Dry-Aged Rib Eye au Poivre

Dry-aged meat is one of the best favors you could ever do for yourself. It can be a little hard to find, but a lot of specialty butchers now offer it for sale, frozen, online. Eat this before you die. Dry aging beef is costly business, because the beef has to be kept very cold and dry for days upon days. It also has to be done with the best cuts of meat, because the marbling (fat/meat ratio) has to be high. It tastes better than money. The process removes moisture from the meat, which amps up the beefy favor. Think about the amount of water in a cup of coffee versus an espresso, and you'll understand what I'm saying. Next, enzymes in the meat start to break down connective tissue, which is the stuff that makes meat tough. Good mold--whose existence may not be the best selling point--is what helps this process along and, like the kind in awesome cheese, gives the meat a whisper of delicious funk. Normally a steak au poivre dabbles in a funky/fresh balance, with fresh meat and a ton of aged (black) peppercorns. But here the dish cannonballs into funky freshness by swapping the attributes of the core ingredients, so the aged black-peppered beef seesaws with the green peppercorn, the fresh peppercorn, which works like a peppery Binaca blast to the rich, funk-whispered beef. Most poivre sauces call for cognac, but I freshen mine up more with vodka. If you are nervous about flambéing, just don't use the vodka at all and instead add another 2 ounces beef broth; otherwise, read the directions carefully and keep a fire extinguisher handy. This is the best á-la-minute dish in the book.

NotesThe Maillard Reaction

The Maillard reaction, or the browning of foods as they cook, is why I say "brown things taste like brown things." Think about it! Nuts, caramel, whiskey, oatmeal, coffee, and chocolate all sound pretty good together, and that's because of browning. When things roast or toast, sugars react, turn brown (caramelization), and create hundreds of desirable new favors.

Preparation Time10 min

Preparation Time - Text10 minutes

Cooking Time10 min

Cooking Time - Text10

Cooking Methodpan-frying

CostSplurge

Total Timeunder 1 hour

Make Ahead RecipeYes

Kid FriendlyYes

One Pot MealYes

OccasionCooking for a date, Formal Dinner Party

Recipe Coursemain course

Dietary Considerationegg-free, gluten-free, peanut free, soy free, tree nut free

Five Ingredients or LessYes

Mealdinner

Taste and Texturemeaty, savory