Sirloin with Wine Infused Bacon

Sometimes, the best plate is a simple plate, and this is what this dish is, simple to make, but deceptively delicious.

It is classic steak and potatoes, but with a small added twist that can make a whole of difference - bacon.

Cooking the beef is as what I have described in an earlier post for my mushroom risotto with sirloin.

I choose sirloin as it is a nice cut and yet not as expensive as ribeye, but you can basically get the same beef goodness if you cook it right. And as before, season the beef well on both sides.

A tip is to always use a paper towel to pat the beef to make sure there is no additional moisture on the meat, as sometimes you may have just thawed the beef prior to cooking, and there is a considerable amount of water to get rid of.

Heat up a pan until it is hot and add the olive oil. Place the beef down on one side and let it sear for about 2 to 3 mins. Turn it over and bast it with butter continuously.

I had gotten a few emails on what is basting. Essentially, you take about a tablespoon of butter (adjust for more or less depending on how many steaks you pan fry at a time), and let it melt by the side of the pan.

As the butter melts, take a tablespoon and swiftly pour the melted butter liquid over the top of the beef continuously. This is to ensure that the steak is evenly cooked on both sides.

You can refer to a video where I was basting a salmon, but it is basically the same idea with beef. Basting with butter also gives a very aromatic buttery flavor to the meat and subsequently, the juices from the beef and the butter can be used as a deglaze, which we will get to later.

After basting for another couple of mins, remove the sirloin from the pan and let it sit for at least 5 mins. Note that the meat is still cooking at this stage, and you should never cut or consume the beef immediately after removing from the heat.

If you do not let it sit, the meat's juices will just fall out when you cut into it and you will lose all the beef moisture and hence, the goodness of the meat.

With the juices remaining in the pan, deglaze the pan with some red wine. How much wine depends on how much sauce you require, and basically you pour in twice the amount of wine that you want the sauce to reduce to.

Add some chopped or diced bacon that has been pan fried into the mixture and let it cook and reduce on high heat until the mixture is reduced by half. The sauce should be syrupy and the flavors of the bacon will have been properly infused with the wine to give it a nice acidity to the savory bacon.

For the mash, boil some potatoes until they are soft and mash them. I tend to use a hand blender as it is faster and easier, but Pauline usually likes to keep it not too buttery smooth and let some lumps retain in the mash.

Add some green onions, olive oil and butter to the potatoes. Plate the potatoes first, then the beef and finally the wine infused bacons on top.

Classic steak and potatoes, with a touch of wine and bacon! Yum ...