French cuisine
Ingredients:
- 1 largish piece of fine beef.
- 1 shallot,
chopped.
- 3 cloves garlic, minced.
- 1 small handful of whole
peppercorns.
- 2 cups beef broth.
- ½ cup brandy.
- 1 bottle Cabernet.
- ½ cup cream.
- 2 tbsp of butter, divided.
- 2 tsp of salt.
- 1 tsp of pepper.
Directions:
- Season the beef and set aside.
- Melt a tbsp of butter in a sauté
pan.
- Add the peppercorns, and sweat the
shallots and garlic over medium heat for 10 minutes or until they go translucent.
- Pour in the broth and reduce it
down till only about ¼ cup of liquid is left.
- Add in the brandy and flame by
tilting the pan towards your gas burner, or with a lighter.
- Once the alcohol has burned off,
pour 1 glass of wine and set aside for the cook.
- Pour the rest of the bottle in the
pan, and allow it to reduce for about 10 minutes.
- Preheat the grill. Once hot, sear
the steak and cook on a side for about 3 minutes for rare.
- Remove the meat from the grill or
broiler or what-have-you, and cover loosely with a foil.
- Top the meat with a bit of butter
while it rests.
- Pour the wine reduction through a
fine chinois or sieve into another sauce pan, and discard the solids.
- Reheat the sauce and add the cream.
Bring back to a gentle simmer and allow thickening for about 5 minutes.
- Add any meat juices that have
collected under the resting beef, swirl in the remaining tbsp of butter and
remove from the heat.
- Slice the meat, arrange it on a
platter, and then drizzle the sauce over.