How to make the best steak frites you’ve ever had

Welcome to Clubhouse Eats, where we celebrate the game’s most delectable food and drink. Hope you brought your appetite.

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Meat and potatoes. It’s a phrase that’s often used to describe something simple. In the case of a classic dish, such as steak frites, however, it defines the dish.

The concept of pairing crispy French fries with a seared cut of beef seems simple enough, but, too often, examples found at gastropubs all around the country woefully disappoint. Such is not the case at Omni La Costa — specifically at Bar Traza — where Executive Resort Chef Emily Brubaker produces one of the best renditions of the dish I’ve ever tasted. Seriously, it’s been two months since that beautiful plate of shoestring fries with a perfectly grilled skirt steak and red chimichurri sauce was placed in front of me, and I can still taste it.

You don’t have to recreate that dish in all its glory to make a kick-ass version of steak frites at home. You just need to focus on key details. Here, Chef Brubaker leads you down a path to meat-and-potatoes bliss.

Meat matters

“I love either a skirt or hanger steak for this,” says the chef. “Both are super flavorful, tender and have a great bite. Hanger steak has a clean flavor, and it’s as tender as a tenderloin, but it’s a lost hero among beef cuts because most people don’t like to use them, so it’s harder to find.”

Don’t be fooled into thinking an upscale cut of beef, such as a filet, ribeye or N.Y. strip is only going to make the dish better. It doesn’t work that way.

“Steak frites is a common dish, popular because simple is perfection a lot of the time,” Brubaker points out. “Making it upscale is a waste of beautiful products.”

Shoestring catch

The steak might be the start of this dish, but the supporting actors are the potatoes.

“You can’t sleep on the fries,” she says. “A perfect match [is what] makes the dish.”

Although the chef acknowledges that any crunchy French fry will get the job done, she’s particularly fond of shoestring cuts.

“I like them for the crunch factor, as well as being able to grab a small pinch of a few fries — the ratio of crunch to cream potato in the center goes so well with a good steak.”

Food

Only the grill will do

Don’t overthink the cooking method for your steak. Just make sure you heavily season the meat first — that means being generous with the salt and pepper. And use a meat thermometer, making sure you remove the steak from the heat 5 to 10 degrees below your desired temperature.

But seriously, always grill. That’s what Chef Brubaker does.

“The char, smoke and high heat capture the flavor and juices,” she says.

Into the fryer

Just as the cooking method for the steak is imperative, how you crisp up your French fries can make all the difference.

“Frying at a lower heat for a longer time will help reduce the moisture and keep the fry crunchy,” she says.

To do it well at home, she suggests using a small pot of oil, keeping the temperature between 300 and 325 degrees, and working in batches.

“And be patient, she adds. “Patience is best when frying.”

Bon appetit!