Valentine's Day
Steak au Poivre With a Chocolate Balsamic Pan Sauce
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1 Review
OzarkLdy
February 18, 2025
Thank you Cesar! Hope you don't mind the twists I ran with. Minus your inordinate love for blue cheese, your recipes are positively enchanting! I had the night of my life being my own Valentine!
Cesar's Steak au poivré modified with an OzarkLdy twist
Wagyu is worth every no longer minted penny if you want a super splurge! Otherwise original recipe calls for NY Strip.
Unpackage meat & pat dry with paper towels. Set on plate already prepped with plastic wrap. Grind a healthy load of peppercorns & a bit of fresh ground sea salt. Still works to just use a bunch of already ground pepper if you're short on corns. Just isn't quite as full bodied as the freshly ground. Place plastic wrap over it & gently massage (pat) it into meat.
Flip meat. Repeat heavily peppering & salt. Again placing plastic over it. My preference to not potentially pick up contaminates from raw meat since my immune system is suppressed.
Allow meat to sit for 15 min to 2 hours.
15m minimum stand salt & pepper was my route
EVOO in skillet on medium high (tremendous departure for me as I'd never considered cooking a steak outside of a grill or under oven broiler)
Sear wagyu about 3 minutes per side without sliding it around.
Insert meat thermometer when flipped to 2nd sear & 3 minutes. Continue & watch that temp like a hawk if you don't want to lose the finest phase!
Wagyu prime sweet spot is medium rare. Again, autoimmune dishes Russian Roulette if I play in that level. For my safety I always have steak cooked medium now. No more mooing allowed.
Meat will CONTINUE COOKING about 5 minutes & increase 5° once removed from fire & plated.
Pull from heat 5° lower than desired finish to stand at 125° - 130° to land on lower side of medium to high side of medium rare.
Leave thermometer in & slide pan off heat if you're concerned. Waiting on starting sauce. At about 5 min temp will begin to drop. If it's not as high as you want it, leave thermometer in, slide pan on burner a minute or so to reheat and place meat on opposite side to go longer. Repeat as before, pulling meat at 5° lower than desired finish.
Add 1Tbsp butter to pan
Toss thin sliced shallots with salt & allow them to sweat & saute on medium until lightly caramelized.
Add 1 generous tsp instant espresso instead of unsweetened cocoa
3/4 cup beef broth to pan from powder bouillon & 3/4c water, well shaken prior to adding
Whisking off leftover bits from meat in pan.
Add couple splashes of Malt Vinegar (I use London Pub) this also tames saltiness if you find you've been too heavy handed with shallots.
Allow to simmer down (reduce) a bit
Remove sauce from heat
Add remaining butter (I used Kerry's)
Add 1 mini, per steak dark chocolate
(I used Hershey's fun size "special dark")
Add 3 milk duds because... why not have some actual caramel at this point 😋 Pour sauce on plate & over steak to serve in all its divine glory!
Watch people (or yourself) go nuts gobbling this down. As a confirmed loather of "ruining" chocolate with fruit or fruit with chocolate and ardently opposed to fruit on meat... lookin at you ham & pineapple rings 😝 I was extremely unsure if the "secret sauce" would land anywhere but the trash.
I was already delighted by the pan searing over my usual, broiling! Dunno how I missed that memo until I was today years old - 57y & 5days, but WOW it's so simple I looked like a pro just winging it 😅 That being said, fine I'll try making the sauce. If it sucks it need never touch the steak.
O.M.G. 😲 tres magnifique
Carnivores ambrosia, hands down!
Add a biscuit or potato (pre made as I had biscuits, or microwave a potato), salad (I still had some knockoff Olive Garden salad made a couple days earlier) minus César's penchant for blue cheese, lol & a few steamed asparagus spears (plate & plastic wrap about 40 seconds in the microwave) for a completed feast of a meal. Don't forget an excellent glass of Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot pending your tastes. For non alcohol, you'll never go wrong with a big glass of milk 😘
I had a blend of 4 types of cheesecake, flowers, asparagus and wine delivered with the meat. I let the meat sit out about an hour post delivery while I trimmed & vase arranged the flower stems, put the asparagus in a cup with water, opened the wine & sliced the shallots then wandered off for a bit. In under 15 minutes of actual cook time I had the fanciest meal I've served myself and declared myself the most thoughtful Valentine I've ever had 😁
Ultimately THIS is why I still love the internet. I never heard of Cesar Perez before 5am on Valentine’s Day just prior to sleeping a few hours, when I noticed an email for Valentine meal recipes. And thought, well why not take a look and REALLY treat myself special this year. Absolute WIN!
Dinner for 1 or 2
1-2 NY Strip or Wagyu
Fresh ground peppercorns & kosher, sea, or pink Himalayan salt by preference. Or iodized if you like
EVOO 1-2 TBSP Heated medium high
Sear steak about 3 minutes each side, insert meat thermometer, holding final side in pan until temp reaches 5° less than desired end temp
Pre sliced medium shallot, salted
Heat reduced to medium, shallots sweated & lightly caramelized
3/4 -1C beef broth
1TBSP butter
1TBSP Malt Vinegar
1-2tsp instant espresso
Let reduce a few minutes
Remove from heat
Add
1-2 squares dark chocolate
A few milk duds or an unwrapped caramel
Stir in 1-2 TBSP addtl butter
Drizzle sauce on plate, add steak & add more sauce on steak if desired.
