Steak Tartare

After eating steak tartare last week at Flip Burger, I was inspired. I have previously eaten raw beef before in beef capriccio, but I have never prepared raw beef on my own. I read about tartare, in “Beard on Food.” Also, Publix had some great ribeye on sale, so tonight, I decided to be adventurous.

I should warn that eating under cooked meat and eggs has some risks. Please be aware, these risks are very small and unlikely, but shouldn’t be taken lightly. To decrease the risk of food poisoning, I suggest purchasing the freshest ingredients from a store you trust.

Now that I have finished with my FDA approved warning, I feel confident that I can continue. The first thing to do is chose the right piece of beef. You want a good cut of meat. Please do not buy pre-ground meat if you plan on consuming it raw. I chose rib eye because it was on sale and looked fresh. Please don’t be afraid to ask your butcher or meat counter attendant which meat is freshest. Even at Wal-Mart, there are people you can ask. Freshness isn’t the only consideration. You want a steak with appropriate fat content and good marbling. You will need to cut off any large fat strips. Please keep these criteria in mind when selecting your meat.

Before you start cooking, please sample a small piece of the raw beef. The texture is similar to raw fish and definitely not for everyone. Plus, the dark meaty raw color can be a turnoff. I recommend trying the meat first before you waste a piece of perfectly good steak. If the texture, color, or look is not to your liking, it isn’t too late to toss the meat in a pan and have steak for dinner. No money lost!!!!

For me, the color and texture were a little weird, but still edible. If you can stomach the sample, then proceed!!!

Like the beef, please select eggs that are fresh and from a grocer you trust. If raw eggs concern you, you can par cook the eggs for two minutes in boiling water, then place them in an ice bath. This will eliminate some bacteria and make you feel like the eggs are not raw. I personally don’t see the point, but to each his own.

Ingredients

2 raw egg yolks
½ cup Olive Oil
8oz of raw beef with the fat cut off
½ tsp Worsheshire Sauce
½ tsp Dijion Mustard
Pepper and Salt to taste
1 tsp Lemon zest
2 tbps Capers
If the beef is a little tough, when you do your beef tasting, please pound out the meat with a mallet, rolling pin, or your fists. Once, the beef is tender, cut into very small pieces..

Whisk the 2 raw egg yolks together, the slowly start drizzling in the olive oil . When all the olive oil is added, the mixture should be a light pastel yellow with the consistency and texture of mayonnaise.

Add yellow emulsion, dijion mustard, capers, lemon zest, and ½ tsp Worshcester Sauce\ to the finely chopped raw beef. Mix gently. Taste the rosey pink mixture than season to taste.

I recommend serving with bread but this is great with lettuce or cucumber slices. A nice sparking dry rose would be the perfect pairing. You can also garnish with microgreens to help hide the pinky red rawiness.

You can substitute the Worcheshire sauce for a little apple cider vinegar. The acidity of the vinegar will “cook” the beef/eggs similar to a ceviche and give it a little bit of a different texture and flavor profile.