Steak with Beetroot and Mustard Dressing

Ingredients
300g Beetroots
1 Tablespoon White Wine Vinegar
1 Teaspoon Caster Sugar
1 Teaspoon English Mustard
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil=Extra for Drizzling
2 Tablespoons Water
2x150g Steaks
125g Salad Leaves

Equipment
1 Ovenproof Tray
1 Jam Jar
1 Grill Pan
1 Balloon Whisk
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board

The Good Bit

1. Start by preheating your oven too180c 350f gas 4, top and tail the beetroot, then cut into wedges, place them in the ovenproof tray and drizzle over a little oil, make sure the beets are well coated then bake them for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile mix the vinegar, sugar and mustard together in the jam jar until smooth, then add the oil and water, screw on the top and shake well. Next cook your steaks under a high grill, 2 minutes each side for rare, 3-4 minutes per side for medium and 5 minutes for well done, let them rest for 2 minutes then slice (rare looks great with this dish and tastes awesome)
3. Add salad leaves to each plate then divide up the beetroot between the plates, top with the slices of steak and drizzle over your well shaken sauce.

Serves 4

Thai Steak Salad

Ingredients
400g Rump Steak
1 Lime (juiced)
5 Tablespoons Sweet Chilli Sauce
1/2 Stalk Fresh Lemon Grass (finely chopped)
1/2 Iceberg Lettuce (shredded)
1 Large Carrot (grated)
150g Red Grapes (halved)
25g Roasted Peanuts (chopped/roughly crushed)
Oil

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Pastry Brush
1 Griddle Pan
1 Large Mixing Bowl
1 Small Mixing Bowl

The Good Bit

1. Brush your steak with oil then griddle on each side for 3 minutes until it is cooked until medium rare (or longer if you want it well done)
2. In the meantime, mix the lime juice, chilli sauce and lemon grass in your small bowl, tip half into a larger bowl, then toss in the lettuce, carrot and grapes into the larger bowl and mix well.
3. Serve your salad onto four plates, slice the steak and serve on top, sprinkle over the nuts and drizzle the remaining sauce over the top.

Serves 4

Beef Medallions in Peppercorn Sauce

Ingredients
4 Beef Rondels/Medallions
1 Packet Peppercorn Sauce Mix
3 Large Carrots (sliced or julienne if you are being fancy)
125g Haricot Verts
8 Medium Potatoes
Butter
Milk or Cream
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 Griddle Pan
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Sauce Pan
2 Large Pans (with salted water in)
1 Masher

The Good Bit

1. Get the carrots and haricots verts in the pan with the water and bring to the boil on a low simmer, leaving for 10 minutes, until they are soft. At the same time boil the potatoes up in the other pan, again for about 10 minutes (stick a fork in them to see if they are done, you want them to break easily so they may need a little longer, your carrots are ok just to sit in the warm water.
2. On your griddle, heat to a high heat and add no oil, you want to sear both sides of the steak for about 5 minutes, whilst that is on make the peppercorn sauce according to the packet instructions, that's just usually adding a quantity of milk and bringing to a simmer.
3. Drain then mash your potatoes, add a knob of butter and cream (if your using it) or milk, season with salt and pepper.
4. Divide your mash between four plates, sit your steak on top, and drizzle over the peppercorn sauce, drain your carrots and haricots vert and add a knob of butter, give the pan a good shake to cover all the contents in the butter then serve at the side.
   

Serves 4

Steaks en Crout

Ingredients
4 Fillet Steaks (trim the fat off)
2 Small Onions (finely chopped)
1 Clove Garlic (crushed)
125g Mushrooms (finely chopped)
250g Ready Rolled Frozen Puff Pastry (defrosted obviously)
1 Egg (beaten)
4 Slices Ham
40g Butter
Oil
Pinch of Ground Nutmeg

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Garlic Press
1 Frying Pan
1 Bowl
1 Pastry Cutter
1 Pastry Brush

