How do I make a peppercorn sauce for steak?

Peppercorn sauce is the standard pan sauce with pepper as its identity, and it is made in the pan the steak came out of while the steak rests. That is the whole point — the browned residue in the pan is the flavour, the rest is a five-minute sequence you can repeat with mushrooms, mustard or wine instead.

Safety

What you'll need

• The pan the steak was cooked in
• Peppercorns — green in brine, or whole black
• Shallot
• Brandy or Cognac (optional)
• Beef or chicken stock
• Double cream
• Butter (optional)

Step by step

1. Take the steak out, rest it on a warm plate, and keep the pan.Pour off all but a tablespoon of the fat. The dark residue stuck to the base is what the sauce is made of, so do not wipe or wash the pan.
2. Soften a finely chopped shallot in the pan over a medium heat.Two minutes, until translucent, scraping as you go. A clove of garlic can go in for the last thirty seconds. Do not let the shallot brown hard or the sauce turns bitter.
3. Add the peppercorns and let them warm through.A tablespoon of green peppercorns in brine, drained and lightly crushed, or a teaspoon of black peppercorns coarsely crushed in a mortar. Green are milder and more aromatic; black are hotter and more assertive. Thirty seconds in the fat brings the aroma out.
4. Take the pan off the heat and deglaze with brandy.Two tablespoons. Off the heat, then back on, and reduce it until the pan is almost dry. Scrape the base hard while it bubbles — this is where the fond dissolves into the sauce. If you would rather not use spirits, use wine, or stock alone.
5. Add stock and reduce by half.150ml of beef or chicken stock. Let it boil down until it looks syrupy and coats the base of the pan. Do not rush this — the concentration here is what gives the sauce depth.
6. Add double cream and simmer to a coating consistency.100ml, simmered for two or three minutes until a spoon drawn through leaves a trail. Double cream can be boiled safely; single cream will split, so use double or whipping.
7. Finish with the resting juices, a knob of butter and salt.Everything that has run out of the steak goes back in. Whisk in cold butter off the heat for gloss. Season last — stock and fond are both salty. A few drops of Worcestershire or a teaspoon of Dijon lifts it if it tastes flat.

Tips

• Crush the peppercorns rather than grinding them. Coarse pieces give bursts of heat; a fine grind makes the whole sauce uniformly hot and slightly dusty.
• Green peppercorns in brine are the classic choice and are sold in small jars. Rinse them if the brine is very strong.
• No stock in the house? A splash of water plus a teaspoon of Marmite or a stock pot does an acceptable job, since the fond is doing most of the work.
• The same sequence with sliced mushrooms after the shallot, or a spoonful of Dijon instead of the peppercorns, gives you two more sauces from the same method.
• If the sauce is too thin, keep reducing. If it is too thick, a splash of stock. Never thicken a pan sauce with flour — reduction is what gives it its texture.

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