Clementine Picanha
The smell of orange peel will fill your kitchen as the culotte slowly makes its way to just the right temperature, awaiting its final sear. I’ve left the fat cap on, scoring it so that it is crosshatc...
The inspiration for this recipe comes from years of watching and reading about legendary Parisian butcher Hugo Desnoyer. He has achieved god-like status in France, and for good reason. His approach to meat, beef in particular, is something to be respected and emulated. One of his mantras, “C’est l’herbe qui donne le goût à la viande,” is an outlook that I deeply believe in: the taste of meat is flavoured by what the cow has eaten throughout its life. Desnoyer knows steak like no one else, and his recipes are built from the steak up, not the other way around, always complementing and taking full advantage of a steak’s particular character. This straightforward recipe is my own, but in a daydream I imagine Monsieur Desnoyer across the table, fork in hand, having just taken a bite, nodding approval in my direction.
Ingredients
- 1 petite tender steak
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for frying
- 1 lemon for testing and juicing
- splash of dry white wine
- 4 tablespoons heavy cream (35%)
- 2 tablespoons creme fraiche
- 2 to 3 sprigs of fresh thyme (or your favourite herbs) finely chopped, with some nice leaves reserved
- pinch of salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
This preparation takes complete advantage of the petite tender: the cut is lean and pale compared to other steaks, so the creamy, lemony sauce embraces it wonderfully. It involves nearly no cooking time, since you are simply searing the sliced medallions to bring the meat to just over rare.
Using a sharp chef’s or butcher’s knife, slice your petite tender into tidy medallions, about 3/4 inch thick. Set aside.
Have a warm plate at the ready. In a stainless-steel or nonstick pan over medium-high heat, melt butter with olive oil and heat until the butter nearly stops bubbling.
Place the medallions in the pan (being careful not to overcrowd) and quickly sear both sides for about 1 minute per side; they won’t colour much at all, but the inside of your medallions should be fully warm and rare in the middle. (Try cooking a single piece to practice — one of the less attractive slices — to get this part right.) Transfer cooked medallions to the warmed plate, reserving the pan over the heat.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the juice of half the lemon to the pan along with a splash of white wine. Cook until the pan juices are reduced by one-third, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan (there won’t be much to deglaze).
Add cream, salt, creme fraiche, chopped herbs, and two fine grates of lemon zest (use a Microplane of fine-toothed grater), stir well, and cook until thickened, about 3 minutes. Once the sauce reaches a consistency you like )add more cream or creme fraiche, if needed), neatly pour some over the steak medallions. Grind some pepper overtop, sprinkle with the reserved herb leaves and another fine grating of lemon zest.
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