Wine & Steak 101
First things first, if you are a vegetarian/vegan or you only drink white wine, then this column will come across as highly offensive. This is all about hearty red wine that was born to be served with one type of food…STEAK, period, end of story. Now I know it’s very fashionable for Sommeliers to be “flashy” and “daring” by saying that you can drink a chardonnay or some other white with steak…that’s just plain bunk! Sommeliers that say that are just trying to stand out from the pack. I can appreciate daring food and wine pairings, but not with steak. Some things you just don’t mess with, like pizza and beer, and red wine and steak. Go put on some jeans and a shirt that you don’t mind staining with steak juice and wine and let’s have some fun.
I’m not going to delve too much into the steak side of things as I will leave that up to Chef Repp. I will say that the only steak you need to know about is bone-in ribeye. That’s it. It has the perfect amount of fat and tenderness without any major grizzle line running through. Ask any butcher what the most flavorful cut of meat is and they will unanimously respond–ribeye. The reason you have to put sauce on filet Mignon is because it has no fat which equals no taste, only tenderness. Go down to the Atlantic Meat Market at 110 Wall St. in Norwalk. It’s a real old-school butcher shop which is a dying trade in this ever-increasing pre-packaged world. Tell Bob I sent you and have him cut you to order a ribeye that would make Fred Flinstone’s mouth water. I usually stick with a minimum thickness of two inches.
Now that we have our steak we need to have a wine worthy of sharing the stage. This is a crucial step, you need to choose a Cabernet Sauvignon. The reason Cabernet works so well with a well marbled piece of red meat is that Cabernet is know for having big tannins which the wine takes on from the oak barrels it rests in during aging and the seeds and stems of the grapes and vines themselves. These tannins are mellowed out in your mouth by the fat in the meat creating a beautiful marriage of food and wine with each enhancing the other. This is what hard-core wine lovers and carnivores live for. You may hear wine experts say that a certain red wine is a food wine more than a sipping wine. That is because of the tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon is a great food wine.
Some Cabernet Sauvignon that I would recommend that are ready to drink now are Cartlidge & Browne, California $11.99; Ku De Ta, Napa Valley $13.99; Cousino Macul Antiguas Reservas, Chile $15.99; Buehler, Napa Valley $26.99; and Keenan, Napa Valley $42.99. All of these wines are ready to take any steak you throw at them. Of course I have many more at all price ranges down at the store. So if you want to come in and tell me that I’m crazy for thinking ribeye is the best cut of steak, then come down during the Friday (4-8 pm) and Saturday (12-8 pm) tastings and we can discuss it over wine.
The recipe this week is really the star of the column so make sure to try it this weekend…Chef Repp definitely does not disappoint as usual.
SEARED RIB EYE WITH GORGANZOLA COMPOUND BUTTER
2 rib eye steaks 1 ½ inches thick or one that is at least 2 inches thick
Canola oil
Kosher salt
Cracked pepper
GORGONZOLA COMPOUND BUTTER
½ lb unsalted butter softened
½ tsp cracked red pepper
½ cup diced red pepper
1tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp dried oregano
½ cup diced shallots
2 tbls minced garlic
½ lb gorgonzola room tempurature
1 tbls worchestershire sauce
2tsp kosher salt to taste
Juice of ½ half lemon
Tobasco sauce to taste
2 tbls chives chopped (optional)
Cracked pepper to taste
Sauté the shallots ,garlic, and peppers and place in a mixing bowl
Add all the other ingredients and mix well with a whisk
Lay out a piece of plastic wrap, spoon on the mixture and twist it into a log shape until the plastic is tight. It should be the radius of a half dollar. Place the butter in the freezer to harden
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees
Heat a large cast iron pan until smoking hot. Keep the pan dry
Rub the rib eyes with a little canola oil and generously season with kosher salt and pepper
Sear the steaks for 30 to 45 seconds on each side to achieve a nice char
Place the pan in the oven and let cook for 2 minutes then flip the steaks . Cut 2 pieces of the compound butter place 1 on each steak and cook 2 minutes more for medium rare. remove the steaks to a plate and pour the pan juices over them. Let the steaks rest for at least 3 minutes before serving
QUICK CREAMED SPINACH
10 oz thawed frozen spinach water squeezed out{stop& shop)
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
¼ lb cream cheese
½ cup heavy cream
4 cloves garlic confit (see recipe below)
1 tsp grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
Rough chop the spinach and place that and all the other ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth. Heat in a pan or microwave
QUICK GARLIC CONFIT
12 whole garlic cloves
1cup extra virgin olive oil
Method:
Simmer the garlic on low heat until golden brown and soft , remove pan from stove and cool
