David Lebovitz's Steak with Mustard Butter

All week long David Lebovitz -- professional cook, baker, and blogger -- will be sharing recipes from his new book, My Paris Kitchen. Follow along to win one of six copies we're giving away -- and find out why Paris really is always a good idea.

Today: A trip to Paris is as easy as making this bistro classic at home.

To make this bistro classic in my kitchen, I use a cast-iron skillet or grill pan that I get really hot, and then I sear the steak on both sides, cooking it medium-rare, which is the way I like it. My preferred cut is entrecôte, or rib-eye, and I ask the butcher to cut it into steaks that aren’t too thick, since I like lots of surface area on my steaks. I rub them with chipotle chile powder to give them a bit of a smoky flavor. 

It’s difficult to say exactly how long it will take a particular steak to cook to your liking since there are so many variables, but there is actually no truth to the rumor that if you cut a steak open a little and peek inside, all the juices will come gushing out and your steak will be dry. In fact, the best way to ensure that a steak is dry is to overcook it. So feel free to peek inside if you need to. 

Steak with Mustard Butter and French Fries

Serves 2

For the Steak

Two 8-ounce rib-eye steaks
1/2 teaspoon hickory-smoked salt, sea salt, or Kosher salt
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley
Freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil or clarified butter

For the Mustard Butter

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
1 generous teaspoon Dijon mustard

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

We're giving away a little piece of Paris every day this week! To enter to win today's copy of My Paris Kitchen, tell us in the comments: What's your favorite way to eat French fries? We'll pick six winners at random this Friday, May 2nd!

Photos excerpted from the book My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz. © 2014 by David Lebovitz. Reprinted by permission of Ten Speed Press. All rights reserved.