Herb Rubbed Beef Ribeye Steak with Red Pepper Sauce
This is three recipes!
Serves 2-4.
Time requirement. Ideally, apply the herb rub 1 hour before you start cooking. Cooking and preparation time is 10-12 minutes.
What you will need:
2 boneless ribeye steaks about a pound each and 1½ inch thick.
2 tablespoons olive oil.
1 garlic clove peeled.
Steak rub mixture. Recipe follows.
2 tablespoons Madeira.
1 cup of red pepper sauce. Recipe follows.
Warm serving plates.
Preparation:
Dry the steaks with paper towels. Set the steaks on a plate and generously cover with the steak rub mixture on both sides. Set the steaks on a rack to rest for 30-60 minutes. This rest will allow the meat to reduce the chill from the refrigerator and for the salt to do its magic. When you are ready to cook….
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place the olive oil in a 12-inch nonstick fry pan along with the clove of garlic. Gently heat the oil and cook the garlic until the garlic is golden on all sides (don’t let it burn). When the garlic is golden remove it and discard it. (I’d eat it!). Turn the heat to high. Add the steaks to the pan and sauté them for two minutes on each side. Remove them from the pan and place them on a plate in the oven. *
Pour the fat out of the frypan. Add ½ teaspoon of steak rub to the pan and move it around with a wooden spoon. Then add the Madeira and deglaze the pan; swirl it about in the pan for 30 seconds with a wooden spoon. Finally, add the cup of red pepper sauce. Reduce the heat to a medium and cook the sauce to reduce it until it is thick*.
Remove the steaks from the oven and serve them on warm plates with the sauce spoon around them.
*This recipe is for very rare steaks. If you like your steaks more toward medium rare or rare, take them of the oven and continue to cook them in the red pepper sauce as it reduces.
French Rub For Meat, Fish, and Poultry
What you will need:
½ teaspoon dried oregano.
½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves.
½ teaspoon paprika (not smoky Spanish paprika).
1 teaspoon brown sugar.
¼ teaspoon ground piment d’espelette (or substitute ground cayenne chili).
1 tablespoon fleur de sel or other coarse sea salt.
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper.
Preparation:
Place all the ingredients in a mortar and grind with the pestle for 4-5 minutes. Or, combine all the ingredients in a small electric coffee grinder and grind for 10-15 seconds. You do not want it over processed to a powder.
Apply the rub to beef steaks, poultry, or fish 30 to 60 minutes prior to cooking.
Sweet Red Pepper Sauce for Pasta (or for this steak recipe)
Serves: makes about 1 quart.
Time requirement an hour and ten minutes start to finish. It is very easy and does not require your full attention the entire time. I recommend that you make the sauce 4-5 hours in advance of using it. In that time, the flavor of the (minimal amount) of rosemary and garlic used in the recipe will come forward and peek out from behind the other ingredients.
What you will need:
1 large red onion, about 12 ounces, sliced.
2 red bell peppers roasted, peeled, and sliced. (Or use a 12-ounce jar of roasted red pepper, drained, rinsed, and sliced.)
1 garlic clove peeled and sliced.
2 to 2½ cups chicken stock.
One small sprig of rosemary, just 2-3 inches long.
Preparation:
Place the onions, peppers, and garlic in 3-4-quart sauce pan. Add chicken stock to just cover these ingredients. Bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer 30 minutes. Turn off heat, add the rosemary. Cover and steep 30 minutes. After 30 minutes remove the rosemary. Puree the mix in a blender, food processor, or use a hand-held emulsion blender. The final consistency should be that of a tomato sauce. If it is thinner than that, reduce the sauce in a pan over low heat. Once you have the correct consistency adjust for salt and pepper.
Variation: replace the rosemary with the herb of your choice: fresh oregano, basil, or thyme. Or ground fennel seed.
