My husband and I are on a serious braising kick, and have been taking turns surprising each other with slow-cooked pots of goodness. And when I say “surprise,” I mean, I left the cookbook open to a recipe called “Top Blade Steaks Smothered in Mushrooms and Onions” until my husband “happened” upon it and (predictably) had to have it for dinner. There’s an unwritten, primordial sort of rule in our house that places all things beef under my husband’s culinary jurisdiction. So on Saturday afternoon, he did in fact tackle this excellent recipe from Molly Stevens’ All About Braising, which we enjoyed with some al dente green beans tossed with lemon zest and a little walnut oil, salt and pepper. The steaks were so tender we needed only a fork to cut through. My husband used cremini and portobello mushrooms and then braised the steaks, mushrooms and onions in sherry (I mean, seriously, SO GOOD) and finished with a little cream. Here are some of his pics of his handiwork.
Browning the steaks, sautéing mushrooms…
And then sautéing onions and adding sherry…
And then the steaks get smothered with onions and mushrooms and braise for another hour and a half. Because they’re covered with the onions/mushrooms, they braise evenly and don’t need to be turned over. I was lucky enough to have this cooked for me, but ladies, if a dude is finding it hard to commit—just try making this and see what happens.
Stay tuned for more adventures in braising!
