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Steak Diane is traditionally made with a thinly pounded steak, and a cognac, butter, and shallot sauce that is flambéed right before serving to great dramatic effect.
What is Steak Diane?
Doing some research into Steak Diane, I found that the “Diane” part refers to Diana, the Greco-Roman goddess of the hunt, and “a la Diane” sauces were typically served with venison and game meat in centuries past.
It was probably New York hotels that popularized the flambéed steak version.
My Favorite Steak Diane Recipe
This Steak Diane recipe is based off of one I got years ago from my friend Heidi, who found a version in her local paper, the Carlisle Mosquito (great name for a newspaper, isn’t it?).
The recipe calls for pan-frying the steak, using the pan juices as a base for the “Diane” sauce—a sauce made with mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and cream—and then serving the steak with the sauce poured over it. No flames are involved.
Heidi’s husband Vaughn is a master at the grill, so they often grill the steak instead of pan-frying it, and just make the sauce separately. The sauce can be used over chicken or pork as well, and if you have leftovers, you can even stir it in over some pasta.
Love Steak? Try these Other Recipes!
Steak Diane Recipe
If cooking gluten-free, use gluten-free broth
Ingredients
- 4 (6-ounce) center cut beef tenderloin steaks or another cut of your choice
- Salt
- 1/2 cup beef broth (see Recipe Note)
- 4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup finely minced shallots
- 4 tablespoons cognac or brandy
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1-2 tablespoons chives, finely chopped
Method
1 Salt steak and let sit at room temp: Sprinkle salt on both sides of the steak and set aside at room temperature for 15-30 minutes.
2 Mix broth, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, tomato paste: Whisk together broth, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard and tomato paste; set aside.
3 Sear steaks in butter: Melt the butter in a skillet set over medium-high heat. Pat the steaks dry with a paper towel. Increase the heat to high and sear the meat for 1-4 minutes, depending on how thick the steak is. (You may need to cook the meat in batches.)
Turn and sear on the other side. Use the finger test to check the doneness of the meat. When the steaks are done, move to a cutting board and tent with foil.
4 Sauté shallots: While the meat is resting, sauté the shallots in the pan, 2 minutes on medium-high heat, stirring once or twice.
5 Deglaze pan with cognac: Add the cognac to deglaze the pan. Increase the heat and cook until the cognac is almost evaporated.
6 Add broth mixture, then cream: Stir in the broth mixture and bring to a boil. Cook until thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
Stir in the cream and cook for two more minutes.
7 Serve steak with sauce: If you want, thinly slice the steak to serve. Otherwise serve individual steaks. Drizzle warm Diane sauce over the steak and garnish with freshly ground black pepper and chives.
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Elise Bauer is the founder of Simply Recipes. Elise launched Simply Recipes in 2003 as a way to keep track of her family's recipes, and along the way grew it into one of the most popular cooking websites in the world. Elise is dedicated to helping home cooks be successful in the kitchen. Elise is a graduate of Stanford University, and lives in Sacramento, California.
Steak Diane
Really tasty! Didn’t have beef broth so I subbed red wine and omitted the worchester sauce. Also added mushrooms.
Excellent recipe. I served 5 people. Everyone loved it! A great way to serve steak. Thanks.
BobB
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P.S.- I added two cloves of garlic as well.
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I tried it but had to change two things which seemed to work really well- I added two ounces of water to the mustard mix instead of beef broth(didn’t have any), and I substituted the dijon mustard with Stonewall Kitchen’s Caramelized Onion Mustard cause I didn’t have any dijon in the house. It melted in our mouths. Will cook this many times! Thank you.
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This recipe is to DIE for! Maybe an alternative to prime rib this Christmas, I recommend using a large whole tenderloin (check Costco), cook medium rare and slicing it before serving, covered in sauce (I added cooked mushrooms and sweet onions can substitute) Double sauce for more meat than 2 servings. Great with garlic mashed potatoes – even if you buy them ready made and microwave them! Shared with a little lemon brocollini (microwave) to give it a little garnish. (Serve with red wine, of course) FYI-Must use brandy for flavor. I think this recipe is retro from the forties and fifties when Worcester sauce was used in everything, like Caesar salad, (Same time period)
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What a wonderful menu for a special occasion, thanks for sharing! I’ve been adding Worcestershire sauce to all kinds of things lately, it adds that certain “something” that’s missing in savory sauces.