It took a Steak Diane to re-engage me. Loving what this dish represents: grand old dining devoid of pretension, tired hotel restaurants serviced by life-long devoted staff, in this case more likely an elderly gentleman in bow tie and apron cooking table-side in absolute control of cognac-induced flames, drizzling spoonfuls of sauce in repeated fashion, little by little over delicate little cuts of caramelizing filets.
beef filets
sliced brown button mushrooms
1 red onion
2-3 shallots
2 cloves of garlic, mashed to a paste with salt
fresh tarragon, thyme, parsley, chives
maldon sea salt, ground black pepper
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup Madeira
Cognac
1 TBS sour cream
1 TBS dijon mustard
butter
1/3 cup home-made fond de veau or 1/2 cup chicken stock
- flatten out steaks between parchment paper, to about a half to 2/3 of an inch thick
- saute onions, followed by shallots and then mushrooms once the latter have caramelized somewhat
- add salt to draw moisture out of mushrooms, add some (not too much) chopped tarragon and 1-2 sprigs of fresh thyme
- when mushrooms have let off their water, add Worcestershire sauce, followed by Madeira and cognac; light the latter and let burn off before reducing sauce gently; add fond de veau or chicken stock, season with salt and pepper to taste
- caramelize the filets on high heat in a separate pan until desired done-ness, let rest 10 minutes while sauce is reducing
- right before adding the steaks to the pan with sauce, stir in a little mustard and sour cream until well incorporated, followed by some butter
- let steaks warm through for no more than a minute to avoid further cooking
- add a tiny drizzle of cognac and stir through to give a little contrasting bite to the fat
- serve up on a warm heated platter with chopped chives and parsley on top
