Fillet Steaks with Red Wine & Shallot Butter

1. Peel and finely chop the shallots. Place a small pan on a medium-low heat and add ½ tbsp olive oil. Add the shallots and season with salt and pepepr. Fry, stirring often, for 8-10 mins till the shallots are lightly browned and soft. If they start to brown or dry out too quickly, add a few tbsp water to the pan and reduce the heat.

2. While the shallots fry, peel and grate or crush the garlic. Pick the leaves off the thyme sprigs – you should have around 1 tsp thyme leaves. When the shallots are tender, add the garlic and thyme and fry, stirring often, for 1 min till the pan smells aromatic. Pour in the red wine and bubble for 8-10 mins till the wine has reduced completely and the shallots are sticky.

3. Finely chop 3 sprigs of flat leaf parsley. When the shallots are sticky, scoop them into a bowl and add the butter and parsley. Season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper, then mash together with a fork to combine. You can also use a small food processor to blitz them together. Scoop the butter into a bowl and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hr before using.

4. 30 mins-1 hr before you want to fry the fillet steaks, take them out of the fridge, pop them on a plate and let them come to room temperature. Season them generously with salt and pepper and drizzle over a little olive oil. Rub the oil and seasonings into the steaks. Take the shallot butter out of the fridge.

5. Place a cast-iron frying pan on a high heat and warm till it's smoking hot. Drizzle in enough oil to lightly coat the base of the pan. Add the steaks to the pan and keep them moving for the first 30 secs so they don't stick, then let them fry for 2½ mins till a golden-brown crust has formed underneath. Turn them over and keep them moving for 30 secs again, then leave for 2 mins to fry and form a crust.

6. Add half the shallot and red wine butter to the pan, keeping half for later. Let the butter melt and use it to baste the steaks for 3 mins, constantly spooning the butter over the steaks to coat. Take the pan off the heat and transfer the steaks to a board. Loosely cover with foil and rest for 10 mins. This should result in medium-rare steaks. See our tip below for alternative timings.

7. While the steaks rest, melt the remaining shallot butter in a small, clean pan.

8. Pop the steaks on warm serving plates. Spoon over the melted shallot & red wine butter. Serve with skinny chips and a green salad.

9. Get Ahead
You can make the shallot & red wine butter up to 7 days ahead. Store it in an airtight tub in the fridge, ready to use.

10. Your Perfect Steak
The timings in this recipe are designed to give you medium-rare fillet steaks. If you prefer a rare steak, fry them for 2 mins on each side, then baste with butter for 2 mins and rest for 10 mins. For medium, fry for 3 mins on each side and baste with butter for 2 mins. For well done, fry for 4 mins each side and baste with butter for 2 mins. If you have a digital meat thermometer, you can check the internal temperature of the steak in the frying pan and take it out when it hits the level of doneness you prefer. For rare, that's 48°C, medium-rare is 52°C, medium is 58°C and well done is 62°C.