Stuff to Put on Steak at Home

[GTO]

I'd go along the cheese route too. Some good quailty Feta on a steak is great, it melts ever so slightly and drinks up some meaty juices.

[The Old Foodie]

This is my famous-within-the-family “Steak Sprinkle” (sorry - my son’s name for it, when he was very young, and as you know, those family nick-names never die)

¾ cup sea salt flakes

¾ cup black peppercorns

2 teaspoons paprika

2 teaspoons dried thyme

2 teaspoons mild curry powder

1 teaspoon ground oregano.

Grind it all up and keep in a jar. Increase or decrease the salt as you wish.

An odd mix, I know, but somehow it works. Dust as much or as little as you like on your steak, then cook.

It is also great on big field mushrooms.

[qrn]

I will vote along with fat guy and several others, A touch of salt and a touch of fresh ground pepper before it hits the hot grill, Then salt to taste...Hate to ruin a good steak with "all that stuff"..<G>

Bud

[patti]

Pan drippings (from steak cooked in butter), balsamic and shallots. Reduce, finish with more butter. Mmm, rare steak with crusty exterior, and sauce. Good.

[christine007]

Butter, blue cheese and raw onion.

[Pam R]

Yo, Chris. What did you do with the steaks?

I keep it simple. Kosher salt, black pepper. I won't turn down some mushrooms sauteed with garlic.

[Chris Amirault]

Yo, Chris.  What did you do with the steaks?

←

S&P and Worcestershire. Hit the spot.

[Chris Amirault]

Using the chimichurri sauce tonight with a flat iron chuck steak & thought of this topic. Any new ideas under the sun (or, if in the northeast, clouds)?

[Chris Hennes]

Over on Twitter annecros suggested bitters... haven't tried it myself, though.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Sometimes just salt and pepper.

Often I'll make mushrooms and caramelized onions or shallots, deglazed with armagnac or red wine or sherry. I make onion confit and keep it on hand for such occasions--about 4-5 lbs of onions cooked down in chicken fat. Chicken fat is the best for onions.

If I want something with a fresher taste, particularly if tomatoes are in season, I'll make a relish of chopped fresh tomatoes, maybe some sweet raw onion, oil cured olives, maybe a hot pepper of some sort, olive oil and good sherry vinegar, sometimes rosemary or oregano, salt and pepper. This is also good with grilled fish steaks like swordfish or halibut.

[Chris Amirault]

I forgot to mention that, when I grill steak, I nearly always also grill some onions and toss them in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, S&P, whatever suits.

[Heartsurgeon]

"I believe that if ever I had to practice cannibalism, I might manage if there were enough tarragon around" - James Beard

Bearnaise sauce of course!

I grow only three herbs in my garden, and tarragon is one.

the other option (which can be combined with the option listed above) is a rub.

while I will be mocked and ignored by many, the few who actually try this rub will be rewarded.

It is incredible on beef, lamb, chicken and salmon.

Mix Emeril's original seasoning, with Spice Islands Jamaican Jerk seasoning

in a 1:1 ratio. Apply liberally onto the meat and pat. Salt and pepper to taste.

Sear in pan, finish in oven.

You'll never stop using it once you start....

[slkinsey]

Anchovy butter.

[Doodad]

Traditional red wine pan sauce with the addition of mushrooms.

[prasantrin]

Nuoc cham. It's my family's default beef accompaniment (prime rib, steak, etc. etc.).

[Omnivor]

Usually only salt and pepper touches a good steak, but every once in a while a nice soft herb butter can be wonderfully delicious as well.

I simply mix finely diced garlic, chopped fresh rosmary, thyme and oregano with a good butter, season with salt and pepper and adjust the "freshness" with a squirt of lime.

I think now I know what I gonna have tonight

[Octaveman]

Yeah, it's rare (no pun) that I put anything on top of my steak. If I do it's sauteed shrooms. Nine times out of ten it's salt/pepper and oregano then grilled.

[Tony Boulton]

If I cannot be bothered to make a sauce, whole grain Dijon mustard goes with my steak.

[OliverB]

salt and pepper

s&p& good olive oil

s&p and good (maybe herbed) butter

caramelized onions and/or mushrooms

EVOO and butter

Never use sauces after cooking, but might give a quick rub/marinade with Worcester sauce. I just don't want to change or overpower the beef flavor. I've actually found some really good and well marbled steak even at Safeway, though you somewhat need to know what to look for.

The heavier stuff like bbq sauces, blue cheese etc, those things I normally only use on burgers and heavily at that :-)

I don't make burgers very often, but we have steak at least once a week, especially during the warm part of the year. Which is pretty long here in NorCal :-)

[Eatmywords]

This past wknd I did a dry rub of cumin, paprika, chili power and s&p on a 3lb flank, for about an hour. On the grill I basted with a mix of generic hickory bbq sc, tamari, worcestershire, sweet/spicy Korean chili sc, sriracha, fresh thyme and sesame seeds. It sounds like a mess but it came out great. Didn't overpower the meat and had a nice kick too.

Edited June 29, 2009 by Eatmywords (log)

[JAZ]

Often I'll make mushrooms and caramelized onions or shallots, deglazed with armagnac or red wine or sherry.

←

I started caramelizing some onions for a steak tonight, but they weren't quite done when I was ready to eat. To add some depth, I deglazed the pan with sherry and sherry vinegar, then added a cube of reduced beef stock and a bit of butter. I usually don't like a sauce on my steak, but this was excellent.

[nickrey]

Pan juices, deglazed with brandy, add soft green canned peppercorns, cream. Reduce significantly. Adjust seasoning and spoon over now-rested steak.

Another alternative is to use liquids left over from other dinners (eg. slow cooked lamb shanks made with mirepoix of celery, carrot, and onion) and reduce them over high heat to a thick sauce consistency. Sometimes I add butter-fried sliced mushrooms and shallots to this with some sherry vinegar for an acid finish.

As for many others in this thread, I use the sauce as a thin coating rather than drowning the steak.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Another alternative is to use liquids left over from other dinners (eg. slow cooked lamb shanks made with mirepoix of celery, carrot, and onion) and reduce them over high heat to a thick sauce consistency.

←

I've been developing a collection of such sauces in four-ounce plastic containers in the freezer. They're very handy for turning out a seemingly complicated dinner quickly.

[Chris Amirault]

Bumping this up because I have become addicted to a simple trio: Hawaiian pink salt, smoked Tellicherry peppercorns, and Aleppo pepper, all roughly ground in a mortar.

What else are people using these days?

[paulraphael]

For good steaks I don't like anything that could be considered a condiment ... sauces with strong, contrasting flavors. I like options that enhance or harmonize with the flavor of the meat without overshadowing it. Options include

-salt & pepper

-compound butters (particularly beurre maitre d'hotel)

-veal stock and wine-based pan sauces, particularly ones that include mushrooms and / or shallots.

I serve all sauces on the plate separate from the meat, so you can choose bite by bite how much, if any, you want.