. Sprinkle with some sea salt, then spoon over the soy and maple butter and serve with the lemon wedges on the side.

(Original recipe from Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage, Ebury Press, 2022.)

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A Béarnaise Sauce to go with a BBQ steak

Posted in Barbecue, Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , on 23 December 2021| Leave a Comment »

Sometimes we get a notion for steak and chips, so pull out the barbecue and crank up the oven. Béarnaise sauce is the perfect companion, not particularly hard, it just needs a little attention and you must never let it get too hot.

Wine suggestion: Another Greek classic, the Thymiopoulos Naoussa Xinomavro which plays a nice balance of being effortless and ethereal alongside a deep core of powerful, elegant tannins.

Béarnaise Sauce

  • 1 small shallot, finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp tarragon vinegar
  • 6 black peppercorns
  • 3-4 bushy tarragon sprigs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • ½ tsp Dijon mustard
  • 150g butter, cut into small dice

Heat the vinegar, tarragon, peppercorns and shallot in a small pan. Bring to the boil and reduce until there is about 1 tbsp left, then strain and set aside.

Put a bowl over a pan of just-simmering water and make sure it isn’t touching the water. Add the egg yolks and mustard, then whisk in the reduced vinegar. Slowly add the butter, a cube at a time, whisking each time until smooth. You can turn the heat off about half way through. We like to stir-through a little chopped tarragon at the end but it’s up to yourself. Keep warm over a pan of warm water while you cook your steak.

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Béarnaise Sauce

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Side dish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 24 August 2020| Leave a Comment »

Bearnaise sauce

We rarely do the classic sauces, sometimes they look a bit intimidating. This Béarnaise is easily made and tastes superb, perfect for when only steak & chips will do. It will keep warm in the bowl while you cook your steaks.

Wine suggestion: Béarnaise is a slightly piquant sauce, so you have to make sure the wine you choose isn’t too acidic. Our choice was the Ridge Lytton Estate Petite Sirah. This is full bodied and richly plum flavoured with peppery tannins and very high levels of anthocyanins (colour and anti-oxidants). Crucially though it has only a medium acidity and so doesn’t fight the sauce. A rare enough grape, but in expert hands, wonderful indeed.

Béarnaise Sauce – serves 2

  • 50ml white wine vinegar
  • ½ tsp black peppercorns
  • 1 small shallot, finely chopped
  • a large sprig of tarragon, bruised
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 200g unsalted butter, diced and softened
  • a squeeze of lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp tarragon leaves, finely chopped
  • freshly ground white pepper
  • sea salt

Put the vinegar, black peppercorns, shallot and whole tarragon sprig into a small saucepan with 50ml of water, then bring to the boil. Simmer until reduced to about 2 tablespoons, then strain and reserve the liquid.

Put a heatproof bowl over a pan of just simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl is not in contact with the water.

Put the egg yolks, a cube of butter and a pinch of salt into the bowl. Whisk together, then add half the reserved liquid. Keep whisking until the mixture comes together and starts to thicken, then gradually add all of the butter, one cube at a time. Make sure that the mixture has emulsified (and not separated!) before you add any more butter each time. If it becomes too thick you can add teaspoons of warm water to thin it.

When all the butter has been added, remove the bowl from over the pan. Add a squeeze of lemon and stir in the chopped tarragon. Taste for seasoning and add more lemon juice, salt, white pepper, or more of the reduced liquid if needed. Leave the sauce in the warm bowl (off the heat) and it will keep warm for about 30 minutes but keep stirring occasionally.

(Original recipe from The Hairy Bikers’ Meat Feasts by Si King & Dave Myers, Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 2015.)

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Steak Diane

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 3 May 2020| 2 Comments »

Steak Diane

Remember this!?!?

We’re not sure if we’ve definitely had it before but remember it on every restaurant menu when we were kids and it has ingredients we’d choose. However, we were probably opting for the Chicken Maryland or something just as classy! It tastes reminiscent of those old fashioned dishes you still get in French restaurants. Bring it back we say – it’s absolutely delicious and you get to flambé, which is always very exciting! We served this with a rib-eye steak cooked rare on the barbecue, but it’s up to you for cut and doneness. Some watercress or other greens work for a side too.