The Good Bit

1. Pre heat your oven too 220c 425f gas 7. Heat 2/3rds of the butter in the frying pan along with a splash of oil, then cook the onion and garlic for a couple of minutes until soft, add in the mushrooms and the nutmeg and season with salt and pepper, cook over a nice gentle heat until the mushrooms are cooked and there is no more liquid left in your pan, remove from the pan and place in a bowl.
2. Heat the last of the butter in the frying pan then quickly sear the steaks on both sides and then remove them from the heat too.
3. Flour your work surface lightly then spread out the puff pastry, cut out 8 rounds that are slightly larger than the steaks, now go round the outside inch of the rounds with the pastry brush well dipped in the beaten egg.
4. Cut the ham into 8 rounds about the same size as the steaks. Place 4 ham rounds onto 4 pastry rounds then use half the mushroom mixture to cover these four servings, now top with a steak each, then divide the last of the mushroom mixture onto the top of that, finally add the remaining 4 ham rounds and then the four pastry rounds. Press the edges of the pastry together to make nice neat parcels and stick a fork in top to air to escape, using some more of the beaten egg, brush the tops of each a little then stick them in the oven for 20 minutes or until they are golden brown.
   

Serves 4

Beef Stew With a Healthy Twist

Ingredients
500g Beef (cut into chunks)
750ml Chicken Stock
120ml White Wine
1 Carrot (halved lengthways then sliced)
1 Clove Garlic (finely chopped)
1 Stick Celery (finely sliced)
300g Baby Onions (peeled, if using shallots 1/4 them)
180g Button Mushrooms (quartered)
1 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
1 Bay Leaf
1 Teaspoon Dried Parsley
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
2 Tablespoons Cornflour
125g Natural Yoghurt
Knob of Butter
Splash of Oil
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Large Pan
2 Small Frying Pans
1 Large Bowl
1 Slotted Spoon
1 Spatula

The Good Bit

1. In the pan, heat a little oil then cook the meat until it is evenly browned on all sides, add 500ml of stock, the wine, carrot, celery, thyme, garlic and bay leaf, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. In the frying pan, pour in the rest of the stock and drop in the onions, cooking until all the stock has gone, then remove from the heat and set aside.
3. In the other frying pan, heat another splash of oil and drop in the knob of butter, went it is bubbling add in the mushrooms and cook until they are soft then stir in the lemon juice and remove from the heat then set that aside too.
4. With the slotted spoon, remove the meat and vegetables from the broth and place in the large bowl, remove the bay leaf and throw away, blend a the cornflour in a cup with a little of the broth then tip it back into the pan, simmer away until the broth has thickened, reduce the heat again now and stir in the yoghurt, finally add all the other ingredients and the teaspoon of parsley, heat through then serve.
   

Serves 4

Marinated Summer Steak

Ingredients
4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
4 Tablespoons Orange Juice (freshly squeezed or from a carton)
3 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
3 Tablespoons Wine Vinegar (rice or white)
2 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)
1in Fresh Ginger (grated)
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
500g Steak (one piece or cubes it doesn't matter)
Salad to Serve

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Frying Pan/Griddle Pan

The Good Bit

1. Mix all the ingredients together in the mixing bowl then drop in the meat and stir well to coat, leave to marinate for at least 4 hours (if you can do this in the morning before you go to work it's great) stir occasionally.
   
2. When you are ready to cook, dry fry (no oil) just the meat in the frying pan if you are using chunks or on a griddle if you have steaks (gives it that little extra charred flavour done this way) over a high heat, just seal the meat so it browns on the outside, remove from the heat and let it rest. (cook for longer if you don't want the meat pink)
   
3. Serve on a bed of lettuce, if you have used steaks, cut them with the grain into 1cm wide slices.
   

Serves 4

Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients
500g Steak (cut into strips)
1 Tablespoon Margarine
3 Shallots (chopped)
250g Mushrooms (sliced)
250ml Beef Stock
1 Tablespoon Tomato Purée
1 Teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 Teaspoon Mustard Powder
150g Low Fat Natural Yoghurt
A Splash of Oil
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Large Frying Pan
1 Large Mixing Bowl
1 Fork

The Good Bit

1. Heat a dash of oil in a frying pan and cook the strips of steak until they are evenly browned all over, remove and set aside. Now melt the butter in the frying pan and add the shallots and cook until they start to soften (2 minutes or so) then add the mushrooms and cook until all the juice from the mushrooms has gone (a good 8 minutes)
2. In the mixing bowl, mix together what's left apart from the yoghurt, pour into the frying pan and add in the steak strips, bring to a simmer and leave for 12 minutes, turn down the heat to a very low setting then add in the yoghurt, stirring all the time (you may want to leave this step for a couple of minutes until the pan is cooler so you don't risk curdling the yoghurt) once the meal is warm throughout season and serve.
   

Serves 4