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Turn your home kitchen into a French bistro with this mouthwatering steak frites combo featuring succulent ribeye, super crispy double-cooked fries and a velvety homemade béarnaise sauce. You'll get that amazing comfort food feeling with the mix of crunchy golden potatoes next to tender, juicy meat - it's both fancy and totally satisfying.
I first tried making this when I wanted to recreate my favorite Paris bistro meal at home. After tweaking it through countless dinner gatherings, my buddies now specifically ask for this dish whenever they come over.
Ingredients
- Ribeye steaks: Go for thick ones with good fat marbling for extra juiciness
- Russet potatoes: They've got the right starch level for that fluffy inside and crunchy outside
- Shallot: Brings a mild sweet flavor that makes the béarnaise taste amazing
- Fresh tarragon: This must-have herb gives béarnaise that special licorice-like taste
- Egg yolks: They form the rich base that holds the sauce together
- White wine and red wine vinegar: Cut through the buttery richness with their tanginess
- Unsalted butter: Splurge on good quality since you'll really taste it
- Fresh chives: Add a mild oniony kick and pretty green flecks
- Tabasco: Just a tiny dash adds warmth that brings out other flavors
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Prepare the Potatoes:
- Skin your russet potatoes and slice them to equal fry sizes. Keeping them the same thickness really matters for even cooking. Soak them in ice water overnight or at least 2 hours. This step washes away extra starch so they won't stick together and helps them get super crunchy.
- Salt Brine the Steaks:
- Coat your ribeyes with plenty of salt on every side, basically creating a dry brine. Let them sit uncovered in your fridge for an hour. This not only gets salt flavor all through the meat but also pulls out surface moisture so you'll get better browning when cooking.
- First Fry for Potatoes:
- Warm neutral oil to 275°F in a sturdy pot. Take potatoes out of their bath and completely dry them with paper towels. Cook small batches for about 5-6 minutes until they're very soft but not brown yet. This first fry cooks them through inside while the low heat keeps them from browning.
- Freeze the Fries:
- Move your blanched fries to a tray lined with paper towels to soak up extra oil. Stick the whole tray in your freezer for 30-45 minutes. This chilling step completely dries the outside while setting up the perfect contrast between soft centers and what will become crunchy exteriors.
- Prepare Béarnaise Base:
- Mix finely diced shallot, fresh and dried tarragon, chives, red wine vinegar, and white wine in a small pan. Cook slowly over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the liquid's gone and everything's soft. Let this mix cool totally before moving on.
- Temper the Steaks:
- Take steaks out of the fridge and let them warm up to room temperature for about 30-45 minutes. This helps them cook evenly from outside to middle.
- Make Béarnaise Sauce:
- Put egg yolks in a big heat-safe glass or metal bowl. Add 2 tablespoons melted butter, the cooled tarragon mix, white pepper, and Tabasco. Fill a small pot with about an inch of water and heat to a simmer, then lower to medium. Place your bowl over the pot, making a double boiler, but don't let the bowl touch the water. Whisk the egg mix non-stop for about 2 minutes until it gets thick and light yellow. This part's super important - keep whisking and don't walk away or your eggs might scramble. Pull it off the heat and very slowly pour in the rest of the melted butter while whisking until it's all smoothly combined.
- Sear the Steaks:
- Get a cast iron pan super hot over high heat for 2 minutes until it's smoking. Pat steaks completely dry with paper towels and place them in. Cook for about 3 minutes per side for medium rare, depending on thickness. Rest them for at least 5 minutes before cutting so the juices stay in the meat.
- Final Fry and Assembly:
- Crank up oil temperature to 375°F. Drop the chilled fries back into hot oil in small batches and cook until deep golden and super crunchy, about 3-5 minutes. Drain on paper towels and right away sprinkle with salt and fresh chopped parsley while they're still hot. Slice the rested steak against the grain. Serve with béarnaise sauce topped with fresh chives and black pepper alongside your crispy fries.
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My favorite part of this whole process is watching those potatoes transform during the double-fry method. The first time I saw those pale, soft fries turn into golden crunchy perfection in the second fry, I finally understood why French bistros take so much pride in their technique. Now my family judges every restaurant's fries against our homemade version.
Perfect Bearnaise Troubleshooting
If your béarnaise sauce splits or breaks while you're making it, don't panic - it can be fixed. Try whisking in 1 tablespoon of hot water to help the ingredients come back together. Keep whisking hard until the sauce reunites. Another option is to start with a fresh egg yolk in a clean bowl and slowly whisk in your broken sauce bit by bit, basically creating a new mixture from scratch.
Make Ahead Options
While this dish tastes best right after cooking, you can prep some parts ahead of time. The first potato fry can be done up to 24 hours early - just keep those blanched fries in the fridge until you're ready for the final fry. The flavor base for the béarnaise with shallots, tarragon, wine, and vinegar can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept in an airtight container in your fridge. For best results, finish making the actual sauce just before serving.
Wine Pairing Suggestions
This rich dish calls for a bold red wine that can handle its flavors. Try a Left Bank Bordeaux blend with its higher amount of Cabernet Sauvignon - its strong tannins work great with the fatty marbling in ribeye steak. For something easier to find, an Argentine Malbec gives similar structure but with more upfront fruit flavors. If you prefer white wine, a rich, oaky Chardonnay pairs surprisingly well with the buttery béarnaise sauce.
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The mix of tender steak, crunchy fries, and smooth béarnaise sauce will knock your socks off every single time.
Frequently Asked Questions
- → Why soak the potatoes in ice water before frying?
Ice water baths wash away extra starch from the potatoes, stopping them from clumping during cooking and making the outside crunchier. This long soak also makes sure the insides stay nice and soft after cooking.
- → What is the purpose of the double-frying technique for the fries?
Frying twice makes fries amazing. The first dip at lower heat (275°F) cooks them through, while the second round at hotter temps (375°F) makes them golden and crunchy. Freezing them between cooks gets rid of moisture for even better crunch.
- → Why salt-brine the steaks before cooking?
Letting steaks sit with salt for an hour flavors them all the way through, softens the meat, and pulls out water. This means they'll brown better when you cook them and end up tastier and juicier.
- → What's the key to a successful bearnaise sauce?
Getting bearnaise right comes down to watching the heat and never stopping your whisking. Cook egg yolks gently over steam until they thicken but don't scramble. Then slowly add butter while whisking like crazy to mix everything smoothly.
- → How can I prevent my bearnaise sauce from breaking?
To keep your bearnaise smooth, let the melted butter cool a bit first, keep whisking the whole time, use very gentle heat for the egg yolks, and drizzle the butter in super slowly while you whisk non-stop.
- → Can I make components of this dish ahead of time?
Sure can! Soak the potatoes overnight and do the first fry ahead of time. Keep them frozen until the final fry. Make the tarragon mix early but finish the bearnaise right before eating. Salt your steaks in advance but cook them just when you're ready to eat.