Wine Suggestion: It was a special occasion for us so we raided the our dwindling cellar and chose a classic Bordeaux, the Chateau Haut Bages Averous 2005. Even if this isn’t to hand we’d suggest a Cabernet dominant blend and you’ll be happy.

Sauce Diane – serves 4

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 25g butter
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 150g button mushrooms, sliced
  • 120ml brandy
  • 150ml white wine
  • 150ml beef stock
  • 150ml cream
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • a good pinch of caster sugar
  • 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • a squeeze of lemon juice

Heat a large sauté pan and heat the olive oil and the butter until foaming. Add the shallot and mushroom and cook for a few minutes to soften.

Pour over the brandy, then light the pan with a match and allow the flames to subside. Add the white wine and simmer until reduced by half.

Stir in the stock, cream, Worcestershire sauce, sugar and some seasoning. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until thickened to a sauce consistency. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice.

(Original recipe from Neven Maguire’s Complete Family Cookbook, Gill Books, 2016.)

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Hanger Steak with Shallots

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , on 21 March 2020| Leave a Comment »

Hanger Steak with Shallots

We adore this cut of beef but it’s not always easy to get in Irish butchers. Talk to your butcher in advance and tell them you want a piece of onglet or hanger steak – they should be able to order it for you, and it’s much cheaper than some other cuts.

We cut this across the grain and it’s meltingly tender so you can be brave and serve “blue” like we did here, but it also works well at your choice of doneness if you prefer.

Wine Suggestion: we think this combination of meltingly tender beef and the buttery shallots in red wine goes with Rhône reds – Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre et al; either as a blend or Syrah alone. Tonight we had one of those insider wines, a Côtes du Rhône labelled under Jean-Paul Daumen’s name. He’s the owner-winemaker at Domaine de la Vieille Julienne, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a superb domaine with an enviable reputation. The wines under his name are from a mix of vineyards from the estate and friends, all farmed organically and biodynamically by Jean-Paul and made with just as much care as his own domaine. The result … great value and a delicious pairing.

Hanger Steak with Shallots – L’onglet à l’échalote – serves 4

  • 60g unsalted butter
  • 800g onglet/hanger steak (you will probably get 2 long pieces)
  • 250g shallot, finely sliced
  • 1 thyme sprig
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 125ml red wine
  • 100ml beef stock
  • watercress, to garnish

As soon as you get home from the butchers put your steak into a dish and sprinkle generously with salt. Then put in the fridge until you need it but take it out of the fridge about an hour before you want to cook it.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Add a knob of the butter and when it starts to melt add your steak. You might have to cook it in batches depending on the size of your pan. A rough guide is to cook for about 2 minutes on each side for very rare steak or longer if you prefer it more well done. This is dependent on the size of the steak, so you should do the finger test on the meat and go with gut feel. Put the steak onto a warm plate, cover with foil and keep warm while it rests.

Melt half of the remaining butter in the same frying pan and add the shallots, thyme and bay leaf. Cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until softened. Add the red wine and the stock, turn the heat up to high and cook until the liquid has reduced by half. Season with salt and lots of black pepper, throw away the herbs. Pour the meat juices from the resting plate into the sauce and whisk in the remaining butter to make a thick, glossy sauce.

Slice the steak across the grain into thick slices and serve on top of the shallots with some watercress on the side.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Secret France, BBC Books, 2019.)

To do the finger test for steak you compare the resistance of the cooking meat to pressing the ball of your palm with a finger from the other hand

  • Blue: an open palm, relaxed
  • Rare: thumb and your first, index finger touching
  • Medium Rare: thumb and second finger
  • Medium: thumb and third, ring finger
  • Well Done: thumb and fourth, little finger

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Italian Seared Beef

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, Italian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 25 July 2018| Leave a Comment »

Italian seared beef

So this is a bit of a treat and yet has very few ingredients and takes very little time to prepare. Hail to that.

Wine Suggestion: fresher and bit more rustic than Bordeaux is Bergerac, into the Dordogne River to the east. The best vineyards are in the Pecharmant AC and have Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot as the dominant varieties. We found some unoaked wines on our last trip from Domaine des Costes, Cuvée Tradition which, while simple, had a joy and juiciness that perfectly complemented the beef, pesto and rocket.

