The second best steak in Galway without a doubt comes from the Malt House. If you want the perfect steak and chips - that's where you go. It's rib-eye and enormously tasty. Bar 8 on the docks comes a close third. But the very best steak in Galway comes from my house. Now, I'm not really one to blow my own trumpet (I come from a family of trumpet blowers – some of them play the trumpet, you see), but I firmly believe that this is the best steak I've had.
Tonight was 'Steak Night' - and there are two rules to follow, which, if you have those down, you will never order steak out again. Firstly - make friends with the local butcher, supermarket steak is not a good idea. Secondly - a cast iron griddle pan that is left to get dangerously hot and then a bit hotter than that (mine was donated by my mother-in-law who felt that the weight of it and her little wrists were not meant to be together). Ideally, 1 or 2 mins on each side for the steak - or a tiny bit longer if you don't like it rare, serve with sauteed potatoes and a little salad and an easy hollandaise from the blender (instructions follow).
Hollandaise is one of those frightening things like custard that can go very wrong. This method takes the fear out of it and it will sit nicely in a warm spot for a little while - people that tell you to make it in advance and put it in a flask are mental! Have you ever tried to wash a flask that has had hollandaise in?
The easiest way to get perfect Hollandaise is to use a blender. This recipe has most of the same ingredients as the classic, but with no double boiler and no chance of the sauce separating.
Ingredients
2 egg yolks
A dash of Llewellyns balsamic vinegar
Juice of half a lemon
5 drops of tabasco
2 ounces butter
Directions
In a blender, combine the egg yolks, vinegar, lemon juice and hot pepper sauce. Cover and blend for about 5 seconds. Place the butter in a glass measuring cup. Heat butter in the microwave (or Aga) for about 1 minute, or until completely melted and hot. Set the blender on high speed, and pour the butter into the egg yolk mixture in a thin stream. It should thicken almost immediately. Keep the sauce in a warm spot until serving.
Enjoy!
Sounds fab. Amee...but I will have to hold you to a challenge on the steaks ...becuase I think we actually serve the best steaks in Galway. The gauntlet has been thrown.
ReplyDeleteIt is on like donkey kong.
Deletealdi sell by far the best steak! And I firmly believe my mum cooks it best in Galway!
ReplyDeleteMaybe so. I get mine from a small (and a bit dirty) butchers in Shrule, Co. Mayo. His beef is amazeballs as they say on the twitter.
DeleteI've learned not to judge a butchers by their appearance. Having spent much more for a fancy looking butchers with disappointing results, I found that meath street butchers in Dublin - old fashioned, liberties dublin - to have the best meat. Goes to show, don't judge a book!
DeleteI agree totally. My butchers has two torn stools by way of decoration, but the local farmers who supplied the beef and lamb are listed on the wall and the quality is fantastic. He takes the carcasses out from the freezer and cuts your order in front of you and minces meat when asked instead of scooping from a pile of pre-minced meat. He keeps me the oxtail and the kidneys that he knows I'm fond of too. A good butcher also throws in some local gossip for free.
DeleteI fell a cook off coming on Ron, Me and Anonymous's Mammy :)
ReplyDelete