Hanger Steak Béarnaise Sauce

• Hanger steak
  

About Béarnaise

• Bearnaise is a sauce that originated in France in the 1830’s. It’s named for the province of Bearn, but was really created just west of Paris. Béarnaise is a fat-in-water emulsion. Melted butter is emulsified into a reduction of white wine and vinegar flavored with shallots, tarragon, and chervil, all bound and thickened with egg yolks. It's technically a derivative of hollandaise which is an emulsion of water and lemon juice; one of the five French mother sauces (hollandaise, béchamel, velouté, espagnole and tomato. Béarnaise should be served warm. It pairs very well with grilled meat, fish and poached eggs.

  Here are some Béarnaise variations: Paloise sauce is a Béarnaise in which mint is added in place of tarragon (great for lamb). Corail sauce is a Béarnaise made out of lobster roe instead of eggs. Choron sauce is a Béarnaise with tomato paste (great for fish) and Sauce Foyot is a Béarnaise mixed with glace de viande.
  

What Butter To Use?

• Since bearnaise sauce is based on butter, the quality of butter matters. European-style butter is always a must in this configuration. It contains a higher butterfat percentage (82-86 percent) than basic butter and less water, resulting in a richer taste, softer texture and faster melt-ability. Kerrygold, Plugra, Échiré are among the best. Traditional Bearnaise sauce calls for clarified butter; though, once butter is melted and poured into the Béarnaise mixture, the milk solids (petit lait) which sits on the bottom, could indeed be added towards the end. In the sous-vide method, there is no clarified butter involved and the result is simply unmatched.
  

How To Make Bearnaise Sauce

• Wash off herbs and drain. Chop chervil and set aside. Hold the tarragon stem in one hand and run your fingers down the stem, starting at the top, to gently strip off the leaves. Chop stems for the wine reduction and save chopped leaves for the finished sauce. For the wine reduction: In a saucepan, combine herbs, shallots, crushed black peppercorns, wine and vinegar. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 25 minutes until reduced to about 3 tablespoons (50g) of liquid. Do not reduce too much. Pass wine reduction through a sieve, pressing on the solids with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible.
  

Emulsion (Sabayon)

• Melt butter and use it at 160ºF/70ºC. In a cool saucier or saucepan, combine the room temperature wine reduction, egg yolks, salt and pepper. Cook wine reduction and yolks over gentle heat (increase heat if dealing with a larger quantity) with constant beating using a whisk, until a creamy sauce is obtained after about 5 mins. Do it over a bain-marie if you don't feel comfortable using direct heat.
  
• Turn heat off and pour hot butter in thin stream, whisking constantly just like making a mayonnaise. Milk solids can be added to the sauce. Readjust seasoning and add chopped tarragon and chervil. To rewarm Béarnaise, run bottom pan quickly over the flame whisking swiftly for a few seconds.
  

Sous-Vide Technique Béarnaise

• I have to confess that in terms of results (texture and mouthfeel) this method surpasses my expectations. Set sous-vide device temperature to 174ºF/79ºC. In a ziploc bag, gather the reduced wine with egg yolks, salt and cubed butter. Place it in the water bath, being sure everything below the zip-line is covered by water. You can see how all the air is forced out of the pouch. Seal and immerse bag in the hot water and cook for 45 mins.
  
• Transfer mixture to a narrow container. Place head of immersion blender into the bottom of the container and mix until emulsion is achieved.
  
• Readjust seasoning and add herbs. The sauce is ready!
  

Fixing A Béarnaise or Hollandaise Sauce

• You could be professionally trained in cooking and still manage to separate your Béarnaise. It’s a fact, emulsion sauces sometimes “break” or separate. Just like when making mayonnaise, the main reason your sauce will separate is because the fat has been added too fast or the mixture has melted due to excessive heat. If your Béarnaise sauce separate, put the pan in the freezer for 10 minutes and quickly whisk back over the flame until it has returned to normal consistency. Another great way to fix a broken Béarnaise is to make a new batch and add the warm broken sauce to the new one; gradually.
  

The Best Way To Store Béarnaise

• Leftover Béarnaise can be stored in the refrigerator. Chilled Béarnaise can yet be used to season hot boiled potatoes and vegetables. Place chilled sauce in a saucier. Add a splash or hot water, turn on the heat (medium-low) and begin to gently whisk… and as it softens up, whisk faster until it has returned to normal consistency (runny mayonnaise), remove it from the heat and serve.
  

Wilted Spinach

• Wilted spinach is briefly cooked spinach until it just shrinks. So it's not soggy and mushy. This is the best way to eat this leafy vegetable. Wash spinach using a salad spinner. Heat up a large pot. Add a drizzle of oil along with a couple of crushed garlic cloves. Add a hand full of spinach give and toss around with a spatula. When it begins to wilt, add more greens and season with salt and pepper. Drain cooked spinach over a large strainer (save juice and garlic for later use).
  
• Wilted spinach can be reheated over the hot griddle where the meat was seared.

Barbecued Veggies

• To grill veggies, both indoor griddle and bbq can be used. Wash all veggies and prep as followed. Remove stems from bell peppers and cut in 4. Remove white membranes and seeds. Trim off zucchini and yellow squash ends and cut lengthwise. Place veggies and crushed garlic in a large bowl and season with oil, salt, pepper, fresh herbs such as thyme and add some grated parmesan. Toss veggies and set aside. Veggies can also be tossed in pesto.
  
• Set your outdoor barbecue according to manufacturers' instructions and grill veggies on both sides; reserve in the corner of the barbecue.
  
• Chop grilled veggies prior to serving.
  

Grilling Steak

• Leave steak out for an hour prior to cook. Heat up griddle or bbq on high heat. Pat dry meat and lightly grease both sides with high smoke point oil and season with salt. Divide into 8 ounce/250g portions. Grill meat on both sides for about 3 minutes. Season with ground black pepper. Transfer meat to a warm tray and let rest for 5 mins or so before carving.
  

Plating

• Carve meat. Arrange hot veggies on plate first, and followed by the sliced meat. Top meat with the rendered juice. Béarnaise sauce can be added under or over the meat. Enjoy!