Reduction Sauces - Steak and Potatoes

I purchased two filet mignons so I had two nights of steak and potato dinners.  The first I served with asparagus, the second with zucchini.  And for the sauce, two reduction sauces with garlic and mushrooms and then a garnish of french fried onions. 

The first reduction sauce was a port reduction.  I used a tawny port and added about a cup to a skillet of sauteed garlic and mushrooms and cooked until it was reduced.  The second reduction sauce was balsamic and I did the same thing.  

The asparagus I cooked in a skillet with a little water, salt, and pepper.  The zucchini I seasoned and cooked with a little olive oil.  For the filets, I heated a skillet over medium-high heat, salted/peppered the meat, and seared the steak for about 2 minutes on each side. 

Dish up the potatoes, green veggies, steak, pour the reduction sauce over the potatoes/meat, and garnish with the onions.  Steakhouse dinner at home and you didn't even need a grill. 

Beef Stroganoff

 

Beef Stroganoff is a pretty easy fixin, because it's really nothing fancy.  The sauce is beef broth and sour cream, but Stroganoff plays the role of comfort food well and is a nice change-up if you're making pasta again but want to alter the sauce/toppings.

I found myself with two remaining thinly sliced steaks, so I cut them into strips.  I also chopped some garlic and shallot, and had I stocked my fridge properly, mushrooms would've also been invited.

Start by sauteing the garlic and shallots (and mushrooms) in a little bit of butter or olive oil.  Then add your steak strips and cook until browned on all sides.  

Next it's time to make the roux.  Move your ingredients to the side of the skillet so that the butter finds itself alone on the opposite side.  Add some flour.  Depending on how much butter/grease you have, add about a tbsp of flour and mix it with the grease until a roux forms (the firm combination of flour and oil that is mostly solid).  

Add your beef broth at this point (as much as you want sauce on your pasta...1 cup? 2 cups?) Don't worry, thanks to the flour the broth will reduce and thicken so you may need more than you initially add.  

Once you cook the broth down to the desired amount of sauciness, add your sour cream to taste.  About 1/4 cup - 3/4 cup should be plenty.  Mix and then add your final touches of fresh herbs.  I recommend dill.  I did not have dill so I went with tarragon.  It helps to have a little bite to combat the beefy/creamy taste of this dish.  

Pour your meat/veggies/sauce over freshly cooked pasta (egg noodles work well for this, but I just had regular fusili), garnish with herbs if you'd like, and serve!

Balsamic Marinated Steak with Pesto Mashed Potatoes

I bought these weird thinly sliced steak strips that called themselves sandwich strips.  I figured I'd marinate them, grill them, put them between some bread, and do the whole sandwich thing.  Well, my bread went bad, but I was hungry, so I figured I'd treat these steaks how I normally would a skirt or a flank steak.

I went for a balsamic-based marinade, so into the ziploc bag went the balsamic vinegar, salt/pepper, rosemary, garlic, and a touch of olive oil.  Into the fridge it went while I sliced some red onion and scallion (onion overkill? probably. but they were all i had in terms of complimentary produce).

I then made some mashed potatoes, because nothing goes better w/ steak than potatoes.  I mashed with cream cheese and pesto sauce, rather than milk and cheese, for a little variation.

Finally, it was time to cook the steak.  It took about three minutes since it was so thin, and I didn't want to overcook.  Heat the skillet over medium-high heat.  Add your steak, red onions, and the juices.  Cook the steak about 1-2 minutes per side.  Turn over, repeat.

Plate your mashed potatoes, lay your steak atop them, and drizzle with some of the red onions and reduced balsamic vinegar marinade.  Garnish with some fresh scallions if you're feeling like your breath won't be pungent enough already.

Cilantro Lime Soy Marinated Beef Strip Stir Fry over Couscous

I had some beef tips in the freezer that I bought for the sake of stir frying at some point.  Not feeling too inspired to do a typical teriyaki beef over white rice, I decided to change it up with some couscous and a marinade with a bit of a bite.  The couscous cooks in five minutes according to package directions, and the stir fry is very quick as well.  Here's what I used.

