Au Poivre? Oh Yes!

The technological advancements of the past ten years have been mind-boggling. I'm an old man so it's been hard to keep up. If I have a problem, I just ask one of my grandchildren. They have no problem with any of it, including the AI stuff. I'm that proverbial metaphor, an analog guy trapped in a digital world. One thing I'm fairly certain of is food. In food, pretty much everything has been done before. I'm always learning new "to me" dishes, because you never know it all. The new things are all relatable because you smell, taste and consume them. That sensory memory thing takes over. Technology doesn't work that way unless you were born in the last 15 years.  

    

Food has all sorts of possibilities, like spiciness. I like a little heat in my food. I am by no means one of those "Chili Heads" who has a need for Ghost Peppers or Carolina Reapers in my food. I think that is more about ego than pleasurable taste. Some people claim it's about the complex flavors or the adrenaline rush or the endorphins. If that is the case, I have no problem with their desire to consume insanely hot food.  

The heat I'm talking about is the peppercorn kind. As a cook you use salt and pepper to season a dish, bring out its flavors. You can "over season" or "under season" food, with "under seasoning" being the bigger crime, in most cook's eyes. Over seasoning is not so much the use of too much pepper as it is the use of too much salt, with all the health problems associated with that.  

In my self education, I have come across several uses for peppercorns. I've seen them in the restaurants I visit and the things I read. The Joy of Cooking, Mastering The Art Of French Cooking and The Four Seasons Cookbook all covered peppercorn utilization, for steak in particular. Most often as Steak au Poivre.

Steak au Poivre is a classic French dish that has been around since the 19th century. It is a staple in bistros and fine dining establishments in France because of its simplicity and depth of flavor. Henri Soule who opened Le Pavillion in New York City in 1941 was one of the first to bring this dish to the United States. He was pivotal in introducing the American public to French fine dining. 

My first encounter with peppercorns as a major component of a dish other than seasoning was at The Inn At Sawmill Farm in West Dover, Vermont during my skiing days. When I worked there, they has 2 things on their menu that focused on the use of peppercorns, Steak au Poivre and Roast Duck with Green Peppercorn Sauce. 

The classic preparation of Steak au Poivre involves taking peppercorns, one variety or several, crushing them, coating all sides of a steak, filet or New York strip, with an amount to your liking, saute the steak in a pan to the doneness desired, remove steak, add some chopped shallots, deglaze the pan with stock return the steak to the pan, flame with a bit of brandy and finish the sauce with a mounting of butter or cream. 

The Steak au Poivre at the Sawmill Farm was different. They took a 14 to 16 ounce New York strip steak and started cooking it fat side down in a heavy saute pan to render the fat. Then it was cooked in that fat on both sides for that Maillard Reaction. About 2 minutes from the desired doneness, the steak is removed from the pan and covered to stay warm. Then Lawry's Lemon Pepper, red wine, and beef base was added to the pan and reduced until thick and syrupy. Then veal glace is added, the steak is returned to the pan and we flambéed it tableside with brandy. The lemon pepper added a nice lemon essence to the dish. I, of course, stole this recipe and used it in all my restaurants. It was a very popular dish. 

In my travels, I have tasted many classic versions of steak au poivre but have always preferred the Sawmill Farm version. That is until I took a trip to Paris and went to Le Bistrot Paul Bert. 

Le Bistrot Paul Bert is owned by Bertrand Auboyneau. That's him above in the white shirt reading a text on his phone on the sidewalk out front. He opened in 1997 with the desire to capture the essence of French bistro dining using high-quality ingredients and traditional French recipes. Locals and food critics agree he has achieved his goals. It has a very homey feel with cookbooks and displays of wine and old pictures. I learned about Le Bistrot Paul Bert from several different spots in my Paris food research. 

He is particularly famous for his steak frites, which he calls, Filet de boeuf au poivre de Sarawak, frites maison. I have found his recipe on-line and it is pretty much the classic version with the exception of the sole use of Sarawak peppercorns and a full cup of heavy cream.

