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Steak with Bordelaise sauce, shoestring fries and watercress salad

Steak with Bordelaise sauce, shoestring fries and watercress salad

“There is nothing more enjoyable than the steak with Bordelaise sauce at Melbourne’s L’Oustal and a big bottle of gutsy red. We would love to replicate it at home. Would you please ask chef Daniel Southern to share his recipe?”
Ben and Edden Asben, Ocean Shores, NSW

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Steak with Bordelaise sauce, shoestring fries and watercress salad

Serves 4
Steak
100 gm   beef bone marrow, cut into 1cm pieces (see note)
20 gm   butter
4   golden shallots, thinly sliced
1 tsp   sherry vinegar
1 tsp   thickened cream
½ tsp (3-4 drops)   lemon juice
400 gm   frozen shoestring fries, to serve
For deep-frying:   vegetable oil
1 tbsp   olive oil
4 (220 gm each)   chateaubriand or scotch fillet steaks (see note)
50 gm   watercress, washed, leaves picked and dried, to serve
Walnut vinaigrette
1½ tsp   walnut oil
20 ml   extra-virgin olive oil
½ tsp   Dijon mustard
1 tsp   white wine vinegar
½ tsp   sherry vinegar
Red wine sauce
750 ml   shiraz or cabernet
100 ml   ruby port
4   golden shallots, thinly sliced
1 head   garlic, halved widthways
2 sprigs   thyme
1   fresh bay leaf
1 tsp   whole black peppercorns, crushed
100 ml   chicken stock
100 ml   veal or beef stock


1 For red wine sauce, combine all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until reduced to 1 cup. Remove from heat, add chicken and veal stocks, return to the boil and cook for 15 minutes or until reduced by half, then strain through a fine sieve, discarding solids.
2 Blanch bone marrow in boiling water for a few seconds, drain on absorbent paper and set aside. Heat butter in a frying pan over low heat and cook shallot for 5 minutes or until soft but not coloured. Increase heat to medium, add sherry vinegar and boil for a few seconds. Add red wine sauce, bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until thick and reduced to 1 cup. Add bone marrow, cream and lemon juice and season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set sauce aside and cover to keep warm.
3 Heat vegetable oil in a deep-fryer or large deep saucepan to 180C-190C and deep-fry fries for 3-5 minutes or until golden and crisp, then drain on absorbent paper and season with sea salt.
4 Heat olive oil in a large frying pan on high heat and cook steaks for 3 minutes on each side for medium rare or until cooked to your liking, then rest for 5 minutes.
5 For walnut vinaigrette, whisk together ingredients in a bowl to combine and season to taste. Place watercress in a separate bowl, drizzle with vinaigrette and toss to combine.
6 To serve, place steaks onto plates, spoon over warm Bordelaise sauce and serve with fries and watercress salad on the side.

Note Beef bone marrow is available from butchers, but you may need to pre-order it. Chauteaubriand fillet is a thick cut from the tenderloin and is available from Vic’s Premium Quality Meat. Chef Daniel Southern’s preferred beef supplier is John Dee.

RECIPE Chef Daniel Southern, L'Oustal (edited by Adelaide Lucas) PHOTOGRAPHY Con Poulos STYLING Vanessa Austin


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