Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H. Peppercorn sauce is a classic sauce popularly served on steak. It is made with lots of pungent peppercorns, cream, and brandy or cognac. It is creamy and rich from the heavy cream, though the key flavor here is the use of peppercorns, which offer a pungent, peppery, vibrant, and slightly spicy flavor to your steak. It’s a versatile sauce as well, not only for steak, but great for adding rich, robust flavor to other meats, vegetables, and more. Let’s talk about how to make peppercorn sauce, shall we?
Whole Peppercorns. Black peppercorns are more pungent and robust in flavor. Green peppercorns are milder and offer citrusy, herbaceous notes. White peppercorns are the mildest and much less intense. Butter. Vegetable Oil. Or use the drippings from your pan-seared steak. Shallot. Brandy or Cognac. Use extra beef stock as a non-alcoholic substitute. Beef Stock. Heavy Cream.
You want coarsely crushed grains, not ground pepper, as you’ll want a bit of texture to the sauce. Crushed whole black peppercorns add lots of robust flavor. Then, heat the butter and oil in a pan over medium-high heat. If you’re using the pan drippings from a seared steak, skip the oil and just melt the butter. Cook the shallot, then add the brandy or cognac and crushed peppercorns. Cook a couple minutes to reduce, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan if you just seared steaks. There is some great flavor in there! Add the beef broth stock, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer to reduce the liquid by half. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir in the heavy cream. Simmer until it thickens to your desired consistency, just a few minutes. Boom! Done! Your hot peppercorn sauce is ready to serve. Easy enough to make, isn’t it? Spoon this over your steak and you’re in heaven. I hope you love it! However, the sauce can separate while storing it. Peppercorn sauce is best when it’s freshly made. That’s it, my friends. I hope you enjoy this creamy peppercorn sauce recipe. Let me know if you make it. I’d love to hear how it turned out for you, and if you decided to spice it up!
The Spicy Food Lovers’ Cookbook, by Mike Hultquist (affiliate link, my friends!)
