Charred Cowboy Steak with Whiskey Butter
This is my favorite steak preparation. The grilled bone-in cowboy steak (a.k.a. ribeye) is made that much better by finishing it with a pat of Whiskey Butter. My Whiskey Butter is a “compound butter” which is a chef term for a flavored butter that you finish a dish with instead of a complicated sauce. The best thing about a compound butter is that it tastes even better than a sauce and is a breeze to make! Since oil and water, or butter and bourbon—in this case—don’t mix, I soak chopped shallots in a tablespoon of bourbon and mix the shallots into soft butter, add a bit of coarse salt, white pepper and chopped curly parsley for a multi-use whiskey butter that finishes any dish just like the chef at your favorite restaurant.
Whiskey Butter:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 shallots minced, soaked in Uncle Nearest or favorite Bourbon
3 teaspoons minced parsley
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 teaspoons Uncle Nearest or favorite Bourbon
½ teaspoon sea salt
White pepper to taste
2 Bone-in ribeye steaks, sometimes called a Cowboy Steak about 1 pound each and at least 1-inch thick
Olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper, optional
Parsley, chopped for garnish
Make Butter at least 3 hours in advance. Combine butter, shallot, parsley, Worcestershire, mustard, Bourbon, salt and pepper. Mix well. On a piece of Saran Wrap, drop butter in spoon-fuls to form a log. Roll butter in plastic wrap and smooth out to form a round log. Refrigerate until hard and easy to cut into pieces.
Preheat grill or build a charcoal fire. While the grill is preheating, allow meat to come to room temperature about 20 minutes before grilling. Wrap meat in paper towels to get rid of excess moisture. Just before grilling, brush both sides of the steaks with oil and season with salt and pepper.
Place steaks directly over Medium High heat for about 5 minutes. Turn steaks and continue cooking for about 5 more minutes for medium rare. Remove the steaks from the grill and allow to rest at least 5 minutes but no longer than 10 before serving.
Cut the Whiskey Butter into four generous slices. Serve the steaks warm with the butter. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired.
Serves 4 normal appetites or 2 hungry cowboys!
©ELIZABETH KARMEL 2019