Story behind the recipe
Any “How I Met Your Mother” fans out there? If you’re not familiar with this early 2000‘s sitcom, it’s a story about a group of friends living in New York City in their 20’s. If that sounds a lot like “Friends” then you are right, as the two shows have many similarities. As a huge fan of the latter, I was determined not to like HIMYM at first. But truthfully, the show is awesome and it won me over. So, I highly recommend watching it if you find yourself fresh out of things to binge on while self-isolating.
My husband and I adopted many catchphrases and inside jokes from this show. As such, neither one of can simply say “steak sauce” anymore, without the other one dramatically (and loudly) repeating it. HIMYM is the reason behind it. Two of the characters are briefly working together, and one of them has a hard time fitting in. He strives to hear the coveted words “STEAK SAUCE!” spoken, which is the highest form of approval from that company’s “inner circle”.
Silly? Yes. Catchy? Also yes.
So, to sum it up, this recipe is STEAK SAUCE. I love serving it with steak, obviously, because it has a lot of strong flavors that can stand up to steak. But it’s also good with roasted chicken – all those strong flavors take chicken to the next level.
Ingredient options
- Bacon
Bacon is optional, but if you choose to use it, keep in mind that two pieces is just a recommendation 😉 *
- Cheese
Parmigiano Reggiano is the king of cheese, for a good reason. It adds a ton of flavor to the sauce. You can use as much or as little as you like – heavy cream will thicken as it cooks on low heat. If you use a lot less, however, you may need to cook it longer on low heat.
- Herbs
Herbs are optional as well; however, if you omit both bacon AND herbs, it may look a little boring. It will still tastes great, though. You can’t go wrong with anything that has garlic cooked in butter in it.
*Feel free to go full Ron Swanson on this sauce. Not a “Parks & Rec.” fan, but judging by the countless steak and bacon memes, Ron is a very likable guy.
Notes for cooking
Much like this Basil Alfredo Sauce, it’s best made right before serving, in mere minutes. If you are preparing for an upcoming meal, I suggest measuring out the ingredients in advance to make the process even quicker.
If you are making the sauce immediately after cooking steak (or chicken), you can use the same pan and deglaze it with butter. That way, sauce will be even more flavorful, infused with juices from the meat.
Garlic and Bacon Steak Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 Tb butter
- 4 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed
- 1/2 C heavy cream
- 1 C grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, loosely packed
- 1 handful chopped parsley, cilantro, or green onion
- 2 pieces cooked bacon, cut into small pieces
- freshly ground black pepper and salt, to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter over medium low heat.
- Once melted, add the garlic and cook for a few minutes, stirring often.
- When the garlic starts to turn golden, add the heavy cream. Stir continiously.
- Add the grated cheese, bacon, and herbs. Increase the heat to medium, and stir until the sauce starts to thicken. When you run a spatula across the pan, you should see the pan before the sauce runs back together.
- Remove from heat.
- Carefully taste (don’t burn yourself!), and season with freshly ground black pepper. Add salt, if needed.
- Serve immideately, on the side of or over meat. Enjoy!