I Don't Know If There's a Better Combo Than Steak and This Sauce

I don't know if there's a better combination than steak and a red wine pan sauce. When you bring those together and do it right, it's undefeated. I'm gonna use a few simple chef techniques for a beautiful brown crust, a steak that's seasoned all the way through, and a sauce so good you'll wanna drink it. We may even put together a couple sides, and I'm doing it all in partnership with my friends over at HexGlad. But first, let's talk steak. Sound good? Let's cook. I've got four, roughly 14 ounces each New York strip steaks. It's probably my favorite cut. To me, it has the perfect combo of leanness to inter and intramuscular fat. Plus, for a sauce as rich as we're gonna make, this cut just makes the most sense. But for sure, you could absolutely sub out with ribeye or even a filet, if you wanna pay that much. I'm gonna pat the steaks down on all sides with paper towels. Remember, moisture is always the enemy of a good sear. Next, add them to a rack over a sheet tray with, you guessed it, parchment paper. It just keeps things clean. And at this point, I'm gonna generously season both sides with salt. Figure about 1 1⁄4 to 1 1⁄2 teaspoons per pound. And I'm using Diamond Crystal Kosher just as an FYI. When I'm done seasoning, I usually set the rack to the side and mop up all the salt that didn't make it on the steak with the sides. Little techniques like this always make meals worth remembering. From here, you can cook them right away, but instead, we're going in the fridge uncovered for four hours and up to 24 hours. During this dry brining process, the moisture will collect to the surface, then go back in, ensuring every bite is seasoned. Then the outside surface will create a pellicle so we can get that perfect maillard crust. And if you've ever wondered why your favorite restaurant's food tastes so good, it's not because they have different access to stuff that you don't have. It's because they take a little bit more time and pay a little bit more attention to what they're doing. And I'm telling you, if you do those same little things, your food will go from good to great. Okay, when it comes time to cook, let's take out the steak and you'll immediately see this shiny, sticky-looking film on the steak. That's the pellicle. It's a good thing. And we're gonna slowly bring these up to temperature in the oven, so you're gonna need a good thermometer. When you've got it, let's get it in the oven. But first, let me tell you about the pan we're gonna be searing these in. Hexclad has kind of kicked the door in in the cooking room and for good reason. Gordon Ramsay and Michelin-starred chefs swear by them. They're featured on Next Level Chef, which I was actually casted on at one point, and even my buddy Chuck, who's a great cook, has been singing their praises for years. So I finally gave them a try, and you know what? They're right. These things are awesome. I'm using Hexclad's 12-piece hybrid cookware, which combines the searing power of stainless steel, the durability and even heating of cast iron, and ceramic nonstick that's PFAS and PTFE-free. You know, I like knowing exactly what I'm cooking with and on. I can sear, braise, saute, make sauces, soups, you name it. They're scratch-resistant, oven-safe to 900 degrees, if you even have an oven that gets that hot, and they have stay-cool handles, plus dishwasher-safe, which after cooking all day is huge. Trust me, I cook all day, every day, and these pans get banged around in my kitchen. Take a beating, and they haven't skipped a beat. They're backed by a lifetime warranty against manufactured defects, with more than two million home cooks and 55,000 five-star reviews. So yeah, they've definitely got my approval. Scan the QR code on the screen or head to the link in the description to get an additional 10% off. Auto-apply to your order. Okay, back to the strip steaks. Now, since I'm gonna slice against the grain and on the bias, I don't wanna add the thermometer in from the front. We'll have a funny-looking wormhole through every slice. Not a good look. Instead, add it in through the side, so we can slice around it. You've got this, my friends. At this point, it's going into an oven, preheated to 250 degrees F on a middle rack. It'll probably take about 30 to 35 minutes for it to slowly come up to temp to get it to where we want for a medium-rare internal temperature. Now, the reverse sear process is great because it takes all the guesswork away. We slowly bring up the temperature to where we want it, and for me, that's a final temp of medium-rare, then we do a quick sear, and we're done. And it hands down makes the juiciest, most perfectly cooked steak you could ever make at home. But while we wait, let's knock out a bit of mise. So much about being a good cook is being a good steward of your time, so use it wisely. For the wine, I'm going with Cabernet Sauvignon because it's dark fruit flavors and acidity, although a Cabernet Franc or Merlot would be great. Just use what you have. Really, my only rule of thumb here is don't cook with something you wouldn't drink. All right, I'm gonna pour in two cups to a medium-sized sauce pot. Turn the heat up to medium, and the goal here is to reduce the amount of liquid by about 1 1⁄2. Realistically, this'll take about five to seven minutes. When it's done, you'll notice the viscosity changes a bit. It's not syrupy or anything like that, but it's certainly not a loose liquid anymore either. You'll also see where I started when reducing to where I'm at now. This stage is when I pour in 2 1⁄2 cups of good beef stock and use a good gelatinous stock. I've got a great homemade recipe that I'll share if you wanna check that out. The goal here is to reduce the amount of liquid by about 1 1⁄2 again. If it's a little less or a little more, it's no problem. This recipe is super forgiving. It'll start to thicken up more thanks to the richness of the beef stock, and this should take about five to seven minutes as well. Now, the goal is to get the sauce 75% of the way there, and I'll explain why in just a minute. But first, you should already start to get those rich flavors in there. Just a few extra minutes to ensure the sauce is crazy good. This is what chefs and restaurants do to save time and especially to make every sauce that much more flavorful. Okay, set it to the side off