Keeping my Steak Warm While Making Sauce

by Phil
(Los Angeles, CA)

I've been making steaks for a while using my heavy cast iron skillet. I coat the steak in crushed peppercorns and sear at a high temp for about 4-5 minutes each side. It comes out wonderfully, but here's the problem...

I want to make a dipping sauce using the fond from the pan. The recipe I read called for a deglazer (i use brandy or cognac,) and then beef broth and heavy cream...

The problem I run into is that it never thickens in time for the steak to still be warm and still be medium rare. (I remove the steak from the pan after searing..) What am I doing wrong? Should I use a cold roux with butter and flour?


Chef Todd Says:
Man, I LOVE Steak au Poivre! Yours sounds great. The quick answer to your question is to use less beef broth or cream. You're trying to thicken a sauce by reduction, and evaporation is a slow process. Use less liquid, there's less to evaporate.

Otherwise, you're on the right track. A cold raw roux (Beurre Manie), or flavored white sauce would thicken your deglazed pan sauce. Also, anything thicker than the pan sauce will thicken it. Try mayonnaise, whole grain mustards, sour cream, even yogurt.

Every steak should rest at least 5 minutes after cooking to let juices re-distribute. This should give you plenty of time to make a flavorful sauce from pan fond, horseradish, worchesteshire sauce, whole grain mustard and sour cream. Steak heaven.

Take good care of that cast iron pan, there's magical flavor in there.

Thanks for the question and for making me crave steak.

Chef Todd