This recipe is made with thick, 7 oz filet steaks that are cooked in a cast iron skillet, then served with a cream sauce. This recipe is inspired by Eswatini’s national dish, but can be enjoyed anywhere!
Hello Reader! I try my hardest to research recipes as best as I can before posting to ensure I am representing each culture correctly. If this recipe is from your country and I have made a mistake or you have suggestions for how to make it more authentic, I would love to hear! Please leave a comment below letting me know what should be different, and I will rework the recipe. It is always my intention to pay homage and respect to each cultural dish that I cook. Thanks for reading!
Recipe Origins
This is a Swazi-inspired way to cook steak! Though I made a few adjustments (see below in “Expert Tips”) this recipe was inspired by “Karoo Ostrich Steak” from Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland).
Karoo Ostrich Steak is the national dish of Eswatini! And I sure can see why… The marinade makes it flavorful and the cream on top adds some delicious flavor. It reminded me very much of this Broiled Lobster Tail with Vanilla Sauce from Comoros, as the cream sauce is very similar (this sauce just doesn’t contain the vanilla).
Karoo is a difficult word to define, but it refers to a semi-desert region in the Southern part of the African continent. Eswatini is located further east than the Karoo region, however ostriches are very popular in Karoo!
There are many ostrich farms there and this region is where much of the wild game in Southern Africa comes from.
Online, I’ve often seen this dish served with a side of mashed pumpkin and maize (Sidvudvu). If you want a recipe for that, follow this recipe from InternationalCuisine.com.
Why Make this Recipe
- Great Steak: Steak is never totally my first choice of diner (gasp! I know!). I don’t cook it at home often, so this was a very special occasion…Matt was so excited! I can honestly say that this recipe will be going in my repertoire for days that company is coming over and I need to impress. The steak has a beautiful crust on the outside and the times work perfectly to get your exact level of done-ness on the inside. Follow these steak instructions!
- “Travel” to Eswatini: If you read the section above, you’ll know that this recipe is inspired by the national dish of Eswatini, Karoo Ostrich Steak. We, unfortunately, couldn’t find ostrich, but if you can, you should try it! What a great way to visit Eswatini without ever leaving your home.
What Do I Need To Make this Recipe?
Ingredients
- Steak: I used 7 oz beef filets.
- Wine: You will need both red wine and white wine. I’m not a huge drinker, so I had to buy bottles for this, meaning that I bought the cheapest bottles at the grocery store (sue me, I know!). However, our dish still tasted delicious. Make sure to buy a drinking wine but don’t stress too much about finding the right one.
- Onion: I used a small, sweet onion.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: Heavy whipping cream is a type of cream that is about 36-40% fat. You can find it in the dairy aisle of your grocery store.
- Herbs & Seasoning: Fresh rosemary, fresh allspice berries (you can also use ¼ tsp ground allspice if necessary)
Tools
- Saucepan: I love my Cuisinart nonstick pots & pans set that comes with a small and a medium sized saucepan! I used the small size.
- Cast Iron Skillet: I used a 10-inch because that Is what I had on hand, but I could probably have used a smaller cast iron skillet. This skillet on Amazon is preseasoned. If your skillet is not pre seasoned, follow these instructions on how to take care of your skillet.
- Tongs: I use these from Amazon.
How to Make this Recipe
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Step 1: Marinate the Steak
Use your fingers to pull the leaves of rosemary off of the stem. In a medium-sized bowl, add red wine, rosemary leaves, and salt. Add the filets. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil and put it in the fridge for about an hour, or overnight.
Step 2: Make the Cream Sauce
Add 1 tbsp butter into a saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the chopped onion and saute until completely cooked. Add the whole allspice and stir.
Add the white wine and heavy whipping cream into the saucepan and stir again. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and allow to cook for about 10 minutes until it has reduced in half. Set aside.
If you don’t think you’ll like the cream sauce, check out this recipe for yum yum sauce instead.
Step 3: Cook the Filets
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Take the steaks out of the fridge.
In a cast iron skillet, put 1 tbsp of butter. Put the cast iron skillet on very high heat and heat until the butter is almost smoking (but do not burn it).
Once the cast iron is heated up enough, put the steaks in the pan and sear for about 2 minutes until a crust forms on the outside of the steak. Use tongs to turn them over and sear for 2 minutes on the other side. This will get kind of smokey.
Once you have seared both sides, put the cast iron skillet directly in the preheated oven (using oven mitts if necessary). Cook for 4 minutes for rare, 5-6 minutes for medium rare, 6-7 minutes for medium, and 8-9 minutes for medium well.
