Steak Bareuzai
Steak Bareuzai is the true product of the Burgundy region; local Charolais beef cut into thick steaks, spicy mustard grown in nearby fields and milled in Beaune, wild mushrooms hunted for in the damp woods, and great red wine that seemingly flows from every winepress of the region. In the old days, wine grapes were pressed by feet. French winemakers were nicknamed 'bar rosi', or pink bottomed, due to the pink color of their feet when they were done squishing the grapes.
Anyone who grew up watching the sitcom 'I Love Lucy', will remember with a chuckle the episode when Lucy gets offered a bit part in a movie called 'Bitter Grapes'. She travels to Turo where she is given the job of crushing grapes due to the size of her abnormally large feet. The Italians joke that her feet are the size of pizzas. She reluctantly hops into a vat filled with just-picked grapes and an Italian woman who is already busy stomping grapes. I won't give away what happens in case you have never seen it, or perhaps are in the early stages of dementia and may have long forgotten this episode. Suffice to say, the scene unfolds into one of the most hilarious episodes ever filmed.
What I love most is that this is so quickly prepared. No advanced planning is necessary other than to have a few ingredients on hand and perhaps a bottle of wine open. The only controversy seems to be whether or not you finish the sauce with a healthy spoonful of Dijon mustard; some recipes add it and others shun it. I personally add a giant spoonful because I love the creamy punch Fallot mustard provides.
Steak Bareuzai
A delicious and incredibly easy way to cook steaks in the style of Burgundy.
2 - 16 ounce steaks - bone-in rib eye, strip, or whatever cut you enjoy
1 tablespoon Maldon flake sea salt
1 tablespoon cracked black peppercorns
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 red onion finely diced
1/2 bottle red wine
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 ounces mushrooms, wild or cultivated (sliced)
Season beef liberally with flake sea salt and cracked black peppercorns. Heat two tablespoons of butter in a skillet until lightly brown. Add the steak and cook over medium-high heat for 6 TO 8 minutes on each side. You are striving for a nice hard char. Continue cooking to the desired temperature. I like mine medium rare so it took about 20 minutes in total.
In the meantime, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in another skillet. When it is hot and foamy, add the onion and saute for 5 minutes, stirring often. The goal is to cook the onion with no color but have it tender and soft. Add the wine and turn the heat up high to reduce the volume by 50 percent.
Saute the mushrooms in the remaining butter, season, and reserve.
Plate your steak, spoon over the sauce, and put a small mound of mushrooms on top. Enjoy!
Grass fed ribeyes, photographed by Francois de Melogue