Name: Steak with Green Peppercorns (Entrecôte au Poivre Vert)
Yield: Makes 4 Main-Course Servings
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 1 cup [250 ml] homemade beef broth or brown chicken broth, or 2 tablespoons concentrated broth, or 1 tablespoon concentrated demi-glace, softened in a tablespoon of water; ½ cup [125 ml] heavy cream; ¾ cup [175 ml] ruby or tawny port; 1 shallot, chopped fine; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 porterhouse steaks (about 1 ½ pounds [675 g] each, about 1 inch [2.5 cm] thick) or 1 porterhouse steak (about 3 pounds [1.3 kg], about 2 inches [5 cm] thick), or 4 strip or rib steaks (8 to 12 ounces [225 to 340 g] each), or 4 shell steaks (strip steaks with the bone; 12 ounces to 1 pound [340 to 450 g] each); salt; 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar, or more to taste; 1 tablespoon freeze-dried green peppercorns, crushed with the back of a fork or with a mixing bowl, or 1 tablespoon brine-cured green peppercorns, rinsed, chopped coarse

Preparation info

Makes
4
Main-Course Servings

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Glorious French Food

By James Peterson

Published 2002

About

This dish is similar to the entrecôte à la bordelaise described, except that port is used instead of red wine, cream instead of butter is used to thicken the sauce, and the sauce is flavored with green peppercorns. Green peppercorns come from the same plant that produces white and black peppercorns. But instead of being picked when ripe or nearly ripe and then dried, green peppercorns are picked before they ripen and are packed in brine or sometimes freeze