onglet aux echalotes (skirt steak with shallot sauce)

November 21, 2010

Onglet aux échalotes (Skirt steak with shallot sauce), The Secrets of French Home cooking by Marie-Pierre Moine, pg 122

1 to 1 ½ oz butter
2 top-quality skirt steaks
4 shallots, finely chopped
2 tsp oil
1 scant tsp chopped parsley
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

To prepare the steaks: chill half the butter and divide the rest into 4 pieces. Over a low heat, melt a piece of the butter in a frying pan. Tilt the pan to coat. Take off the heat. Put the steaks in the pan and press gently to coat with butter, turn to coat the other side. Transfer the steak to a plate season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Put the minced shallots in a small sauce pan and cover generously with water. Bring to a simmer. Cook over a moderate heat until the water is absorbed and the shallots are soft. Reduce the heat to very low.

Meanwhile, cook the steaks: heat the frying pan to very hot over a high heat. Add the oil and add the 3 pieces of butter. Add the steaks to the hot pan and reduce the heat a little. Cook until done with your liking, turn halfway through cooking.

Cut the chilled butter into dice. Turn the heat up under the softened shallots and whisk half the butter dice into this, then tip the buttery mixture over the steaks. Leave in the pan for a few seconds, then transfer to plates.

Whisk the rest of the butter into the pan, stir in the parsley and dribble this over the steaks. Scrape the pan well in order to get all the sauce.

How I did it: I was drunken-cooking with this. I did the shallots according to directions, then I fried the steak in the butter. I didn’t add the extra butter and parsley.

This was very good. It has a lot of possibilities, maybe make the steak au poivre, maybe add some brandy and a bit of brown sugar to the sauce. Who knows?