Tesco Orchard Review: Steak (1) - Steak, chips and Beans

Having never cooked steak before (yes I know!) I had to call on a friend for advice I was feeling a little scared about my next opportunity from Tesco's Orchard programme.  But I bit the bullet and

here's how it went.

After discussing with a friend how to cook it, she originally suggested with a sauce but I knew Mr Fussy wouldn't have eaten it like that.  We settled on pan frying with a simple seasoning of salt and pepper.  I cooked it up with home made chips and baked beans.

The steak was delicious, moist and easy to cut.  The benefit of cooking it yourself is you can have it exactly how you like so when I checked it and it was to raw for us I simply threw it back in the pan for a little longer.

If I did have any criticism it was that the 2 pieces in the pack were considerably different sizes so I had to cut a bit off the bigger one to even it up.

We do tend to avoid steak as I always thought it was really expensive and hard to cook just right but this has really changed my mind. The 2 pieces we had would have cost £4 for the pack, but I made up the 3 for £10 with some casserole beef and .. well you'll have to wait and see how that went.  

I'm looking forward to cooking steak again, perhaps one Sunday instead of a roast, especially in the Summer to serve with a salad.

If you did fancy trying steak with a sauce why not give one of these a go...

Salsa Verde

Chop a small bunch of parsley, chives and mint into small pieces.  Mix in a bowl with 1 teaspoon of capers, a crushed clove of garlic, a couple of chopped anchovies, some lemon juice and three tablespoons of olive oil. 

Peppercorn sauce 

Put 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar into a large, non-stick frying pan and bring to a simmer. Add 150ml of chicken stock and reduce the mixture by half over a high heat. Add 2 teaspoons of green peppercorns. Season and reduce.  Stir in 4 tablespoons of double cream. Simmer for one or two minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened.

Béarnaise sauce

Melt 25g of butter over a medium heat and add a finely chopped shallot. Cook for five or six minutes then add 1 teaspoon of white wine vinegar. Cook for another couple of minutes then stir in 100g crème fraiche, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon of capers and a small bunch of chopped tarragon. Reduce the heat and cook until simmering, season and serve. 

Red wine sauce

Pour 250ml of beef stock into a saucepan and reduce by half. Then add 125ml red wine, 2 teaspoons of dark brown sugar and 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar. Leave to cook for another 10 minutes over a high heat or until the sauce has reduced by half again. Season to taste and serve.

Blue cheese sauce

Melt 25g of butter in a pan over a medium heat then stir in 1 tablespoon of flour. Slowly add 150ml milk, stirring all the time until the sauce is smooth and all the milk has been added. Bring to a simmer and add 50g chopped Stilton or another blue cheese and stir. Cook until melted and the sauce has thickened slightly, season to taste and serve.

Disclaimer:  I was given money off vouchers enabling me to get the above product for free as part of the Orchard at Tesco Programme.  The thoughts and opinions remain my own.