Steak with Red Wine Sauce Reduction

If you follow our blog you've probably noticed that Brit and I don't eat much red meat and usually adapt our recipes to use turkey instead of pork or beef when necessary. So, as a treat, we decided we would celebrate Valentine's Day by cooking up some red meat in a special meal. Now, for a special occasion like this, we couldn't just cook any regular dish, but instead we felt obligated to cook ourselves a steak meal. Again, we couldn't just cook any regular steak, but instead we felt obligated (and excited!) to buy some grass-fed beef from our local farmer's market. So, we splurged and bought us both a very tasty looking sirloin and rib-eye steak. I decided I would cook a wine reduction sauce for the steaks and to serve everything over brown rice alongside roast Brussels sprouts and green beans. This is going to be a feast!

The wine reduction sauce was made with onion, Shiitake mushroom, half a bottle of Pinot Noir, balsamic vinegar, and a sprig of rosemary (If I were to cook this again I would also throw in a few sliced shallots). The onion was sliced and sauteed for a few minutes. The Shiitake mushrooms were also sliced and then added to the onions. The mushrooms were cooked for a while until most of the moisture had come out of the mushrooms and evaporated. I then added in the wine, about 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, and the sprig of rosemary. The sauce was simmered for a while until the sauce had reduced, thickened, and the flavor had intensified. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In the meantime, I cooked the brown rice that had been seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cumin.

Additionally, Brit roasted the Brussels sprouts by slicing them in half and giving them a quick splash of olive oil and then seasoned with salt and pepper. They were then roasted for 25 minutes at 450 F.

As the brown rice and Brussels sprouts came close to finishing, the green beans were steamed and then seasoned with salt, pepper, and white balsamic vinegar.

Prior to starting anything the steaks were brought to room temperature and patted dry. About 10-15 minutes before everything was going to be done I generously seasoned the steaks on both sides with salt and pepper. I also started heating up a cast-iron grill pan on medium heat. Once we knew all the additional components of the meal were complete I sprayed the grill with some non-stick spray and added both sticks to the grill. Each side was cooked for 2 minutes and absolutely no more than 2 minutes.

The steaks were perfectly medium rare and so incredibly juicy and tender. The brown rice was well cooked, the wine sauce fantastic, and the greens delicious. I especially loved Brit's roasted Brussels sprouts. I can't wait until next Valentine's Day!