Name: New York Style Steak Sauce
Prep time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 tbsp oil (avocado or canola); ¼ cup white onion, minced; 1 whole shallot, minced; 2 large garlic, minced; 1 cup tomato ketchup (If you don't make your own ketchup, Heinz Organic is a good choice.); 2 tbsp horseradish, grated and packed ((You can use prepared horseradish if you wish)); ½ whole chipotle, pepper; ¼ cup vinegar, apple cider; 2 tbsp molasses; 1 tsp Worcestershire, sauce; 1 tsp tamarind, paste; ½ tsp anchovy, paste; 3 dashes of Tabasco sauce; To taste salt and black pepper

Old School Traditions

The New York Style Steak Sauce is an homage to Peter Luger’s Restaurant, a New York institution since 1887. Over the years, the menu has changed very little. Super high-quality steak cooked to perfection. Peter Luger’s steak sauce is now widely available through Costco. If, however, your local doesn’t carry this delicious sauce, this recipe will get you there.

The flavor profile is somewhere between a shrimp cocktail sauce and Heinz 57. When spread thinly onto a warmed serving platter, it is sublime and memorable. I’m not one to allow ketchup near my steak, but this sauce spiced with tamarind, molasses, and anchovy is just special enough to make an exception. Believe me, this is freaking delicious and should be tried.

Butter

Using high-quality butter and sea salt is also key to getting the flavor just right. Serve the sauce warm under the steak to accent the flavors. DO mix the classic New York Steak Sauce on the plate that the steak has rested upon. The small number of juices from the steak mix at the last moment completes the flavor profile. Look for Kerrygold unsalted, Straus Organic unsalted, Plugra European Style unsalted.

Salt

Use quality sea salt like Maldon, Murray River, Amagansett Sea Salt, Saltverk, or North Fork Sea Salt. Yes, fancy salt makes a huge difference!

Beef

Use the highest quality beef you can find. The success of this dish comes down to one thing: Quality! So whether it is Japanese A5 Wagyu, Premium Grass-Fed American Ribeye, or Creekstone Bone-In Black Angus, choose the best you can find.

If you’ve never been to Peter Luger’s in New York, you’re missing an American culinary foundation touchstone. The food is always prepared using the finest ingredients. This recipe is mostly technique, although the sauce does add another level of savory umami.

Finely mince the onion, garlic (not shown), and shallots

Saute the onions and garlic until tender.

Use freshly grated horseradish or prepared horseradish.

Use 1/2 of a chipotle chili for a hint of smokiness.

To the softened onions and garlic, add the remaining ingredients. Cook for about one minute while whisking. Remove from the heat and allow to cool briefly before adding to the blender container.

Process the steak sauce until completely smooth.

You can pass the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve or not. On this day, I left the onion bits in for a more rustic sauce. Either way, it’s delicious.

Prepare the meat for seasoning. Check for any silver skin or sinew on the top part of the ribeye opposite the bone. Allow the meat to come to room temperature before seasoning and cooking (about 30 minutes).

Season thoroughly. You will notice that I frenched the bone. This is because there’s a knob of pure fat at the bottom that will flare up when you cook the steak on the grill. Remove this part and leave the bone exposed. I’ve also trussed the meat to form the beef into a tighter presentation. This is completely optional. However, you decide, season the steak thoroughly with salt and pepper.

Clean and preheat the grill over high heat. If you have a searing function on the grill, this is the time to use it. Allow the grill to heat up for about 8-10 minutes before adding the steak.

The steak should sizzle rapidly when added to the preheated grill. DON’T move the steak. Leave it alone for 4-5 minutes. Close the lid if you have one, and allow the steak to sear and develop a nice char.

After the first initial sear test with a pair of long tongs. The steak should release easily. Next, turn the steak a quarter turn and allow it to sear again for 4-5 minutes.

After the second sear, it’s time to turn the steak over and sear the opposite side. Then, allow the steak to sear once again as before for 4-5 minutes.

After another quarter turns and fourth searing, as performed on the first side. Move the steak over to the cold side of the grill without heat underneath. Keep the opposite side of the grill on high. Turn off the searing station if so equipped and lower the grill cover and allow for indirect cooking. Maintain a temperature of (500°F or 250°C) degrees for approximately 15-20 minutes. Check from time to time the internal temperature of the steak. (120°F or 48°C-rare, 125°-130°F or 52°-55°C-medium-rare, 135°-140°F or 57°-60°C-for medium, and so forth).

Once the steak has reached the desired temperature, remove it from the grill and rub a knob of butter over the top of the steak. This picture shows the wonderful crust that has formed from careful grilling. Allow the steak to rest for at least 10-15 minutes. SAVE any accumulated juices from the steak on the resting dish. Use this plate for the sauce.

First, cut the bone off of the steak.

Using the plate that the steak rested on, add some of the sauce. Just enough to cover the plate, no more.

Slice the steak as thick or thin as you wish and place it over the sauce. Sprinkle with a good quality sea salt (Maldon) and serve.

Wine pairings:

2018 Juliénas Cru du Beaujolais, France

Langhe Rosso, 2o17, Piedmont, Italy

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