Ann Mah’s
story is that element (read her blog here). Set in Paris,
with some travels within France – the Auvergne, Burgundy, Provence, Alsace -
that she mainly took to overcome a year of solitude when her husband was posted
to Iraq during his then current assignment in Paris. They had another 2 years after that in the
City of Light, which they used productively to buy their own pièd-a-terre,
while indulging in French food and culture.
This is a
very lovely memoir with a recipe typical of the region written about at the end
of each chapter. To me, the best one is
that of aligot, which sadly I cannot
make at home as the main ingredient, a cheese curd by the name of tome fraîche,
is not found in the US; but one to go on my bucket list of things to try when
visiting France. The story of her visit
to Aveyron is also the crown jewel of the book, providing a cozy, comforting
end to a year of stories as an ex-pat foodie in France.
Being an
inveterate Francophile myself, and currently trending the way Parisians cook
and live, I found her recipe for bavette
aux échalotes a nice take on my entrecôte
Vilette (see my recipe here). The main difference is the cut of meat
used. Whereas for entrecôte one would use ribsteak, for the bavette one uses skirt; which is a thin, rather fibrous cut. It
makes for an incredibly tasty piece of meat.
You may accompany it with the ubiquitous frites (recipe also here), a fresh salad or even some warm legumes. Of course when in France, serve it with aligot.
This recipe serves 2.
Bavette
aux échalotes:
Ingredients:
- 1 skirt or
hanger steak, about 12 oz. trimmed of fat and patted dry
- Salt and
pepper
- 1 Tbsp.
sunflower oil
Sauce:
- 2 Tbsp.
unsalted butter, divided
- 4 large
minced shallots
- 1 ½ Tbsp.
red wine vinegar
- Sprig of
fresh thyme
- ½ cup beef
stock
Preparation:
Trim the
steak of any excess fat and season it with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high
heat. It must be sizzling hot. Place the steak in the pan and cook for 2
minutes, until the underside is seared and browned. Turn the steak over and cook the other side
for about 50 seconds. Bavette is thin
cut, so it cooks quite fast. The best
way to eat this dish is medium-rare, so do not overcook! Transfer the beef to a warm plate and cover
loosely with foil in order to keep it warm.
To make
the sauce, heat 1 Tbsp. of the butter in the same skillet used for the
steak. Add the shallots and sauté over
medium heat for 7 minutes. Add the red
wine vinegar, thyme and beef stock; bring to a boil. Cover and cook until the shallots have
softened and the liquid has almost disappeared.
Swirl in the remaining Tbsp. of butter and add any juices released from
the meat. Taste the sauce and adjust the
seasoning, adding a few drops of vinegar if needed.
