I spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Kitchener-Waterloo area (just over an hour southwest of Toronto) and I stopped by one of southern Ontario’s best butcher shops, Brady’s in Waterloo (with a second location in the St. Jacob’s Market). This family-owned butcher shop has beef, pork, poultry, wild game, lots of local and exotic pantry items and if he (Rob Brady) doesn’t have it – he can usually order it.
I dropped off some Moussaka for Rob to try and he comp’d me a couple of Prince Edward Island (PEI) grass-fed ribeye beef steaks. This past Thanksgiving was cold so I wasn’t up for outdoor grilling and I’m thankful I didn’t. Otherwise this recipe may not have come to being.
Once again, I used some ingredients left in the fridge like som leftover thyme, rosemary and Cremini, Oyster and King mushrooms. I also had some dried figs, which I adore in the cold months. They remind me the summer that just past when I was eating ripe, jam-sweet picked right from the tree.
The sauce is savoury but teases with some sweetness from the figs and Greece’s most well-known fortified wine, Mavrodaphne. This is a sexy dish, Greek bistro if you will and you can pull it off weekdays or weekends, for family or friends!
Ribeye With Mushroom, Mavrodaphne & Fig Sauce
Marinade
(per steak)
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. sweet paprika
1 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. dried Greek oregano
coarse sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Sauce
(enough for four steaks)
1/3 cup diced red onions
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/3 cup Mavrodaphne wine (or other fortified wine)
1 cup beef stock
1 1/2 – 2 cups assorted mushrooms, sliced/chopped
1 cup of dried figs, re-hydrated in hot water, halved
- Add the olive oil, Dijon, garlic, allspice, paprika, Worcestershire in a bowl and quickly whisk then sub onto your steak(s) and cover and place in the fridge for one to two hours. Return to room temperature before grilling and season with fresh ground pepper and coarse sea salt.
- Pre-heat your oven to 375F and place a large cast iron pan on your stovetop over high heat. Add a couple of drizzles of olive oil into the pan and place your steaks in the pan and sear for about 3 minutes or until a nice deep brown crust has formed.
- Flip the steaks and carefully place in the pan into your pre-heated oven for another 6 minutes for medium-rare. Carefully remove the hot pan and place on your stovetop, remove the steaks and tent with foil to keep warm.
- In the meantime, turn the heat onto to medium and add your onions, mushrooms and garlic and stir to pick up the brown bits (add some olive oil if needed) for 3 minutes. Now add the wine, stock, rehydrated figs, thyme and rosemary and stir in and simmer while occasionally stirring until the sauce has thickened (if the sauce coats the back of a wooden spoon you’re done). Adjust seasoning.
- Remove the foil from your steaks (pour any juices into your sauce) and slice in half and mound in the center of your plate and spoon over some sauce.
- Serve with Feta mashed potatoes and pair with Kir Yanni Kali Riza Xinomavro red.
4 Responses
Απ’ όλα τα καλά έχει αυτό το πιάτο σου Πήτερ, και το κρέας δείχνει τόσο ζουμερό και νόστιμο!
Φιλάκια!
πραγματικά είσαι πολύ ταλαντουχος Πητερ, φοβερό πιάτο!
This looks like such a delicious combination! Figs and wine just sing of the autumn!
Υπέροχο και τέλεια μελωμένη η σαλτσούλα του!!!