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City Life - 6th March - Recipie - Fillet steak with homemade bearnaise sauce
Mon 16th Mar 09 - 14:37
Fillet steak with homemade béarnaise sauce
By John Branagan
BÉARNAISE sauce has a reputation for being difficult to make.
A true classic, it has been around since the 1830s, allegedly named after the province of Bearn, the birthplace of Royal Gourmet, King Henry IV.
Like hollandaise, it is an emulsion of butter in egg yolks. The difference between the two lies in the flavouring: Béarnaise uses tarragon while Hollandaise is flavoured with lemon juice.
This sauce is a great accompaniment to fish and vegetables but is probably at its most irresistible when served with steak and chips.
Much of the beef on sale in supermarkets is aged for a maximum of seven days, whereas your local butcher should have steak available that has been aged for 21 days.
We are very fussy about our meat at The Grill; Blackhouse cattle are grass fed animals sourced responsibly from farms using traditional and sustainable husbandry methods. Our beef is aged for 24 days, allowing it to fully mature, thereby ensuring its tenderness and flavour.
Emulsion
The dangers to look out for when making the Béarnaise are: adding the butter too quickly, causing the emulsion to separate; curdling the egg yolks by using too much heat; or adding too much tarragon which would overpower the sauce.
A good tip, before adding the butter, is to check the thickness of the mixture by dragging a spoon through the mix, if the consistency is correct it should hold its own form.
I'm often asked why some herbs should be torn, as in this recipe, instead of being chopped. Tender herbs such as tarragon and basil bruise easily, leading to discolouration, so to minimise this tear them by hand or, if appropriate for the dish, add them whole.
Ingredients (serves two as a main course)
4 egg yolks
30mls white wine
500g unsalted butter
60mls white wine vinegar
Salt
Pepper
40 Tarragon leaves approx. Torn
2 x 225g Fillet steaks
10mls Olive oil
Watercress
Method
Place the egg yolks, white wine and vinegar into a medium size metal mixing bowl.
Gently melt the butter in a pan until it separates and keep warm.
Bring a large pan, half filled with water, to the boil.
Place the medium bowl with its contents over the hot water pan and whisk the egg mixture vigorously until it doubles in volume.
Place the mixing bowl on a cloth and dribble the melted butter into the egg mix while whisking constantly.
Check the seasoning and add the torn tarragon leaves and keep warm.
Lightly oil the steaks and season well.
Place on a hot grill pan and cook the steaks to your liking turning during the process to mark the steaks with a criss-cross pattern.
Allow to rest, serve on a hot plate garnished with a sprig of cress accompanied by a ramekin of the Béarnaise sauce.
