FEATURED RECIPE: Grilled Rib-Eye With Tomato Pan Sauce
Due to the richness of the Wagyu steak, a simple, flavorful side dish is always the best way to go. It brings the palate to life and really helps the flavors of the Wagyu shine! Texture is everything with this dish, from the perfectly grilled Wagyu, to the juicy tomatoes, to the crisp spinach and finally the crunchy shallots.
INGREDIENTS
4 Wagyu Rib-eye steaks, brought to room temperature
baby spinach leaves, cleaned
Tomato Pan Sauce:
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb baby potatoes, cleaned, quartered and dried
8 oz cherry tomatoes, halved
8 oz yellow pear tomatoes, halved
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 Tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped
3 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp white wine vinegar
salt and black pepper to taste
Crispy Shallots (yields 1 cup):
2-3 cups peanut or canola oil
3 medium shallots, peeled and sliced into thin rings
3 cups All-purpose flour
1/2 cup bread crumbs
salt and pepper
DIRECTIONS
In a large sauté pan, over medium-high heat, melt the butter and olive oil. Add the potatoes and cook for approximately 6-8 minutes, shaking the pan and turning the potatoes when needed. You want each side of the potato to become crispy and golden and the potatoes to be cooked through.
Tomato Pan Sauce:
Add the tomatoes to the pan and sauté for 3-4 minutes or until the tomatoes just begin to soften. Add the thyme, basil, balsamic and white wine vinegar to pan. Turn off heat and season with salt and pepper. In medium size mixing bowl, add shallots, flour, bread crumbs and salt and pepper. Mix to coat shallots completely with flour.
Crispy Shallots:
In medium sauce pan, add oil and heat to 325F. Once oil is hot, use your fingers to break shallots into smaller rings. Shake off excess flour from shallots and add to oil. Do not over-crowd oil or shallots will not crisp up. Cook shallots in oil until they become golden brown- approximately 1-2 minutes. Remove from oil, drain and transfer to paper-towel lined plate. Season lightly with salt.
To Grill Wagyu Steaks:
Heat cast-iron grill pan until it becomes very hot. Lightly season Wagyu steaks with salt on both sides. Add steaks to grill pan and let cook for approx. 2-3 minutes. Flip over and cook another 2 minutes. Make sure to get a nice grilled crust on each side of steak. Remove from heat and set aside. (Wagyu steaks are best served medium-rare.)
Plating:
To plate dish, add fresh spinach leaves to plate. Top spinach with tomato pan sauce, drizzling liquid around plate. Top with Wagyu steak and finish off with crispy shallots.