How to cook a great steak...

This one is Hubby's dish. It is a manly event in the kitchen and I won't deny it ;) He combined two great recipes into one, even better. He prepares the meat as per John Torode's advise and fries it as per Raymond Blanc's instructions. We don't eat it very often - for one this cut of meat isn't the cheapest one and what's more, we treat it as a special treat (besides it's not something that our 2 year old would enjoy... and we try to cook for whole family, so she can eat with us).
When buying your steak you should look for a well hung and matured meat. One of the biggest advantages of living in Ireland is an easy access to great quality beef!
P.S. This dish isn't for faint hearted... and it's a one that's a short way to the heart attack... or high cholesterol at least ;)



How to make it...


Ingredients:
- 0,5 kg sirloin steak, about 2 cm thick
- salt & coarse ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons oil of olives
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 70 ml water


Cooking times for stake:
To test if it's done, press the meat gently with your forefinger.
- For rare it should be soft and your finger will almost leave an imprint, 1 1/2 - 2 minutes on each side
- For medium rare it will feel far more resistant and your finger will not leave an imprint, 3 minues on each side,
- For medium it will feel quite firm as the fibers will be cooked, 4 minutes oon each side (I wouldn't eat anything further than that as it will be hard and chewy like a shoe sole...).


Using a kitchen towel dry the meat. Massage 1 tablespoon of oil into the steak and leave for 5 minutes. Take a frying pan (it should be the size of your steak) and heat the rest of your oil and butter till it starts to foam, but be careful not to burn it or it will be bitter. In the mean time season your steak with salt and pepper rubbing the seasoning into the the meat.




Put your steak on the hot pan just when your butter is foaming. Lay the steak in the foaming butter and cook for 3 minutes on one side and about 4 on the other for medium.
When frying make sure your pan is on a medium heat, the oil should sizzle. Any signs of batter burning etc. you have to act fast or it will be ruined - you won't have any sauce and the meat will be bitter.



Making the sauce (as per Raymond Blanc's recipe):
Transfer the steak to a warm plate. When your oil and butter start to sizzle on the pan immediately add hot water. There will be a lot of sizzling but all the liquid will create an emulsion - your sauce. Be careful to mix it constantly! Make sure to scrape the pan with a wooden spoon to catch all that caramelized residue, which will give nice colour and taste to your sauce.


Smacznego!


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