Remove the steaks from the oven and transfer to a plate. Lightly cover them with tin foil and allow them to sit for 5 minutes before serving.
Transfer to individual plates and pour cream sauce over the top. Enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Traditionally in Eswatini, this recipe is made with Karoo Ostrich steak, not beef steak. Unfortunately, try as I might, I wasn’t able to find Ostrich steak in time (it was sold out everywhere!). If you want to try making this steak with Ostrich, this is the best place online I would look to find it.
- I also substituted rosemary in for Juniper Berries. If you want to use Juniper berries, you can find them here
- Do not use cooking wines. Instead, just use the wine that you would drink.
- If you have sensitive smoke alarms, open some windows before searing your steak. Though you aren’t (or shouldn’t be) burning the steaks, the process does get a little smokey.
Did you enjoy this recipe for Filet Cooked in Cream Sauce? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes that I picked out just for you:
- Churrasco Steak Sandwich from Chile
- Stir Fry Steak Recipe from Cambodia
- Easy Fried Tuna Steak from Cote d’Ivoire
- Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Recipe
Filet Steak in Cream Sauce
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet
- Saucepan
- Tongs
- Oven Mitt
- Aluminum Foil
- Mixing Bowl(s)
- Wine Opener
Ingredients
- 1 stalk of rosemary, fresh
- ¾ cup red wine
- Salt and pepper
- 2 7 oz filet steaks
- 2 tbsp butter, divided
- 1 onion, chopped
- 10 allspice berries, whole
- 1 cup white wine
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Use your fingers to pull the leaves of rosemary off of the stem. In a medium-sized bowl, add red wine, rosemary leaves, and salt. Add the filets. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil and put it in the fridge for about an hour, or overnight.
- Add 1 tbsp butter into a saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the chopped onion and saute until completely cooked. Add the whole allspice and stir.
- Add the white wine and heavy whipping cream into the saucepan and stir again. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and allow to cook for about 10 minutes until it has reduced in half. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Take the steaks out of the fridge.
- In a cast iron skillet, put 1 tbsp of butter. Put the cast iron skillet on very high heat and heat until the butter is almost smoking (but do not burn it).
- Once the cast iron is heated up enough, put the steaks in the pan and sear for about 2 minutes until a crust forms on the outside of the steak. Use tongs to turn them over and sear for 2 minutes on the other side. This will get kind of smokey.
- Once you have seared both sides, put the cast iron skillet directly in the preheated oven (using oven mitts if necessary). Cook for 4 minutes for rare, 5-6 minutes for medium rare, 6-7 minutes for medium, and 8-9 minutes for medium well.
- Remove the steaks from the oven and transfer to a plate. Lightly cover them with tin foil and allow them to sit for 5 minutes before serving.
- Transfer to individual plates and pour cream sauce over the top. Enjoy!
Notes
-
- Steak: I used 7 oz beef filets.
- Wine: You will need both red wine and white wine. I’m not a huge drinker, so I had to buy bottles for this, meaning that I bought the cheapest bottles at the grocery store (sue me, I know!). However, our dish still tasted delicious. Make sure to buy a drinking wine but don’t stress too much about finding the right one.
- Onion: I used a small, sweet onion.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: Heavy whipping cream is a type of cream that is about 36-40% fat. You can find it in the dairy aisle of your grocery store.
- Herbs & Seasoning: Fresh rosemary, fresh allspice berries (you can also use ¼ tsp ground allspice if necessary)
- Saucepan: I love my Cuisinart nonstick pots & pans set that comes with a small and a medium sized saucepan! I used the small size.
- Cast Iron Skillet: I used a 10-inch because that Is what I had on hand, but I could probably have used a smaller cast iron skillet. This skillet on Amazon is preseasoned. If your skillet is not pre seasoned, follow these instructions on how to take care of your skillet.
- Traditionally in Eswatini, this recipe is made with Karoo Ostrich steak, not beef steak. Unfortunately, try as I might, I wasn’t able to find Ostrich steak in time (it was sold out everywhere!). If you want to try making this steak with Ostrich, this is the best place online I would look to find it.
- I also substituted rosemary in for Juniper Berries. If you want to use Juniper berries, you can find them here
- Do not use cooking wines. Instead, just use the wine that you would drink.
- If you have sensitive smoke alarms, open some windows before searing your steak. Though you aren’t (or shouldn’t be) burning the steaks, the process does get a little smokey.
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