Italian Seared Beef – serves 2

  • 1 tbsp pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan until golden
  • 250g rump steak
  • 2 heaped teaspoons pesto
  • 40g rocket
  • 15g Parmesan cheese

Put a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Cut the fat of the steak, finely chop the fat and put into the hot pan to crisp up. Cut the sinew off the rump and season with salt and black pepper. Put the steak between two sheets of greaseproof paper and bash with a rolling pin until it is an even thickness of about 1 cm. Scoop out the crispy fat and set aside, then sear the steak in the hot pan for 1 minute per side or until golden but still pink in the middle (as per photo). Remove the steak to a board to rest.

Spread the pesto over a serving plate. Thinly slice the steak at an angle and scatter over the plate. Pile the rocket on top, then scatter over the pine nuts and crispy fat (you don’t have to eat the fat if you would rather not –  we’ll have it!). Mix the resting juices with a tbsp of good olive oil and drizzle over. Shave the Parmesan over to serve.

(Original recipe from 5 Ingredients by Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2017.)

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Epic Rib-Eye Steak

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 5 January 2018| 2 Comments »

Epic rib-eye steak

New Year’s eve is a night we treasure to eat nice food and open a good bottle of wine; just the two of us (the third still flakes out around 7pm). This year we are glad that Jamie Oliver is back on song with his new book “5 Ingredients”. This was delicious, luxurious and yes –  very few ingredients.

Wine suggestion: from our cellar came a bottle of the Chateau Rayas “Pignan” 2005 which while 12 years old was beautifully youthful, smooth, complex and deep. A 100% grenache from a very particular vineyard this is a remarkable wine that we’re glad to have shared together to begin 2018.

Epic Rib-Eye Steak – serves 4

  • 600g piece of rib-eye steak (ideally about 5 cm thick), fat removed
  • 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves stripped
  • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
  • 350g mixed mushrooms, tear up any larger ones into bite size chunks
  • 1 x 660g jar of white beans
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Place a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Rub the steak all over with a little olive oil, a pinch of salt and some black pepper, then sear on all sides for 10 minutes in total. You’re looking for a nice dark brown on the outside and medium rare in the middle – of course keep cooking if you prefer it more cooked than this. When done, remove to a warm plate and cover with tin foil.

Turn the heat under the pan down to medium. Add the rosemary leaves and crisp up for 30 seconds, then add the garlic and mushrooms with a splash of oil if needed and cook for 8 minutes or until golden.

Pour in the beans and their juice, add the red wine vinegar and simmer for 5 minutes, then season to taste. Sit the steak on top and pour over any juices from the plate. Slice the steak at the table and serve with with a drizzle of your best olive oil.

(Original recipe from 5 Ingredients by Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2017.)

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Skirt Steak Salad with Tomatoes & Chipotle

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , on 20 September 2017| Leave a Comment »

 

Skirt steak salad w. tomatoes & chipotle

A warm main course salad for two with a very spicy dressing. Season the steak well before cooking and serve with some crusty bread.

Wine Suggestion: this dish has a bite with the chipotle so tread carefully and don’t pick a wine that is too dry (white) or tannic (red). A medium bodied, juicy red was our pick with the Giulio Straccali “Galileo” Vino Rosso d’Italia, a multi region blend of Sangiovese, Syrah and Primitivo. This is really clever by playing of the strengths of each grape and is really more than just the sum of its parts. Fresh, juicy, long and complex, especially considering its inexpensive price.

Warm skirt steak salad with tomatoes & chipotle dressing – serves 2 as a main course

  • 400g skirt steak
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 60ml beef stock/water
  • 120g tinned chipotle chillies in adobo sauce
  • 60ml lime juice
  • half a small frisée lettuce/other lettuce variety
  • 30g baby spinach leaves
  • 1 tomato, chopped
  • 2 radishes, thinly sliced
  • ¼ small red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • a small handful of coriander leaves
  • 30g pecorino cheese

Warm 1 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy frying man over a medium-high heat. Season the steak generously with salt and black pepper. Fry the steak in the oil, turning once, until both sides are well browned and it is cooked how you like it – we cooked ours for 3 minutes on each side. Remove the steak from the pan and set aside to rest.

Reduce the heat under the frying pan and sauté the garlic for a few minutes. Pour in the beef stock or water and use to deglaze the pan, scraping any sticky bits off the bottom with a wooden spoon. Turn the heat off completely and add the chipotle chillies, lime juice and enough olive oil to make a dressing (a few tablespoons). Season to taste.

