Steak Frites au Poivre
Chapter 2 — The Mains
Twelve hours. That twelve-hour fridge rest is the minimum before your beef sees a cast-iron skillet, delivering the quality you expect sitting at a zinc bar with a glass of robust Rhône red. Places like Balthazar and Pastis build this flavor step by step, soaking the potatoes overnight to rid themselves of starch and sourcing 83% fat cultured butter. You aggressively press cracked black peppercorns into your beef, and you do not flinch when setting the pan on fire. Hit the hot pan with a splash of cognac, scrape up the fond, and get the potatoes out of the fryer for a plate that tastes exactly like Spring Street on a Friday night.
Before you start
Purge the potatoes overnight.
Submerge the cut potato batons completely in cold tap water and refrigerate for a minimum of 12 hours, ideally 24. This prolonged soak leaches the surface amylose starches that cause burning and ensures a shatteringly crisp crust.
Crush the mignonnette.
Place the whole black peppercorns in a heavy zip-top bag and crush them coarsely with the bottom of a heavy skillet. You are looking for shattered fragments, not a fine dust, which would simply burn in the pan.
Ingredients
- Idaho Russet potatoes2 lb
- peanut oil3 qt
- fine sea salt1 tbsp
- USDA Prime New York Strip steaks2 large
- whole black peppercorns2 tbsp
- kosher salt1 tbsp
- neutral high-heat oil1 tbsp
- cultured French butter1 tbsp
- large shallot1 large
- Cognac1/3 cup
- veal stock or demi-glace1/2 cup
- heavy cream1/3 cup
- cultured French butter2 tbsp
- brined green peppercorns1 tsp
Method
- 01
Dry the soaked potatoes completely.
Drain the batons and pat them exceptionally dry with clean kitchen towels. Any residual water will cause the hot oil to violently boil over.
- 02
Blanch the fries at 325°F.
Heat the peanut oil in a heavy Dutch oven to exactly 325°F. Fry the potatoes in small batches for 3 to 5 minutes until limp and pale, with absolutely no browning. Transfer to a wire rack and let sit at room temperature for at least an hour to retrograde and lock in structure.
- 03
Encrust the beef with the poivre mignonnette.
Remove the steaks from the refrigerator 45 minutes before cooking and pat them completely dry. Season generously with kosher salt, then firmly press the crushed peppercorns into both sides using the heel of your hand.
- 04
Sear the steaks to a French à point.
Heat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet until lightly smoking. Add the neutral oil and the 1 tablespoon of butter, then immediately lay in the steaks. Flip every minute to promote even cooking without scorching the pepper. Cook until an instant-read thermometer registers 130°F, then transfer to a warm plate to rest.
- 05
Execute the final crisp on the fries.
While the steak rests, raise the peanut oil to 375°F. Drop the blanched fries back in, in batches, frying for 2 to 3 minutes until deeply golden and structurally crisp. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined bowl and immediately aggressively toss with fine sea salt.
- 06
Sweat the aromatics and flambé.
Drain all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the skillet. Sweat the shallots for one minute, scraping up the beef fond. Pull the pan entirely off the open flame, pour in the Cognac, return to the heat, and carefully ignite. Let the blue flame burn out naturally.
- 07
Reduce the stock and emulsify the sauce.
Add the demi-glace and green peppercorns, simmering rapidly until reduced by half and syrupy. Drop the heat to low, whisk in the heavy cream, and simmer until it coats the back of a spoon. Turn off the heat entirely and vigorously swirl in the cold cubed butter until the sauce takes on a rich, glossy sheen.
- 08
Plate the institution.
Serve the rested steak on warmed plates smothered generously in the pan sauce, alongside a massive, unapologetic mound of the hot fries.
Notes
Do not skip the demi-glace.
Most supermarket beef broths are little more than yeast extract and water. If you cannot source authentic veal demi-glace from a specialty butcher, buy a high-quality bone broth and reduce it on the stove with unflavored gelatin to mimic the necessary mouthfeel.
Respect the flambé.
Igniting the Cognac rapidly burns off the harsh ethanol while concentrating the complex flavor compounds of the brandy. If you are entirely terrified of open flames in your kitchen, you must boil the Cognac down to a dry syrup before adding the stock, though you will sacrifice a subtle layer of smokiness.