Salpicao
Salpicao is a dish for special occasions. It is a steak dish enriched with a Worcestershire, oyster, and butter sauce. I do mine slightly different from the traditional recipe.
Traditionally this dish is stewed. It means that the cooking is done mainly in liquid. I think it misses out on some flavor if it is done this way. By searing the steak you capitalize on the mallard effect, which is caramelizing the meat. If you treat it like a steak and create a sauce using the fond it becomes perfect. Marco Pierre White influenced me in one of his videos on making Steak au poivre (pepper steak). What makes my sauce richer is the addition of mushrooms and oyster sauce.
His method is to reduce Worcestershire sauce to a glassy consistency, then douse it with cream to until it becomes a cafe au lait color. Keeping this technique in mind, I incorporated it into my Salpicao recipe. And, it tastes incredible.
It's a steak!
Keep in mind that salpicao is a steak dish and not a stew is important. Instead of using the liquid to cook the meat through, cook the meat like a steak where it is pink in the middle and then deglass the pan of its fondant. By doing this you are browning or caramelizing the meat instead of boiling it. That is a huge difference from boiling or simmering the steak in the sauce. The mallard effect brings out the flavor of beef.
Don't be afraid of browning
Watching endless amounts of youtube videos on how salpicao is made, there are a number of cooks that are afraid getting meat really brown. They are quite happy with gray meat. Get your pan really hot, drizzle with oil, and don't be afraid of browning your meat.
Ingredients
1 steak (preferably rib eye or tenderloin) in this case I used sirloin
6 pieces button mushrooms (any mushroom will do)
1/2 head of garlic
1 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1/2 stick butter
1/2 quart whipping cream (single cream)
thyme
sale pepper
Prep
Cut your steak into cubes. 1-inch sizes should be right. Next quarter your mushrooms. Remember that mushrooms are mostly water so they will shrink when you cook them. Cut them in proportionate to your steak sizes.
Heat your pan
Color your steak. We are going for a caramelized color and not a grey boiled result. Be patient. Use tongs to turn your steaks. Season your steaks with salt and pepper. Add your butter and thyme to the pan. Baste the steaks with the butter.
Color
Put in a bowl or plate once you are satisfied with the color. Next, put the mushrooms in the pan. Get a good color on them as well. Once you are happy with the color, set aside with your steaks.
Sauce
