Eat Like You're In Paris
I had dinner this evening with a friend who is planning a trip to Paris. Of course, it made me wish I were planning a trip there too. But if you can't go to Paris, at least you can eat as if you were in Paris, and thanks to my friends in Vermont, Zachary and Clark, I have just the recipe.
In a recent issue, Saveur ran a wonderful feature on Parisian bistros and the marvelous food they serve. Let’s face it, whether we ever get to Paris or not, the food sounds fabulous. We saved several recipes from the article to try, and this was first on the list. It is definitely a winner.
The French name for this dish is Pavés du Mail. It is essentially a steak cut thin garnished with a mustard-cream-cognac sauce that is a snap to make. The only tricky thing is the cut of meat. The recipe calls for flat-iron steaks, which our butcher didn’t have. Instead, he steered us to apron steaks, a very similar cut. Whatever you get, make sure it is relatively thin and not tough (you can always use sirloin or even filet mignon). As always, let the meat rest after cooking so the juices recirculate.
This would be ideal with another recipe from the article, perfect french fries. We shared our version with you before. Except the French cook them in duck fat. Hmmm...
Pavés du Mail
Ingredients:
2 to 4 flat-iron steaks or similar, 6 to 8 ounces per person
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon canola oil
5 tablespoons cognac/brandy
1/4 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Fresh parsley, chopped fine
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.; put dinner plates in oven to warm. Allow steaks to warm to room temperature; season liberally with salt and pepper.
2. Heat butter and oil in large cast-iron or similar heavy pan over medium-high heat until fat just begins to smoke and brown; add steaks and cook, turning once, until done to desired temperature (6-8 minutes total for medium-rare, 125-130 degrees F, depending on how thick the meat is).
3. Remove meat to warm oven to rest; pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat in pan. Add most of cognac to pan to deglaze; cook briefly, stirring up all the wonderful browned bits; add cream and mustard; whisk until smooth; remove from heat, add remaining cognac, and check seasoning. Slice meat across the grain; garnish with sauce and chopped parsley.
Serves 4
Saveur Magazine, January 2011, Issue #133
--Tracy Schneider
aer conditionat on February 03, 2011 at 05:43 AM
This recipe looks awesome. I guess you don’t have to go to Paris to enjoy their cuisine, you can do it here as well. Thanks for this great recipe.
David Masaoka on February 03, 2011 at 09:06 AM
have to try this but sounds like a lot of mustard though i tend to eyeball for this type of dish. about flipping once just read
http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/10/the-food-labs-top-6-food-myths.html?ref=obinsite
aer conditionat on May 31, 2011 at 02:30 AM
now I'm hungry