Steak sauce

This is my adaptation of Mr. M. P. White’s steak sauce recipe.  He is an exceptional British chef and a rare breed of someone who has gained multiple Michelin stars, but continues to produce unpretentious fare.  He generally stays away from the limelight, with only a few TV appearances.  His autobiography White Heat is on a par with Mr. Bourdain’s autobiography, and is absolutely must.  

1. Sauté 200 grams of sliced brown mushrooms.  Add a good pinch of salt to ensure you cook off all the liquid from the mushrooms before adding a small amount of butter, and frying the mushrooms with half a teaspoon of rosemary.  Savour and appreciate the aromas, and the mushrooms develop a very slight crisp. 

2. Put the cooked mushrooms aside and in the same pan melt a knob of butter, allowing it to brown before adding 1 medium, thinly sliced, white onion. Allow this to become almost translucent before adding a finely chopped shallot and a generous teaspoon of minced garlic.  

3. Push the onions and garlic to one side of the pan and deglaze it with at least 300ml of Worcestershire sauce.  Bring this up the boil and allow it to reduce by half.  

4. Slowly add 300ml of heavy cream, which has been left to sit at room temperature.  This will reduce the risk of the cream splitting.  Stir in all the cream until it has emulsified with the Worcestershire sauce and butter.  Bring this up to a gentle simmer.

5. After a couple of minutes, add the mushrooms back in along with at least half a teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.  If using white pepper, reduce this as white pepper has a stronger taste than black.

6. Mix in the pepper and allow it to infuse in the sauce.  You can serve the sauce at this point, or reheat it for later.  It will also keep in the fridge and can be easily reheated on the stove.

This is a simple recipe using common ingredients.  It has a good kick from both the Worcestershire sauce and the pepper.  Recipes are guidelines not dogmas.  Tweak the recipe and find the balance, and intensity, of flavours that you like.  I always put on some relaxing music, open a bottle of cab and enjoy the experience of cooking.  As the rosemary (which is a wonderful compliment to steak) cooks with the sautéed mushrooms, it gives off a heavenly aroma. That is part of the joy of cooking.

I always serve this sauce with steak, cooked rare, with a side of gratin dauphinois.  Paired with a good quality cabernet sauvignon, makes for a delicious, albeit decadent, meal. 

Enjoy.