Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes

Recipe: Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes
Page: 170
Date Cooked: May 29, 2011

Tartare is said to be named after the nomadic Tartar people of Central Asia. The legend is that they ate raw meat as they rode their horses and the meat was kept under their saddles in an effort to tenderize it during the day. Similarly, I believe this is also the legend behind the burger. Nonetheless, though the Tartar people may have given barbaric vibes, eating raw meat and all, I think they were on to something!

Ingredients: Filet mignon, red potatoes, olive oil, salt, pepper, shallots, garlic, lemon, jalapeno chile, serrano chile, red onion, parsley, tomato, lime, raclette cheese, and Tobasco sauce

I believe any tartare preparation is really about the knife work. You want that perfect dice on the meat as well as the assorted vegetables and herbs. The key is to have everything be as small and even as possible in an effort to really enjoy all the components of the tartare. With all that in mind, the first step was to dice the meat and let the potatoes boil.

Diced filet mignon

While the potatoes cooked in boiling water, I went right to work on mincing the shallots, garlic, chiles, onion, tomato, and parsley.

Top: Shallots; Garlic; and Chiles
Bottom: Red onion, Tomato, Parsley

With all my ingredients minced and ready to go, I proceeded to finish the tartare. I first mixed the meat with salt and pepper. I then added the shallots and garlic. Thirdly, I added lemon juice and some Tobasco sauce. As I was nearing the end stages of tartare preparation I placed the sliced potatoes under the broiler until they began to brown. I then sprinkled them with the raclette cheese and put it back under the broiler for the cheese to melt.

Browned slices of potatoes

While the cheese melted, I began plating. A mound of the tarate was put on each plate and topped with the minced chiles, onion, parsley, and tomato. Finally, I took the potatoes with melted raclette out of the broiler, put them on the plates.

Steak Tartare with Melted Raclette and Potatoes

I was really happy with the tartare. It had just the right amount of salt and pepper, while the acidity of the lemon juice, lime juice, and tomato worked perfectly. Also, I am a huge fan of the spiciness factor and thought that the Tobasco, jalapeno, and serrano gave the tartare a right amount of kick.

But the best bites were those taken along with the potatoes and raclette. I had never tried raclette before and was surprised by how well the mild, nuttiness of the cheese went with the potatoes (just in case you were wondering, raclette is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese that is commonly used for melting). Nonetheless, the beef and potatoes were in harmony and I truly enjoyed the dish. Who knew I was a meat and potatoes kind of gal?

Enjoy!