One of my favourite steak sauces – a creamy Peppercorn Sauce made with brandy or cognac, beef broth, cream and plenty of crushed peppercorns. A steakhouse classic, this sauce with juicy steak is a match made in heaven. And it’s made with just 4 ingredients. Four. FOUR!!!
In my corporate days, I frequented steakhouses quite regularly for work lunches and dinners. Steak more than any other type of restaurant, probably given the male dominated environments I worked in (not a feminist dig there, just stating a fact!).
I would always have the best intentions to “just” get a salad this time, no dessert for me and don’t bother with a bread basket.
Pfff! Bring me a big juicy steak! With peppercorn or red wine sauce!
Oh – and while you’re at it, pretty please could you bring the bread basket back? I need something to mop up the sauce!
No corporate lunches for me anymore. I make my steaks at home!
THIS CREAMY PEPPERCORN SAUCE
There are a handful of truly great sauces in this world that are deceptively simple to make, and this Creamy Peppercorn Sauce is one of them.
Essential to this steak sauce are: the pan drippings after searing the steak (it’s gold, that stuff!), brandy or cognac and peppercorns – either fresh crushed (my preference) or canned green peppercorns (for less heat).
The alcohol brings incredible depth of flavour to the sauce, it’s the secret ingredient. Classic creamy peppercorn sauce is made cognac or brandy, but I’ve made this plenty of times with marsala too. I love ’em all!
PS Note how I’m searing the sides of the steak ↑↑↑ Always sear the fat strip. Nobody likes a big fat rubbery strip of fat on their steak!
QUICK FOR MIDWEEK!!
This is a quick dinner. Real quick. In a smoking hot skillet, a 2cm / 4/5″ New York Strip / Porterhouse (pictured) takes 5 – 6 minutes, then the sauce takes 3 – 4 minutes while the steak rests.
Serve it up with Crispy Smashed Potatoes and a quick Garlic Spinach side (I popped the recipe in the notes 😇) – Nagi x
PS It’s worth getting a decent steak for this one. If you get a really good value economy steak, try my Steak Marinade instead – it will tenderise and add subtle flavour. 🙂
One of the best steak sauces in this world! It's super simple because it's made using the steak drippings and either brandy or cognac. The alcoholic taste is cooked out and you're left with an amazing sweet/savoury/creamy sauce with great depth of flavour and beautiful pops of heat from the peppercorns. Use crushed black peppercorns for spicier or canned green peppercorns for more mild heat. Recipe video below.
- 2 x 300g/10oz New York Strip / Porterhouse steaks (or other of choice, Note 1)
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup / 85 ml brandy or cognac (or marsala) (Note 2)
- 3/4 cup / 185 ml beef broth , low sodium (important! Note 3)
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml heavy / thickened cream
- 2 - 3 tsp coarsely crushed whole black peppercorns (or canned green peppercorns, drained) (Note 4)
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Take the steaks out of the fridge 20 minutes before planning to cook.
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Crush the pepper using a rolling pin, mortar and pestle or the side of a hardy knife.
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Just before cooking, sprinkle both sides of steak generously with salt and black pepper.
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Heat oil in a skillet over high heat until smoking.
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Add steaks and cook the first side for 2 minutes until it has a great crust, then flip and cook the other side for 2 minutes (for medium rare).
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Stack the steaks on top of each other, then use tongs to sear the fat strip.
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Transfer to plate, cover loosely with foil to rest while you make the sauce.
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Add brandy or cognac into the same skillet and let it simmer rapidly, scraping the bottom of the pan, until it has mostly reduced and you can no longer smell the harsh alcohol smell (~1 min).
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Add broth, bring to simmer and let it simmer rapidly for 2 to 3 minutes or until it reduces by half.
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Turn heat down to medium. Add cream and pepper, stir, then simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes until it thickens (do not let it boil rapidly).
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Taste sauce, adjust salt (and pepper!) to taste.
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Transfer steaks to warmed serving plates. Spoon over sauce. Serve immediately! Pictured with Crispy Smashed Potatoes and Garlic Spinach. (Note 6)
1. Use a decent quality steak for this recipe. If using a very economical steak, I'd recommend my steak marinade instead of this recipe - it will tenderise and infuse with great flavour!
2. If you can't use alcohol, use the recipe in Note 5 and instead of using brandy in step 1, add 1/4 cup of non alcoholic red wine or water.
3. Do not make this sauce with full salt beef broth. The sauce will end up too salty because it's reduced down. If you only have full salt beef stock, then follow the recipe in Note 5 (in the same skillet) and use only 1/3 cup of beef broth and add 1/3 cup of water in place of the beef broth int he recipe. The extra flavour steps will compensate for use of less broth.
4. Black peppercorns are spicier which I like for this recipe. Little pops of heat tempered by the sweetness and creaminess of the sauce. Canned green peppercorns are not as spicy and have a milder flavour.