Marinade - Soy Sauce, Sesame Oil, Lime Juice, Fresh Cilantro
Veggies - Zucchini, Mushrooms, Onions, Garlic

The glamorous start to this meal is the act of marinating the meat in a plastic bag.  I used about 3 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro. 

While that sits we prepare the veggies.  I heated some olive oil and added the garlic and onions.  Now tell me, would this be a legit stir fry without a wok?  I think not.  

Rather than throwing all the veggies in at once, start with the ones that take the longest to cook/soften and work your way forward.  That means the zucchini was next up.  

Followed by mushrooms. 

And last, but not least, your meat. 

As it cooked I added more cilantro, soy sauce, and lime juice because I'm a huge sauce fan and I wanted some extra to pour over the couscous.  Notice I didn't add more sesame oil because it has a strong flavor and only a little was enough to achieve the effect I was going for.  Cook until your meat reaches your desired doneness, plate your couscous with stir fry on top, and drizzle the extra sauce over.  This was a good marinade and brought a little fusion cooking into my stir fry.

Filet Mignon with Bearnaise Sauce, Mashed Potatoes, and Bacon

This meal is not for the faint-of-gut vegetarian watching his cholesterol.  I'm almost embarrassed putting this online, but it was such a deliciously decadent dinner, and people pay a lot of money to clog their arteries at steakhouses, so here's how you can inch your way to heart disease from your own kitchen!

A good steak relies first on its cut, then on its preparation.  You can't go wrong with a filet (cut from the tenderloin of the cow), the most tender portion of meat on the cow.

Woo hoo! Meat Anatomy Lesson!

The tenderloin is typically the most expensive cut of meat from your butcher.  If you're making this for a special occasion, splurge.  Go to the butcher counter rather than the pre-packaged section.  But if you're like me and wanted to treat yourself one night because you walked 1.2 miles (it doesn't matter that you walked to the shopping mall, it still counts!), then look for the discounted meats sold at the end of the week that are close to "expiring" and marked down.  Throw it in the freezer, and you've got nothing to worry about. 

Step 1: Thaw the meat.  Since this is such a good cut of steak, don't defrost in the microwave and risk cooking it a little.  Defrost on the counter all day, or in the fridge overnight.  Trim away excess fat.

Step 2: Season.  Since this steak was served with a strong sauce, a little salt and pepper on each side was all I used.

Step 3: Cook.  I do not have the luxury of a grill, so I utilize pan-searing to cook my meats.  Get the pan nice and hot, a good medium-high setting on the stove will do.  You can lightly coat your pan with oil or butter to avoid sticking.  Throw on your steak.  Cook about 2-3 minutes per side to get a nice seared exterior.  At this point I transfer to the oven to heat through to my desired doneness (rare).  It's up to you whether you stay on the stove or move to the oven, or use a grill.  Just don't overcook your steak!

Step 4: Prepare your sides/sauces.  People often serve bacon wrapped tenderloins.  Rather than wrap mine with bacon, I cooked the bacon and served it on the side.  I made mashed potatoes ahead of time, but make the Bearnaise sauce right before serving.  I make the sauce from a packet.  It's delicious.  You need butter and milk.

Step 5: Plate, add your desired amount of sauce, eat, enjoy the resulting food coma.

Skewers and Quinoa

My food discovery of the summer has been quinoa (keen-wah).  I decided to finally brave the world of cooking it for myself and have pretty much used it as a rice replacement.  I realize I prefer the red variety to the white variety, but accidentally purchased a box of white and last night finally finished it.

For last night's dinner, Safeway had a sale on marinated skewers so i figured, why not.  In my humble San Francisco apartment I do not own a barbecue.  I have a grill pan for the stove that works wonders, but is a huge hassle to clean.  So instead I opted for an initial pan-sear followed by 15-20 minutes in a 425 degree oven to achieve the perfect medium rare.  Using the leftover marinade, I sauteed some mushrooms, garlic, and scallions and threw in some cilantro for a kick.  Once the quinoa had been cooked according to the package directions, I tossed in my mushroom marinade saute to give flavor to my new favorite chenopod.  Fun fact: quinoa is not actually considered a grain because it does not actually come from the grass family.  And there you have it, a gussied up store-assembled meal.