Valentine's Day Recipe: Steak with Red Wine Sauce

Steak with Red Wine Sauce

Steak is a classic dish for Valentine's Day and it's no wonder why. It is satisfying, romantic, indulgent, and downright tasty. You can cook a perfect steak at home in a smoking-hot cast-iron skillet. While the steak rests, it takes only a few minutes to make a simple red wine sauce in the skillet.

Serves 2

1 10-ounce boneless beef steak, cut 1 inch thick (such as ribeye, flat iron, or New York strip)
¼ cup very finely chopped shallot
1 cup red wine
3 sprigs thyme
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Remove the steak from the refrigerator and pat it dry with paper towels. Season it generously with salt on both sides--¼ teaspoon per side is about right. Let the steak warm up at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

Heat a cast-iron skillet over high heat for 5 minutes. The skillet should be smoking hot, so much so that you're a little worried about it. Place the steak into the skillet and don't move it for 1 minute. Flip the steak and let it cook on the second side for another minute. Continue to cook the steak, flipping it over every minute or so, until it has developed a dark-brown crust on both sides, about 4 minutes total. For medium-rare, the internal temperature of the steak should reach 125°F or so in the skillet (and it will rise another 5 degrees while it rests). If you don't have an instant-read thermometer, you can use your finger to press on the center of the steak -- it should feel less squishy than it did when it was raw, but not overly springy or firm like a flexed muscle. When it's done, remove the steak from the skillet, set it on a plate, and tent with foil. Let the steak rest for at least 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the red wine sauce. Reduce the heat under the skillet to low. Add the shallot and stir constantly, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the skillet. Once the shallot has softened, add the red wine, thyme, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook until the wine has reduced to about ¼ cup, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and swirl in the butter. Once the butter has completely melted, taste the sauce for seasoning and add another pinch of salt, if needed.

To serve, hold a sharp knife at a slight angle and cut the steak into thick slices on the diagonal. Grind some black pepper over the steak, then drizzle the red wine sauce on top.

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