Cut the steak across the grain into ½ cm thick strips.

Shred the lettuce leaves into bite-sized pieces and tip into a bowl with the spinach, tomatoes, radishes, onion, avocado & coriander. Add the steak and the chipotle dressing. Divide between 2 plates and grate some pecorino cheese over the top.

(Original recipe from Good Cooking by Neil Perry, Murdoch Books, 2016.)

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Rick Stein’s Steak n Mushrooms

Posted in Barbecue, Beef, Food, Greek, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 21 March 2016| Leave a Comment »

Steak & Mushrooms

What could be better than steak, mushrooms & chips? Nothing too groundbreaking here but we do recommend taking some inspiration from the Greeks when cooking your mushrooms.

Wine Suggestion: We always fall for a big red when having steak and this dish caused us to try one of our 2009 Bordeaux’s lying waiting in the cellar; this time the Ch Capbern Gasquetton. Full of flavour and still very youthful but the seven years from vintage has brought it all together and made it a great match.

Grilled steak with village mushrooms – serves 4

  • 4 rib-eye or sirloin steaks (rib-eye would be our preference), about 250g each
  • 50ml olive oil, plus a bit extra for brushing on the steaks
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • ½ a lemon
  • 200g button mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 5 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 25ml balsamic vinegar

Brush the steaks with oil, season with salt, pepper and half the oregano, then grill on a hot barbecue until cooked the way you like.

Sauté the mushrooms in the 50ml of olive oil with the garlic, balsamic vinegar, ½ tsp salt, 20 turns of the black pepper mill and the rest of the oregano. Serve with the steak (and some chips if you like).

(Original recipe from Venice to Istanbul by Rick Stein, BBC Books, 2015.)

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Really good spuds!

Posted in Barbecue, Food, tagged , , , , , , on 8 September 2011| 1 Comment »

We cooked these recently and took pics, as always, so we could post the recipe on the blog later. Only to find out that we have in fact cooked them before and blogged the recipe also. So we would like to reiterate that this is a very nice way to cook potatoes. We also recommend that you make a little note beside every recipe you do so you don’t forget that you’ve made it before and whether or not you liked it. We almost always do this but clearly forgot this time. You can get the recipe here.

A great accompaniment to potatoes and steak were these courgettes from Johnny and Vivienne’s garden which barbecued superbly, especially with the lemon halves which contribute a caramel zing.

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Steak with Cheesy Mushrooms & Chips

Posted in Barbecue, Beef, Food, Side dish, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on 11 March 2011| 1 Comment »

A really big thanks to our neighbour Nigel for giving us these lovely steaks; we hope the BBQ smells were good for you too!

So the other bits we did were cheesy mushrooms from Jamie’s 30 minute meals and some home-made oven chips which are way better than the ones you buy in a bag.

Jamie’s Cheesy Mushrooms – for 4

  • 4 large flat Portobello mushrooms (about 250g in total)
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 a red chilli
  • 2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
  • 1/2 a lemon
  • 70g mature Cheddar cheese

Trim the mushroom stalks and put them in a small earthenware dish so they fit pretty snug.

Crush 1/2 a garlic clove over each mushroom.

Finely chop the chilli and parsley and divide between the mushrooms.

Grate over the zest of half a lemon and drizzle well with olive oil and season.

Cut the cheese into 4 chunks and put 1 on each mushroom.

Grill on the top shelf for 9-10 minutes or until golden.

N.B. We couldn’t find Portobello mushrooms today so we used field mushrooms instead. They were nowhere near cooked in this time so we stuck them on the BBQ for 5 minutes to finish them off. If you can only find field mushrooms it might be best to cook the bottoms of them on the BBQ or griddle pan or even a frying pan first before finishing with the other ingredients under the grill.

Oven chips

Heat your oven to as hot as it goes.

Cut your potatoes into 1 cm thick slices and then cut the slices into chips about 1cm thick.

Cook the chips in boiling water for 3 minutes and drain really well.

Spread the chips out on a baking tray and drizzle with vegetable or groundnut oil and season.  Make sure all the chips are coated with oil but you don’t need to use very much.

Cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Wine Suggestion: We had an Argentinian Malbec – perfect with steak!

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