Dinner Meat Dishes Beef Main Course Beef Steak Recipes Seared Steak with Peppercorn Sauce 5.0 (1) 1 Review Slowly confiting mixed peppercorns in ghee softens their bite and creates a deeply aromatic foundation for this steakhouse-worthy pan sauce. Finished with cream, red wine, and concentrated beef broth, the sauce highlights the flavor of a well-seared steak. By Mateo Breña Mateo Breña Mateo Breña is a Franco-Mexican chef with over 10 years of experience across Paris, New York, San Sebastián, Boston, and Austria. He has honed his craft from cozy bistronomic kitchens to Michelin-starred restaurants. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on August 7, 2026 Save Rate PRINT Share Close Credit: Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless Active Time: 50 mins Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins Servings: 4 Jump to recipe Confiting the peppercorns in ghee softens their sharp bite and creates a more complex, aromatic flavor than traditional crushed-peppercorn sauces.The reduced broth and wine produces a concentrated sauce with substantial savory depth despite a short ingredient list.The recipe performs consistently with both filet mignon and top sirloin, allowing flexibility when selecting your cut of steak. This recipe takes inspiration from the French bistro classic steak au poivre. Traditional versions involve coating steak in crushed peppercorns and making a pan sauce with cream, Cognac, and the flavorful browned bits left in the skillet after searing the steak. This recipe follows that same spirit but employs softer flavors to great effect. Instead of coating the steak in crushed peppercorns, this recipe takes a slower approach by gently confiting mixed peppercorns in ghee. The low heat softens their texture and mellows their pungency, allowing their floral, fruity, and earthy notes to infuse both the cooking fat and the finished sauce. The result is a more nuanced pepper flavor that complements the beef without dominating it. The steak is seasoned simply with salt, and the peppercorn element comes through in the sauce — a deeply savory blend of beef broth, red wine, beef broth concentrate, and heavy cream. The dish works with both premium filet mignon and more budget-friendly sirloin. So long as you get a great sear on the meat and drape it with the luscious sauce, this recipe delivers stunning results. A thoroughly preheated skillet and a thick-cut steak are key to success. The steak develops a deeply browned crust before being basted with butter, garlic, and thyme, which layers additional flavor onto the meat. The sauce comes together in the same pan, capturing every bit of fond left behind from the sear. Heavy cream smooths out the concentrated broth and wine reduction, creating a silky finish that coats each slice of steak. Whether made with filet mignon or top sirloin, this recipe delivers a balance of rich beef flavor and fragrant peppercorn spice. How to develop the most flavor in the sauce The first step in creating the sauce is confiting peppercorns in ghee; this yields a softer pepper bite and rich, balanced flavor. Next is getting a good sear on the steak, aiming to have delicious browned bits left in the pan that you don’t wash out; these browned bits (the fond) get lifted into the sauce when you deglaze the pan with liquid. Finally, a combination of lower-sodium beef broth and red wine serves as the bulk of the sauce — the reduced-sodium broth gives you better control over seasoning, while the wine adds acidity and depth. A spoonful of beef broth concentrate adds extra body and umami. A finishing splash of cream lends body and rounds out all the flavors. Why you should use both ghee and butter to cook the steak To get a good sear on the steak, you should cook it over high heat — and you’ll need a cooking fat that can withstand high temperatures. Unlike butter, ghee (a style of clarified butter) has had the milk solids removed, allowing you to cook with it at high temperatures. But butter basting (in a process known as nappé) at the very end of the cooking process for steak adds richness and incomparable flavor. Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen Keep the heat very low while confiting the peppercorns; the ghee should gently infuse and soften rather than fry.Filet mignon and top sirloin both tested successfully, but any well-marbled 1 1/2-inch-thick steak will work.Allowing the steak to sit salted at room temperature promotes more even cooking and better browning. Suggested pairing Pair this rich steak dinner with a peppery, natural, Austrian red, like Gut Oggau Atanasius. This recipe was developed by Mateo Breña; the text was written by Ann Taylor Pittman. Keep Screen Awake Ingredients 1 1/2 tablespoons mixed peppercorns 2 tablespoons ghee 1 (1 1/2-pound) steak, such as filet mignon, top sirloin, or hanger (1 1/2 inches thick), trimmed and patted dry 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 cup lower-sodium beef bone broth or beef broth 3 tablespoons dry red wine 1 1/2 teaspoons jarred beef bone broth concentrate or beef stock concentrate (such as Zoup!) 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 garlic cloves, smashed 1 (6-inch) thyme sprig, plus fresh thyme leaves for garnish 1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot 1/3 cup heavy cream Directions Heat peppercorns in a small skillet over low, stirring often, until aromatic, about 3 minutes. Add ghee; cook over very low, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. (If ghee starts to bubble aggressively, reduce heat or briefly remove pan from heat.) Drain peppercorns, reserving ghee until ready to use. Meanwhile, sprinkle steak with salt; let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. Bring broth, wine, and drained peppercorns to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium; cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is reduced by half (about 1/2 cup), about 20 minutes. Whisk in bone broth concentrate until well combined. Remove from heat, and set aside. Heat reserved ghee in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over high. Add seasoned steak; cook until deeply browned, about 10 minutes, turning steak once halfway through cooking time. Add butter, garlic, and thyme sprig to pan; cook over high, spooning ghee-butter mixture over steak constantly, for 1 minute or until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of steak registers 120°F for medium-rare. (Temperature will continue to rise as steak rests.) Remove steak from skillet, and let rest for 5 minutes. Reserve ghee, garlic, and thyme in skillet; do not wipe skillet clean. Add shallot to ghee mixture in skillet; cook over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 1 minute. Stir in reduced stock mixture, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of skillet. Add cream; cook over medium-high, stirring often, until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove and discard garlic and thyme. Slice steak; garnish with thyme leaves, and serve with sauce. Make ahead The confit peppercorns can be prepared up to one week ahead and refrigerated in their ghee. Bring them to room temperature before using in the sauce. Cook this recipe and more in the MyRecipes app. Get the App Save Rate Print Loading shell for RecipesUgcThreaded1 Vue component in Globe.