the heat, and just a few more ingredients to miss out. I'm first going to smash six garlic cloves. Next, I'm going to smash and then finely mince two garlic cloves. Be sure to keep those separate. Then I'm gonna peel and thickly slice one shallot, and feel free to use a red, white, or sweet onion if that's all you have. Following up to peeling and small dicing one shallot, same as before on the onion substitutes. Last but not least, I'm gonna slice one stick of unsalted butter. And finally, get several sprigs of fresh thyme together. This recipe flies, so be sure you're ready to go. At this point, let's go have a look at our steaks. Yep, 100 degrees F internally is exactly where I wanna be before searing. It'll give me the perfect amount of cushion for a perfect sear and a medium-rare internal temp. All right, while the steaks rest for a few minutes, let's bring everything back to the cooktop. I'm searing in the large 12-inch hex clad, which honestly sears very similar to cast iron, which for me is exactly what I want. Let's crank the heat up to medium-high. Then I'm adding in a few tablespoons of beef tallow. You can also use olive or avocado oil for this. Both are great. All right, this is gonna move super quick, so watch carefully. Now, once that fat begins to lightly smoke, I'm gonna squeeze two steaks together and sear the fat cap for right at 45 seconds. That's it. All I'm looking to do is get that browned up, which of course means more flavor, and then start to render more of that delicious beefy fat into the pan. It'll look like this when you're done. And dang, does it already smell so good in here. Okay, at this stage, lay them flat and let them stand for only 30 seconds. Now, flip the steak over and already looking really good, but don't worry, I'll show you how to get an even deeper maillard crust. But first, cook it on this side untouched for 30 seconds. Then flip it back over and cook them for 30 more seconds. And while doing so, I'm gonna move the steak around in little circles. This gets the steak onto hot areas of the pan that aren't touched to help get a beautiful end-to-end sear on the steak. It's a little weird and clunky, but it works, and it's a great technique I picked up from an amazing chef several years ago. Maybe those folks who didn't actually know how to cook with the constant flipping were onto something. But when you're done moving, flip them over, and yeah, perfection. You can absolutely pull this off. Okay, turn the heat down to low, and now is when we season with pepper. You do it at the beginning before the sear, it can burn and turn bitter. This is the better time to do it. And in the other side, I'm adding half the cut-up butter, shallots, garlic, and fresh thyme. The butter will really start to foam up and lightly brown, giving it a delicious nutty flavor. The goal for the next minute is to baste the steak constantly to get all those amazing flavors married up, and my word, does it smell insane in here. When the steak is done, you'll be right around that 120 degrees F internal mark, so set it to the side on a rack and let it rest for a few minutes with all that roasted goodness on top while it does. It'll bump up a few more degrees, getting it to exactly where I want. And while it rests, do the same thing with the other two steaks. Just be sure to drain off most of the fat and start with fresh before getting it to smoking and searing. I'm telling you without question, this searing technique works flawlessly, and just wait until you taste the steak. Okay, so when all the steak is cooked, I'm going to remove all but about two tablespoons or so of the rendered fat in the pan. And over low to medium heat, add in the shallots. Give them a gentle season of salt to draw out some moisture so that they brown more quickly, and they are going to cook quickly. Maybe just a minute or two until they're lightly browned like this. At this stage, add in the garlic along with the chef's secret weapon for sauce, a half teaspoon of anchovy paste. This is going to take this sauce to the next umami level. You'll seriously want to drink this and put it on everything. It's that good. Cook for just 30 seconds, and then I'm going to add in the already reduced sauce, and over medium to medium high-ish heat, cook it for right around three to four minutes. This is why we did it ahead of time. If you try to make a good pan sauce now, it's going to take 20 minutes, and by then your steak will be cold. No good. Now, once the sauce has reduced a bit more to about just over a cup or so, you'll see it really start to thicken up and get that nice nappe consistency. Let's finish this like chefs. So strain it through a chinois or fine mesh strainer back into the sauce pot. I'm going to mount it with one tablespoon of unsalted butter, about a teaspoon or so of lemon juice to help balance out all those deep wine flavors and help brighten it up. Then finish with a seasoning of salt and pepper, and optionally, I like to always add in about a teaspoon of finely minced fresh parsley and thyme. This is how you do it, my friends. Absolutely beautiful, and I'm dying to taste this. And I know so many of you are going to ask, well, what would the steak go well with? And honestly, it could go great with so many different things. Maybe a simple twice-baked potato or good old-fashioned au gratin potato. Maybe a side of broccolini. Maybe it's just a side of arco veras. The possibilities are legitimately endless, and I've got an entire section on my website at billyparisi.com dedicated to side dishes. You can have a field day over there. For now, though, let's plate this up. I like to thinly slice the steak on a slight bias. Reverse searing always flips me out because it seems it's overcooked every time, and then boom, all that myoglobin comes rushing back for that perfect reddish-pink center. Fan out that steak. Show off what you've done. You should be proud. Drizzle on some of the sauce, and then I like to finish with a bit of Maldon salt and a tad bit more of pepper, and finally, a few more of those finely minced herbs of parsley and thyme. This right here, solid. And without question, the best way to finish this off is with my creme brulee. It is perfect in every single way. I'll see you over there. It's, oh my. It's, oh, it just keeps coming. The sauce, beautiful. The steak, perfect. Juicy, seasoned. It's ridiculous. Make it.