5. Peppercorn Sauce without pan drippings - If you make the steaks on the BBQ and still want this sauce, make the recipe as follows: Melt 1.5 tbsp / 25g butter in a skillet over medium heat, add 1 tbsp very finely chopped eschallots/shallots (the small purple onions) and sauté gently for 1 minute. Then add brandy or cognac per recipe, increase heat to high. Proceed with recipe.
6. Garlic Spinach or Silverbeet: Heat olive oil in a skillet, add garlic, cook for 20 seconds, add spinach and stir until just starting to wilt. Remove, set aside, proceed with steak.
7. Nutrition is for sauce only because the nutrition of steaks varies so significantly, even for the same cut depending on how thick the fat strip is etc. The recipe makes about 3/4 cup of sauce which is enough for 2 steaks - it's rich and fairly intense flavoured so you don't need tons.
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
LIFE OF DOZER
Mandatory post op daily icing involves building blocks, frozen veg and Dozer with his eyes closed the whole time – “OMG it’s so cold, it’s so cold, it’s soooo cooold!!!”
I’m always on the look out for good peppercorn sauce recipes. Thinking on trying this later. One fairly amateur question though. What do you use for the broth? In the UK we tend to use stocks (not sure if that’s the same thing). Often we’ll dissolve a stock cube or stock pot into about 500ml of water. Would you reduce that down to 185ml or use 185ml of the original 500ml? Or do you use something different entirely?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Stuart, yes stock/broth is the same thing. I’d just make up 185ml of stock or if it’s easier to make the full 500ml, use what you need and freeze the rest for later!
Thanks Nagi!
I think the ones I have suggest dissolving into 500ml water. So I guess I’ll just use 185ml of that? I thought about dissolving the whole cube into 185ml of water but I think that’ll be too strong?
Yes that will be too salty, I would just make up 500ml and freeze what you don’t use 🙂
It’s my husband’s new favorite dish! I used one whole can of beef consumme instead of broth and let it reduce. He loves it!! Thanks for the recipe!
Can someone please tell me the name of the song in the video?! Also great sauce we added a touch of French mustard for sweetness
Hi Nagi!
LOVED this sauce. My fave steakhouse in Melbourne (station hotel in footscray) does an amazing peppercorn sauce and this rivaled it.
My only note (and I’m sure it was obvious to everyone else haha) was that I passed the sauce through a sieve after it was ready – otherwise I had too many peppercorn bits in the sauce and made the texture a bit weird.
Also I (stupidly) used eye fillet for this – no pan juices. Lesson learned for next time. Can’t wait to make it again.
Thanks for your wonderful recipe!
Ps Hi Dozer!
Hi Adi! Glad you were able to adjust this to your taste! And thanks for the reminder re: eye fillet, I will add a note about this! (I use loads of butter when I cook eye fillet 🙂 ) N x
Update – I cooked this again with porterhouse and used some shallots as well. Mind BLOWN.
Thank you so much, Ms. Nagi! I just found your website this evening as I was looking for a ‘smash potato’ recipe. I made them straight away; they were fantastic!
Considering the success of the potatoes, I decided to browse your recipe index. I am blown away with all of the fantastic options, and looking forward to trying them all. However, this recipe is the next on my list.
When I was a little girl I was allowed to choose anything I’d like to eat for my birthday dinner. Every year I selected the same thing; steak with a creamy peppercorn sauce, macaroni and cheese, and spinach. My father’s peppercorn sauce used whisky in place of the cognac, but that’s the only alteration I’ll make. My birthday is just over a week away, and now I’m looking forward to ushering in my 30th year with your steak and macaroni and cheese. Thank you for the fond memories of yesterday, and tomorrow. God bless you, your loved ones, and this website. <3
An early HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you Ann!! I love hearing your birthday food choices – YUM!!!
Should I pour away the oil leftover from cooking the steak before I start making the sauce?
My sauce is too watery for some reason, I followed the recipe exactly but halved the amount since it was for one steak. Is it ok to continue simmering the sauce until it is creamy enough? Will the steak be overcooked? Or can I make the sauce first instead?
I love this dish; an old favorite I’ve made many times. The calorie content listed on the nutrition information seems off.
Hi Phyllis! I’ll have a look at it now – thanks for noting that! N x
Omg. Put the brandy in and whoosh. Fire ball. Dogs went berserk. Made me laugh. Husband thought I was burning the house down
Woah! Glad you were level headed about it!!! Miss the skillet?? Yes brandy will catch on fire!!!
Hi Nagi! Can I substitute the brandy/cognac with red wine?
Thanks!
Madi
Hi Madi! Not for this one, sorry! You’d need a lot more red wine to make a red wine sauce. Will post one soon! N x
Hi Nagi. How long should I cook the steak if I would like it to be medium instead of medium rare? Thanks!
Nagi this recipe is absolutely yummy. My husband and daughter even commented about how lovely this meal was. Thank you for this recipe.
Made this tonight! Wow, it was delicious, excellent recipe.
That’s so great to hear Tracy! I’m so pleased you enjoyed this, thank you for letting me know! N x