Steak With Coffee Sauce

Recipe by Paula.

I first tried this dish on my last trip to Portugal. Now, the combination of meat and coffee might seem a little strange at first but I fell in love with it. The bitterness of the coffee goes well with the sweetness of beef, especially sirloin. You can always adjust the strength of the coffee to suit your taste. Weaker coffee, milder taste. If you like a strong coffee flavour, use a shot of espresso instead. You can also adjust the amount of cream you use to get just the right flavour combination for yourself. Enjoy!

Serves 2

Ingredients:
2 6 oz sirloin steaks, room temperature
2 cloves garlic, peeled, smashed
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon oil
1 bay leaf
Good splash of Port or red wine
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup strong coffee

Directions:

1. Rub both sides of the steaks with the garlic then season with salt and pepper. Reserve the garlic.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. The frying pan should be just big enough to hold both steaks.

3. Add the steaks and cook on both sides until you achieve your desired doneness. For medium, I do 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the steaks from the pan and cover with foil to keep warm.

4. Add last tablespoon of butter, smashed garlic and the bay leaf to the pan. Cook for 1 minute taking care to not let the garlic burn.

5. Increase the heat to medium high and add a good splash of port or red wine to the pan. Stir and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

6. Add the cream, coffee and any meat juices from the reserved steaks to the pan. Adjust the salt and pepper to your liking. Let the mixture bubble up and thicken to sauce consistency. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve to catch the garlic & bay leaf.

7. Plate the steaks and spoon the sauce over them. Serve with roast or fried potatoes.