Steak Frites is a classic French meal of steak and french fries. It sounds simple–and it can be–but the crispy potatoes and rich juicy steak come together into something that feels very special and fancy!
A well-known chef recently wrote an article espousing the ease and simplicity of creating steak frites for your loved one. According to this expert, one can whip up this meal for a group in a short 40 minutes! In that 40 minutes, one needs to cut up the potatoes, soak them in ice water, drain them, dry them, fry them, and then drain and set them aside. Once the fries are set aside, go ahead and cook your steaks by browning them on the stovetop before finishing them under the broiler. While the steaks broil, go ahead and refry those fries to crisp them up!
We don’t know about you, but just typing that description left us feeling a bit anxious! Imagine watching a steak under the broiler trying to make sure it doesn’t burn while deep frying a batch or two of fries!
Our recipe keeps the essence of steak frites while eliminating all those carefully timed steps!
We aren’t against fried foods–in fact, we enjoy them very much! But deep-frying is not something we casually pursue at home. The attention to detail and the mess is a lot! So, our frites (or fries) are baked! The key to crispy baked fries is to use enough oil and to bake them at a high temperature. We preheat a baking sheet along with the oven, so as soon as the fries hit that baking sheet they are sizzling.
So the fries are covered, how about the steak part of steak frites?
The secret to a fancy steak
What kind of steak for steak frites?
The kind of steak used for this dish varies depending on the region of France. When eating Steak Frites, we’ve experienced steaks as varied as rump steak to porterhouse. Our recommendation is to use the best steak you can find in your price range as well as your local market. After all, any steak that is prepared well is a good steak! For this recipe, we’re using a sirloin steak. If you are using a different type of steak and need specifics for cooking it, we’ve found Meat: Everything You Need to Know by Pat LaFrieda and Carolynn Carreño to be the best resource for specifics on cooking meat.
A good steak doesn’t need a lot of seasoning. This advice coming from a spice shop may be a surprise, but we really do believe in most cases less is more.
Our steak is simply seasoned with a good flake salt and freshly ground pepper. SpiceTopia’s Four Peppercorn Blend is perfect for steak as the richness of the meat can do with a little bit of extra sharp and fruity peppery flavors. Our Four Peppercorn blend which we blend right in the shop is a mix of:
- Tellicherry Pepper. Tellicherry pepper is a specific type of black pepper. It’s strong, earthy, slightly spicy bite is familiar to most.
- Green pepper. Green pepper is unripened black pepper. It has a fruitier, more mild taste than black pepper.
- Pink pepper. This pepper is not related to true peppercorns, but rather are the fruit of the Peruvian or Brazilian pepper trees. Pink Peppercorns bring a tart fruitiness to the blend.
- White pepper. White Pepper is black pepper that has had its outer layer soaked off. It is often used in dishes where black pepper may be visually unappealing. It is considered spicier than black pepper and adds a nice kick to steak and other rich dishes.
If you were to open our fridge, you’d see that our view of less is better does not apply to condiments!
And that spice friends is where we really add flavor in this recipe! Our condiment of choice for Steak Frites is a compound butter flavored with citrus and Dill Weed.
It’s a classic French way of flavoring simple dishes and is perfect for this dish!
If you’d like to learn more about the magic that is Compound Butters be sure to check out our Compound Butter Post.
So Let’s Get Cooking
Steak Frites in the Comfort of Your Home
Steak Frites Recipe
Compound Butter
Frites
Steak
Instructions
Compound Butter
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Using a fork, combine all ingredients together.
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Mound onto a piece of parchment paper, waxed paper or plastic wrap.
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Shape into a log about 5-6" in length. Wrap paper or plastic wrap around the log.
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Twist the paper or plastic wrap at the ends to seal the butter. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. This part of the recipe can be made up to 5 days ahead of time.
Frites
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Preheat your oven to 450°F. While the oven preheats, place two baking sheets in the oven to also preheat.
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Cut potatoes into fries about 1 inch thick.
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In a large bowl, place potatoes. Add oil and stir well. Then toss with salt and pepper.
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After the oven preheats, carefully remove baking sheets. Divide potatoes between the two baking sheets. Each potato piece should have direct contact with the baking sheet and should not touch another potato piece.
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Bake for 15 minutes.
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Toss the potatoes and bake for another 15 minutes.
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Remove from oven and taste for salt. Add more if needed.
Steak
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After the potatoes have baked for 15 minutes and are tossed, begin preparing your steak by seasoning with salt and pepper.
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Heat a large frying pan over high heat for 2-3 minutes. A cast-iron skillet works best for cooking meat at high temperatures.
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Add the oil to the pan. Heat until the oil shimmers. Add the steak and turn the heat down to medium.
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For a medium-rare steak, cook 3-5 minutes per side or until the steak’s interior temperature is 130°F. For a medium steak, you’ll want to cook for about 6 minutes on the first side and about 4 minutes on the second side. A medium steak temperature will be about 145°F.
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After cooking your steak, remove it from the heat and allow it to rest for 3-5 minutes. By this time, your frites should be ready to eat.
To Serve
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Slice your steak, place on your plate. Mound your frites around your steak. Top with compound butter.
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Enjoy!