At this point we will take a break from the Prices. Don’t worry, we will come back to them. I have barely lifted the crust of the deep dish pie that is A Treasury of Great Recipes. Just remember that this pie is as likely to contain jellied meat as anything.
But in the meantime, I ought to actually cook something. Not that there aren’t things I can cook in A Treasury of Great Recipes, but so far the only things that seem doable are cookies or desserts. As for main courses, I keep getting distracted by things like Polynesian Coconut Duckling or Königsberger Klops. What I need is something relatively simple, not too terribly expensive, that will appeal to Matt, while keeping me interested.
It is time to turn to Fondue, Chafing Dish and Casserole Cookery by Margaret Deeds Murphy. I’d really like to use the chafing dish again: the drama! The easy cleanup! And Mrs. Murphy seems to know that the exotic cooking equipment is novelty enough: she doesn’t load up her ingredient list with saffron or three kinds of meat.
She has a recipe for Steak Diane that looks good. I’ve made Steak Diane successfully (i.e. Matt liked it), but the recipe I used in the past was made in a skillet and used as a crêpe filling. The basic formula is the same: steak lightly sauced with mustard.
The first hurdle is always meat selection. It ought to be simple, yes? One pound boneless sirloin steak.
The thing is, I have to admit I’m not very good with the packages of meat at the grocery store. Really buying meat in general. Whether I go to an actual butcher shop or to the butcher counter, or select from among the wrapped Styrofoam trays, whatever cut was called for in the recipe doesn’t seem to be available, only available in quantities more suited to a mess hall than my kitchen. I’ve read and re-read all about the primal cuts, and the difference between chuck and round, but when I get to the store I can’t keep sirloin, tenderloin and top loin straight, much less filet mignon vs. “tournedo of beef”. I write down what it is I want but nothing at the store is labeled that way, and I’m not sure if that’s because they don’t have it, or they just call it something else. Substitution is fraught with peril. Tip steak and sirloin tip just do not work the same.
Matt is quite knowledgeable about meats. He has been cooking daily for years now, loves meat and studies it like a Mets fan and the box scores. When we’re at the store and he heads to the meat department, I usually wander over to the bakery to look at the pretty cakes because he has to examine everything from chops to skirt steak. More than a few of my cookbooks point out that any fool can make a tasty meal out of an expensive steak, but it takes a truly skilled cook to make a good meal out of a cheap cut. (This is usually before the section on organ meats) Matthew is a Master of Chuck, a Magician of Brisket. He always selects his meat with an eye on the price, and he will go for quantity over quality every time.
I am of course, the dilettante who would always choose a tiny, expensive piece of meat over the solid trencherman’s slab. So whenever I ask Matt’s advice on which cut of meat I could substitute, I always suspect he is steering me towards some tough piece that is completely unsuitable for the delicate recipe I have in mind.
Luckily this time around I was able to find a package of meat that matched my recipe. It only took about twenty minutes, and it was twice as much as I really needed, but now I have everything I need. Tonight’s cooking performance starts at six.
Photo from New Delineator Recipes.
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