Porter Steak and Sauce

When Tumerica at What I ate asked me for a recipe of Porter Steak, I was sure to find a recipe at once, in English, somewhere. I did not find anything similar to the Swedish recipe..... I went googling for Porter Steak. I ended up with nothing. This is a dish well known in Sweden. Whoever invented this recipe in the first place, it was not me.

Porter is a style of beer in the ale family. It has a dark colour. It took its name from its popularity with the thousands of street and river porters (but not market porters) of London, who drank it to refresh themselves as they carried goods and parcels off and on ships in the Thames and around the streets of London.

With the porter added to the sauce you get a whole new level of flavor. A top round steak is perfect for the Porter Steak. But any boneless cut of meat will do. This is a classic recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 kg boanless beef or similar
* 1 bottle Porter (beer) , 33 cl
* 1 dl sweet black currant juice (concentrated)
* 1 dl soy
* 7-10 juniper berries (optional)
* 10 black peppercorns
* 2 dices meat stock
* 2 cloves of garlic
* 1 yellow onion
* 1 teaspoon thyme (optional)

SAUCE
8 dl liquid from steak
2-5 dl cream
5 tablespoons flour

1. Insert a meat thermometer in the steak.
2. At first cook black currant juice and porter with meat stock dices in a rather small and narrow sauce pan.
3. Place steak immediately in boiling liquid.
4. Add onion and spices.
5. Simmer covered for approx. 1 ½ hour or until thermometer shows 75 degrees C.
6. Turn the steak around at least once.
7. Allow the steak to rest in the liquid for 20 minutes before cutting it up.

THE SAUCE:
1. Pour off 8 dl strained liquid in a pan.
2. Mix flour and cream.
3. Cook the strained liquid and slowly add "cream-flour mixture" while stirring.
4. Simmer for a couple of minutes.

When ready to serve slice meat thinly. Porter Steak is usually served with potatoes, vegetables and black (or red) currant jelly.

A link to the recipe in Swedish 4 Porterstek