Creamy peppercorn sauce has a lovely rich warmth to it that goes so well with a juicy steak .
You can make it in about 10 minutes, while your steak is resting.
Serve over chips or left over without the steak) for a comforting weekend lunch!
A classic steak sauce made with black peppercorns, cream and brandy for a lovely, rich sauce that’s just right for a date night or a special occasion.
INGREDIENTS
Brandy Any brandy, cognac or marsala will be fine, but if you don’t want to use alcohol, then you can leave it out or add an extra spoonful of Worcestershire sauce.
Black Peppercorns You can also use green peppercorns for a milder flavour.
Cream Always use double (heavy) cream rather than single or light cream to ensure a luscious sauce that won’t split.
Stock We used beef stock but any good strong stock will work.
Shallots You can also use brown or white onions, chopped finely.
METHOD OF PREPARATION
- Place the peppercorns in a small bag and crush lightly (or use a mortar and pestle)
- Sauté the shallots, salt and peppercorns in butter and oil until softened
- Add the brandy, then the stock and Worcestershire sauce and boil rapidly for five minutes
- Stir in the cream and any pan juices and bring to a simmer, then turn off the heat and serve.
Peppercorn Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp Black peppercorn sauce
- 1 tbsp 15g unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil if you’ve just cooked steak to go with this sauce, use the oils/meat-drippings that are left in the pan, instead of the sunflower oil and butter.
- 2 shallots peeled and chopped finely
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 tbsp brandy
- 180mls 3/4 cup beef stock
- 1 tbsp Worchester sauce
- 120 mls 1/2 cup double (heavy) cream
Instructions
- Place 3 teaspoons of the peppercorns in a zip-lock back, and roughly crush with a rolling pin (or use a pestle and mortar if you have one). Don’t bash too much – we want a bit of texture, rather than a fine powder. Put to one side.
- Add the butter and oil to a frying pan and heat over a medium heat.
- When the butter has melted, add the shallots, salt the crushed peppers from earlier and the remaining 1 teaspoon of whole peppercorns. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the shallots are just starting to soften.
- Add the brandy to the pan, bubble for 1 minute, then add in the stock and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil and simmer rapidly for 5 minutes until reduced by half.
- Stir in the cream (if you have any juices from resting your steak, add them to the pan now too). Bring back to a simmer, then turn off the heat.
- serve over steak
