Peppercorn Steak with Creamy Brandy Sauce

I was pretty impressed with this caramelised 200-days grain-fed Black Angus Ribeye steak with white peppercorn and brandy sauce when I first had it at Chef Patrick Heuberger's new F&B venture at Casse-Croûte.

The thick 600-gram cut was perfectly seared by Chef Patrick with lots of butter without burning the peppercorn and finished it off with brandy and thick cream. I picked up some tips from Patrick and decided to make this at home.

It is important that you get a good thick steak (about 1.5" thick) for this recipe. You want a good contrast between the exterior and interior of the steak. If the steak is too thin, it would be difficult to achieve that contrast and most of the time, you end up overcooking them throughout before the nice external crust is formed, even on very high heat.

It is also important that you use a good cast iron skillet, like my Le Creuset, to sear the steak. Cast-iron holds the heat very well and cooks uniformly. It allows the steak to release easily but leaves just enough browned bits on the surface of the skillet to flavor a sauce made in the pan. In this recipe, simply deglaze the hot cast-iron skillet with Brandy followed by heavy cream. The amazing creamy brandy sauce absolutely does it for me.

Get your Le Creuset and let's get started.

Ingredients

• 600g 200-days grain-fed Black Angus Ribeye, or any of your favourite cut (1.5" thick)
• A tray of white peppercorn (coarsely ground with a pestle and mortar, sieve and remove the powder)
• 60g Unsalted butter
• Kosher salt
• One shot Brandy
• 100ml Heavy cream

Method

Make sure the steak is at room temperature.

Sprinkle salt generously on both sides of the steak. Press one side of the steak against the bed of coarse white peppercorn, making sure the peppercorn stick to the entire steak evenly.

Pre-heat up oven to 200°C.

Heat up cast-iron skillet over high heat. Melt butter. Carefully add the steak, peppercorn side down. Do not move the steak around when cooking. You want the peppercorn to stick to the steak as it cooks.

To baste, tilt pan slightly so that butter collects by handle. Use a spoon to pick up butter and pour it over steak, aiming at light spots. Keep basting to prevent the butter from getting too hot that it smokes.

Before the peppercorn brown, about 4-5 minutes, flip the steak. Place the skillet with the steak into the oven to continue cooking until the desired doneness. (Insert a meat thermometer into thickest part of the steak - 52 to 55°C for rare, 55 to 60°C for medium-rare, 60 to 65°C for medium, 65 to 69°C for medium-well)

Transfer steak to a large heat-proof plate. Let rest 5 to 10 minutes.

Pour away excess melted butter form the skillet and place it over medium fire. Deglaze with Brandy. Add heavy cream and bring to slight boil.

Cut steak into cube size and serve it on the creamy brandy sauce.