Pork Steak Au Poivre with Roasted Peppercorns

Rich, spicy, and  decadent, but easy enough to fix for a midweek meal.  We made this twice last week with different cuts of pork.  This is inspired by a recipe that came with our Weber grill many years ago. The original uses beef, but when in Poland. . .   I always love the flavors; you just can’t go wrong with shallots, brandy, cream and mustard.  The sauce is luxurious and it makes you feel rich eating it.

This time we used roasted peppercorns after reading Vicki’s comment on another food blog.  (I tried to go back, so I could link to the original comment, but I just couldn’t find it.)  We bought a variety of pepper corns and tossed them in a frying pan, stirring the over medium heat for about 15 minutes.  For this recipe, we gave them a very coarse grind in a coffee (or spice) grinder that we have dedicated to pepper.  A pepper mill or mortar and pestle  would both work as well. Some will say that roasting intensifies the pepper flavor.  I thought it was more mellow, less harsh – kind of like roasted garlic compared to raw garlic.

Ingredients

Pork steak or chops, to serve 4
salt & coarsely ground peppercorns (roasted as described above)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup diced shallot
2 – 4 tablespoons brandy
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

• Season the pork with salt and generous amounts of pepper
• Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.
• Add the meat and cook to desired doneness, adjusting the heat as necessary.
• Transfer the meat to a serving platter.
• Add butter and shallots to the frying pan.
• Cook until translucent.
• Add brandy, allow the liquid to heat up and then carefully, light with a match.
• When the flame has burned out, stir in the mustard and cream, keeping on the heat for just a minute or two.
• Pour the sauce over the meat.

Serves 4

Lois Britton

An accountant by trade and a food blogger since 2009, Lois Britton fell in love with Polish cuisine during the years she lived in Poznań, Poland. As the creator of PolishHousewife.com,  she loves connecting readers with traditional Polish recipes. Lois has a graduate certificate in Food Writing and Photography from the University of South Florida. She is the author of The Polish Housewife Cookbook, available on Amazon and on her website.