“In a world full of trends I want to remain a classic.”
— Iman
Picture it, New York, mid-20th-century. “Bright Young Things” and “Beautiful People” would frequent the city’s hip cafes and restaurants. They were rich, famous, spend their time drinking, dining, and dancing the nights away at the fanciest and the poshest watering holes around the world. Wherever they went, they ushered in a slew of columnists and press journalists, and with all the swilling money, status, and cocktails “Cafe Society” became a scene to see and be seen at.
Hoping to impress these socialites, up-and-coming chefs would demonstrate their culinary theatrics with variations of tricks that oftentimes included the tableside-flambé– a technique where food was covered with liquor and set alight briefly. Of course, the fire show was entertaining, but the process reduced the alcohol content of the dish, preserved the flavors of the liquor, and added an impressive and delicious edge to their posh food.
During this era Steak-Diane was all the rage, people paid good money for a pan-fried beefsteak served with a flaming flambéed sauce and were about to recreate the same dish and have the same, or better, eating experience since ours is the Montana version.
The very original Steak Diane – an ode to Diane, the Roman goddess of the hunt – was done with venison, which we eagerly swapped with bison tenderloins. We certainly enjoy venison, with all its mineral and gamey flavor, but if given the choice, bison tenderloin is the superior choice considering the lighter, milder, and sweeter taste accompanied by a nutrition profile that’d knock your socks off.
When you’re good and ready, we can hop into the past, and instead of haunting our bosses, cook the Steak Diane, which can be just as satisfying. To start, we cut and pound our meat (no giggling) thin to facilitate its rapid cooking. Then we season it with a few simple ingredients that include Worcestershire sauce (good luck pronouncing it), along with mustard, and mushrooms. Then we carefully flambé (flamed in French) the pan drippings. Normally burning food isn’t the goal of cooking, but in this case, in order to set the flavors free, we have to first set it on fire first.
If you didn’t burn down the house, serve the food with a good beverage and wait for a round of applause from the household.
Bison meat is low-fat, low-calorie, and high in protein, vitamin B, omega-3 fats, and antioxidants.
