Some chefs (and if you watch "next top chef," you might say "many chefs") wear flannel, have goofy haircuts, and are bull dykes. Not that this would preclude them from making a tasty dish.........but it does illustrate that their tastes run counter to mine. I've had some good steaks cooked in a pan (usually a cast iron skillet), but I've NEVER tasted one where I didn't say so myself, "this would have been so much better had I myself cooked it over hot coals. I've been to all the "great" steak place in Houston and elsewhere, and I generally enjoy my steak there...........but they never cook me a steak that I like better than my own. And as for steak sauce like A1, I think it has a nice flavor. I might only use it once or twice a year---and then only when in the company of an A1 enthusiast, but it tastes good on the occasional burger, or mixed with ketsup for french fries, or on a sub-par steak..........like one cooked in a pan.
Can you be more specific? Seriously, I just printed this post and I'm going to stop at the store tonight and pick up a couple of steaks. I've never cooked them in a pan before. Always a grill.
I'll be more specific for him/her. Don't ever throw flour and butter into a liquid to thicken it..........unless you've already turned that flour and butter into a roux. Melt your butter over low heat until most of "water" has evaporated, then add your flour, and continue to stir until the moisture is cooked out of the flour. You can also cook it a bit longer to darken the color of the flour. THEN throw it in your liquid to thicken it.
Alton Brown walks you through everything, from selecting the steak, selecting the pan, and cooking the steak within the pan. <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7KrjeJDNKUA&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7KrjeJDNKUA&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PiQ0VOJmCbg&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PiQ0VOJmCbg&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>
Sorry Pole I totally disagree, cooking over coal IMO is for amateurs.. I don’t like the taste of fuel in my food, it’s like watching someone light a great cigar with a BIC lighter or drinking a nice wine from a Styrofoam cup they all change the flavor profile and lead to a completely different taste and it's never an enjoyable one IMO..
Here are some other video of Alton Brown dealing with steaks: <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tXNJyhqb5qg&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tXNJyhqb5qg&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/nevGqdtYoFA&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/nevGqdtYoFA&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>
if you haven't had chimichurri, you don't know what you're missing.. of course, i don't know that it's something that can be store-bought. Always made it or had someone else make it.. but it's the way to go i think
cup of dry red wine. reduce by half, stir in butter, spoon on steak...steak that's been cooked in a cast iron pan.
I am w/ this line of thinking. I've always thought that sauce can ruin a good steak. I am a season guy. Lowry's seasoning salt liberally and a bit of Mrs. Dash's garlic/herb seasoning and slow cook it leaving it a bit rare in the center. This is especially good on fattier cuts of meat. I've not had much luck using this method w/ top sirloins due to the lack of fat. Top sirloins are definitely one of the most difficult cuts to "get right".
I'd like to add to this to. You need to be pretty fast, or that steak is getting cold. Even though you can do with a white roux, if you've never made a roux before, do this prior, as you won't have time to do it while the steak is resting, while you are also doing your reduction. A quicker, much simpler way to thicken the au jus reduction is to stir a little bid of arrow root into the cold beef stock. Arrow root does not have much noticeable flavor and it is just as good a thickener, so it works well. A brown roux is the best for color, though, see Pole's post.
HP, that sounds like an awesome way to go about it. Do you cook it in a pan often? I usually grill my steaks after a good marinade or rub.....but a pan....in a good roux.....sounds very interesting... Do you then pour the roux on the steak afterwards? DD
In a pan is very convenient. You will get more jus from it that way. That said: I was mainly adding to ScriboErgoSum and Pole's posts by reinforcing the need for speed or to prep your roux ahead, or to use arrow root instead. Roux is great for color of the sauce, but I tend to think it adds too much flavor thus masking the beauty of the real au jus. Hell, you don't even need to thicken to reduction if you don't want to. So, to answer your question, the roux is added to the sauce to thicken it, as per ScriboErgoSum's posts, it is part of the sauce. The sauce goes on afterwards. Don't cook the steak in liquid, that's braising, and you want a cheaper cut of meat for that. as for do I do it often, nah. First I don't eat steak often (and insist on prime aged, when I do), secondly I have a hard time cooking my own at exorbitant prices for prime age. I tend to say let the pro kitchens do it for me. But once or twice a year I will...on a grill, for friends if we need a quick meal for an ad hoc, celebration bbq. I'll brush butter, cracked pepper on them. Maybe oil/garlic infusion. Grilled, thick, prime, Steaks that are resting will produce plenty of jus to use for a quick sauce. And they'll stay plenty hot for a good 10-15minutes. Heck, you can even ask the butcher for trimmings, or a sacrificial lessor steak, to use in a pan to make a complete sauce, ahead of time.
try a hanger steak. far cheaper than the pricier cuts, and for my money, the most flavorful cut on the steer. i marinate mine in dijon, worcester sauce, and wine (perhaps a little balsamic too). later, i pat it dry, this cook in a cast iron pan (or cast iron griddle), finishing in the oven.
I rarely ever eat a steak with sauce - a simple marinade or dry rub is all the flavoring I need. The BF, however, never eats a steak without sauce, regardless of the flavoring. Though he hardly ever eats anything without adding additional flavor to it (tabasco, tony chacheres, mass amounts of salt, etc).
If you want to do something a little different, here's a couple of tasty options: Pepper Steak (steak au poive): easy as hell. Get a good thick ribeye or strip (I prefer the strip). Get a bunch of black peppercorns, and roughly crush them with the bottom of a pan or sturdy bowl or a mortar & pestle if you have one, and spread them out on a plate. Salt the steaks, then coat with a little bit of good dijon mustard on 1 side of the steak (you can also use butter, but I kinda like the dijon), coat with pepper (press them in pretty well, so they'll stick during cooking), and repeat on the other side. Cook about 4-5 minutes a side in a little clarified butter for medium rare in a heavy pan over high heat. While letting steaks rest on a plate tented with foil (with a couple of holes cut in the top to let off steam), pour off fat from pan. Add in some chopped shallots, some crushed garlic, soften them but do not brown, then a sprig or 2 of fresh thyme, about a cup of red wine or a little over half cup of brandy/sherry/cognac, and 1/2 cup of good beef or mushroom broth. Reduce. Return any juices from the plate & add a little butter at the end to enrich the sauce. Mushroom sauce: like above: pour off fat, soften shallot & garlic, add a bit of thyme, deglaze with a bit of wine, add good beef broth & some thickly sliced fresh mushrooms (chantrelles preferably, or use good brown/crimini mushrooms & maybe only a couple of chantrelles for flavor). Reduce to desired thickness & add plate juices. Either of these can be done on a grill, just get some scraps, cook 'em up in a pan while the steaks are cooking, & make the sauce with that.
If you need sauce to make your steak taste good, you're doing everything wrong, IMHO...A-1 is not for ribeyes, filet's etc... Bernaise sauce (msp?), well, that's different...I guess my sauce is red wine, which I sip after each bite...mmmm...