You don't need to have fancy skills to do this. I raised my family on inexpensive hearty soups, stews & casseroles with bread & butter for filling. Desserts were on birthdays & holidays. This recipe is quite shockingly confidence boosting! Sort out your sides ahead of time to eliminate the lengthier time consuming aspects. You'll whip right through the steak part and applaud yourself while slapping the plate together! Enjoy your evening like a Queen, King or Pair, impressing your other half with an unexpected taste bud treasure! ❤️
Cesar's Steak au poivré modified with an OzarkLdy twist
Wagyu is worth every no longer minted penny if you want a super splurge! Otherwise original recipe calls for NY Strip.
Unpackage meat & pat dry with paper towels. Set on plate already prepped with plastic wrap. Grind a healthy load of peppercorns & a bit of fresh ground sea salt. Still works to just use a bunch of already ground pepper if you're short on corns. Just isn't quite as full bodied as the freshly ground. Place plastic wrap over it & gently massage (pat) it into meat.
Flip meat. Repeat heavily peppering & salt. Again placing plastic over it. My preference to not potentially pick up contaminates from raw meat since my immune system is suppressed.
Allow meat to sit for 15 min to 2 hours.
15m minimum stand salt & pepper was my route
EVOO in skillet on medium high (tremendous departure for me as I'd never considered cooking a steak outside of a grill or under oven broiler)
Sear wagyu about 3 minutes per side without sliding it around.
Insert meat thermometer when flipped to 2nd sear & 3 minutes. Continue & watch that temp like a hawk if you don't want to lose the finest phase!
Wagyu prime sweet spot is medium rare. Again, autoimmune dishes Russian Roulette if I play in that level. For my safety I always have steak cooked medium now. No more mooing allowed.
Meat will CONTINUE COOKING about 5 minutes & increase 5° once removed from fire & plated.
Pull from heat 5° lower than desired finish to stand at 125° - 130° to land on lower side of medium to high side of medium rare.
Leave thermometer in & slide pan off heat if you're concerned. Waiting on starting sauce. At about 5 min temp will begin to drop. If it's not as high as you want it, leave thermometer in, slide pan on burner a minute or so to reheat and place meat on opposite side to go longer. Repeat as before, pulling meat at 5° lower than desired finish.
Add 1Tbsp butter to pan
Toss thin sliced shallots with salt & allow them to sweat & saute on medium until lightly caramelized.
Add 1 generous tsp instant espresso instead of unsweetened cocoa
3/4 cup beef broth to pan from powder bouillon & 3/4c water, well shaken prior to adding
Whisking off leftover bits from meat in pan.
Add couple splashes of Malt Vinegar (I use London Pub) this also tames saltiness if you find you've been too heavy handed with shallots.
Allow to simmer down (reduce) a bit
Remove sauce from heat
Add remaining butter (I used Kerry's)
Add 1 mini, per steak dark chocolate
(I used Hershey's fun size "special dark")
Add 3 milk duds because... why not have some actual caramel at this point 😋 Pour sauce on plate & over steak to serve in all its divine glory!
Watch people (or yourself) go nuts gobbling this down. As a confirmed loather of "ruining" chocolate with fruit or fruit with chocolate and ardently opposed to fruit on meat... lookin at you ham & pineapple rings 😝 I was extremely unsure if the "secret sauce" would land anywhere but the trash.
I was already delighted by the pan searing over my usual, broiling! Dunno how I missed that memo until I was today years old - 57y & 5days, but WOW it's so simple I looked like a pro just winging it 😅 That being said, fine I'll try making the sauce. If it sucks it need never touch the steak.
O.M.G. 😲 tres magnifique
Carnivores ambrosia, hands down!
Add a biscuit or potato (pre made as I had biscuits, or microwave a potato), salad (I still had some knockoff Olive Garden salad made a couple days earlier) minus César's penchant for blue cheese, lol & a few steamed asparagus spears (plate & plastic wrap about 40 seconds in the microwave) for a completed feast of a meal. Don't forget an excellent glass of Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot pending your tastes. For non alcohol, you'll never go wrong with a big glass of milk 😘
I had a blend of 4 types of cheesecake, flowers, asparagus and wine delivered with the meat. I let the meat sit out about an hour post delivery while I trimmed & vase arranged the flower stems, put the asparagus in a cup with water, opened the wine & sliced the shallots then wandered off for a bit. In under 15 minutes of actual cook time I had the fanciest meal I've served myself and declared myself the most thoughtful Valentine I've ever had 😁
Ultimately THIS is why I still love the internet. I never heard of Cesar Perez before 5am on Valentine’s Day just prior to sleeping a few hours, when I noticed an email for Valentine meal recipes. And thought, well why not take a look and REALLY treat myself special this year. Absolute WIN!
Dinner for 1 or 2
1-2 NY Strip or Wagyu
Fresh ground peppercorns & kosher, sea, or pink Himalayan salt by preference. Or iodized if you like
EVOO 1-2 TBSP Heated medium high
Sear steak about 3 minutes each side, insert meat thermometer, holding final side in pan until temp reaches 5° less than desired end temp
Pre sliced medium shallot, salted
Heat reduced to medium, shallots sweated & lightly caramelized
3/4 -1C beef broth
1TBSP butter
1TBSP Malt Vinegar
1-2tsp instant espresso
Let reduce a few minutes
Remove from heat
Add
1-2 squares dark chocolate
A few milk duds or an unwrapped caramel
Stir in 1-2 TBSP addtl butter
Drizzle sauce on plate, add steak & add more sauce on steak if desired.
You don't need to have fancy skills to do this. I raised my family on inexpensive hearty soups, stews & casseroles with bread & butter for filling. Desserts were on birthdays & holidays. This recipe is quite shockingly confidence boosting! Sort out your sides ahead of time to eliminate the lengthier time consuming aspects. You'll whip right through the steak part and applaud yourself while slapping the plate together! Enjoy your evening like a Queen, King or Pair, impressing your other half with an unexpected taste bud treasure! ❤️
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