I'm a cook and I have tasted this preparation. I like it a lot. I like the Sarawak peppercorns and I'm pretty sure there is a deglazing of dark veal glace in there too. They don't mention that in the several Le Bistrot Paul Bert recipes I've seen. That sauce didn't get that dark from just reducing the cream and it certainly didn't get that beefy taste without the addition of a stock reduction. I'm aware that not all cooks give you exactly everything they use in a recipe or every little twist used in its preparation. If they did, you might just cook their dishes at home and not come back to visit them. 

The Sarawak peppercorns are the real key to this dish. Sarawak is the largest state in Malaysia on the island of Borneo. It is renowned for its peppercorns which are considered some of the finest in the world. The peppercorns have a complex flavor profile with bright fruity spiciness and earthy floral undertones. It has become my peppercorn of choice. Le Bistrot Paul Bert sells them but I have found the SaraSpice selection on Amazon more price friendly. SaraSpice is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Malaysian Pepper Board, whose main focus is the sourcing and marketing of Sarawak peppercorns globally. 

I like both the Sawmill Farm version and the Le Bistrot Paul Bert version of Steak au Poivre. They are really 2 different dishes. Give them both a try and see if you too don't say "Oh Yes!", when asked, "Au Poivre?"

  

Steak au Poivre Sawmill

     4 - 16 oz. New York Strip Steaks     4 - Tbsp. Lawry’s Lemon Pepper 
    1 - Tbsp. Minor’s Beef Base             1 - Cup Veal Glace
    4 - Cups Dry Red Wine                     ½ - Cup Brandy

Heat a cast iron or heavy skillet on a range and place steaks in pan with fat side down. Render out as much fat as possible, searing and browning the fat side of the steak. Then arrange steaks flat in the pan and sear. After 2-3 minutes flip steaks and cook another 2-3 minutes for rare. Cook longer if you desire them more well done.

Remove steaks from pan, cover with foil and keep warm.  Add to the pan still on the fire, the lemon pepper, beef base and red wine.  Reduce until sauce is thick, then add veal glace.  Stir sauce until well mixed, then return steaks to pan and then flame with the brandy. 

Place steaks on plates and spoon sauce over steaks. Serve with French fried potatoes and a baguette.   

Steak Au Poivre Paul Bert

    

    3 - Tbsp. Sarawak Black Peppercorns      2 - Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
    4 - 6oz. Filet Mignons                                 1 - Tbsp. Canola Oil
    ¼ - Cup Veal Glace                                     ¼ - Cup Brandy
    1 - Cup Heavy Whipping Cream                 Sea Salt To Taste

                          

Coarsely crack the peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. Sprinkle some of the peppercorns on both sides of each steak, and use the palm of your hand to press them into the meat. Season with sea salt.

 

Put a heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat and add the oil and the butter. When the butter has melted, slip in the steaks and cook them for 2 to 3 minutes, or a minute or so longer, if you like your beef better done. Flip them and give them another 2 to 3 minutes in the pan. Use a spoon to baste the steaks with the butter in the pan. Then transfer them to a warm plate and cover them loosely with a foil tent.

 

Pour off and discard the fat in the pan, but leave any bits of steak and pepper that might have stuck to the bottom. Deglaze the pan with the brandy. Be careful as it will flame. When the flames have subsided, stir the pan to scrape up whatever bits are in the pan. When you’ve reduced the brandy, lower the heat and add the cream, a bit more of the black pepper and the veal glace. Swirl the pan and let the sauce bubble gently for 2 to 3 minutes. It should coat the back of a spoon. I always add a bit of butter. Salt to taste.

Transfer the steaks to warm dinner plates, spoon over some of the sauce and serve. At Le Bistrot Paul-Bert, the steak would come with frites, always a good idea. There is also plenty of sauce to dip them in.