Steak with Green Peppercorn Sauce — Joseph Henry Limited

Serves 2

A creamy Brandy and green peppercorn sauce to top your Dinner steaks, it’s a classic combination. The brine that the green peppercorns are stored in can be quite salty, so the sauce may not need any additional seasoning other than a crack of black pepper.

2 steaks, cut of your choice, (the better the quality, the better the meal)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 TB olive oil

1 TB unsalted butter

1 ½ TB green peppercorns

1 TB Brandy

1 TB crème fraiche

¼ cup double cream

Use a sharp knife to trim off any undesirable fat from the steaks, if necessary. Pat the steaks dry using kitchen paper and season both sides of each steak with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a pan. Once smoking hot, fry the steaks until done to your liking. Remove and set aside to rest and keep warm.

Drain the green peppercorns from the brine, and partially crush them using a pestle and mortar. Tip the peppercorns into a clean pan over high heat, stirring continuously. Pour in the Brandy and cook until the Brandy evaporates.

Reduce the heat to low and add the crème fraiche and cream. You only want the cream to gently heat through and not reduce, so do this part just before serving.

Serve the sauce over the steaks and add a generous crack of black pepper. Enjoy alongside any vegetables of your choice. (We served ours with asparagus, which can be whipped up in minutes. Simply boil trimmed asparagus for 4-5 minutes, before draining and tossing in melted butter and scattering over some salt.)