24 June 2009

Ribeye Roast, Before and After

Paul and I ended up cooking a ribeye roast recently after a trip to the Memphis Farmers Market. Now, the beef came from Costco, but the new potatoes, the red spring onions, and the fresh shiitake mushrooms all came from the market. The potatoes (some as small as a marble) were cooked in cast iron with butter and rosemary, the onions were slow cooked in foil for several hours with the beef, and the mushrooms were briefly sautéed in butter.

For wine we opened, and decanted for several hours, the 2006 Coppola Claret, $20, 13.7% abv. 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 4% Merlot, 4% Malbec, and 3% Cabernet Franc. Deep black cherry and blueberry flavors, hint of violets, with a smooth and luscious mouthfeel. It manages to have a full dark fruit aroma and flavor without being a typical California fruit bomb.

The following day, it was time for sandwiches. Cold, sliced, rare ribeye roast is one of the most wonderful things in the world. I'm surprised that it's not forbidden by major world religions.

(It should be clearly evident that I was starving in the first photo, resulting in terrible composition, while in this one I had enough time to set it up properly. Bear in mind that whatever I shoot for this blog, I eat--no fake food or props here on BWR.)

The sandwich is made from thick-sliced, toasted sourdough from Panera, the aforementioned rosbif, redleaf lettuce, Campari tomatoes, aged sharp cheddar, and a generous slather of horseradish mustard. Add in a side of rosemary and garlic frites, and this is definitely in the top five sandwiches I've eaten in my entire life.

6 comments:

Michael Hughes said...

Why didn't you pick up the beef at one of the awesome meat purveyors at the farmer's market too? While you're at it get the eggs from the new meat guy from Jackson. Super eggy & a rich yolk.

Benito said...

Michael,

No disrespect intended towards Neola or others. This was my first visit to the MFM this year and the beef had been dry-aging in the fridge for a full week.

I was impressed with the stand on the north end that had sausages, raw milk, eggs, etc... but the line was moving slowly and I stuck to veggies this trip.

Cheers,
Benito

Samantha Dugan said...

Oh My God...rare roast beef is one of my most beloved foods, hot or cold! I can still see my mother, standing in the kitchen with the leftover roast beef, still in the foil she wrapped it in before she put it in the fridge....cutting off little hunks and smearing it with a blob of Best Foods mayo...makes me feel all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it. I skip the mayo and just sprinkle with some kosher salt when I am tending to my leftovers. Thanks for the memories Benito!

Benito said...

Sam,

I don't know if this is a regional thing, but cooking a whole ribeye roast was never part of my childhood or that of any of my friends. It was always something for special occasions--wedding receptions or Friday nights at restaurants.

About six years ago I was intrigued by the Alton Brown episode explaining how to cook the roast, and I successfully cooked one... and another, and about a dozen since. Friends and family now clamor for the delightfully rare beefy goodness.

Cheers,
Benito

fredric koeppel said...

ok, that sandwich sounds even better than cheese toast!

& you touch on one of the problems of taking amateur food photos for our blogs; dinner is ready and I say, "Hold it, I need a shot," so we have to find the best place and rearrange the plate a little and fiddle with the lights and then take a series of images, meanwhile dinner is getting cold, we're hungry and so on. and when i look at the images on the computer, i realize that i should have moved a hunk of parsley out of the way.

Benito said...

Fredric et al,

Be sure to check out the Top Ten Things to Expect When Dining with a Food Blogger, though in my defense I always tell everyone else to start eating while I futz around with the camera.

Cheers,
Benito