Showing posts with label rump. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rump. Show all posts

Coeur de Romsteck and Pavé de Rumsteck – Rump Steaks. French Cuts That Make for Some of the Tastiest Steaks.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com


Pavé de Rumsteck, Sauce Béarnaise, Frites,
A thick-cut of rump steak served with sauce Bearnaise and fries


Romsteck and Rumsteck in French cuisine.

The French terms Romsteak and Rumsteck often confuse English-speaking visitors, which isn't too surprising given that North American and UK butchers can't even agree on what a rump steak is. French rump steaks, for example, include parts of what the UK calls Rump, Silverside, and Topside cuts. In the USA, those same French cuts are part of what's known as sirloin and round. (It's worth noting that the UK sirloin and the USA sirloin are also different cuts altogether.) Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw acknowledged long ago that Britain and the United States are “two countries separated by a common language.”

  

The French, USA and UK cuts




France

 

          

                        UK                                                                 USA

French chefs require their butchers to carefully prepare their cuts of beef and veal. France has no grades similar to the USA Prime or Choice, and so French chefs learn in school how to grade, choose, and prepare every kind of meat. That promises rump steaks, cut so that if they are not the tenderest steak on the menu, they will be among the tastiest. Two cuts on French menus include the word romsteak or rumsteck and in butcher's shops and recipes, you will find a third.

 

The three cuts from the Romsteak or Rumsteck:

 

Coeur de Romsteak
The (Coeur de Romsteak), which translates as the heart of the romsteak, is the least expensive of the French rump steak cuts despite using the name "heart". Coeur de Romsteaks are good, but nearly always served with a sauce.

Pavé de Rumsteck
These are usually thick steaks. The term pavé means "paving stone," and refers to its shape. It's considered one of the tastiest steak options. While the Pavé de Rumsteck is not as marbled as ribeye (entrecôte), it's a tender cut with great flavor.
(Pavé means a paving stone in French, and the word will be seen in the names of certain thick French cheeses and in the setting of diamonds or other stones set like paving stones into gold or platinum).
Some Pavés de Rumsteck are carved from the larger Coeur de Romsteak, which is generally considered the cheapest cut from the rump. From there, it's divided into the thick, delicious steaks known as Pavé de Romsteck. The meat is marbled and rich, and it cooks into a tender steak that will be reminiscent of your favorite tenderloin (fillet).

 

The Filet de Rumsteck (Fillet of Rump Steak)
The Filet de Rumsteck is a cylindrical column of beef, about a foot long, which resembles a small tenderloin (fillet) in both appearance and texture.
The Filet de Rumsteck is lean yet flavorful and is sometimes cut and served as Pavé de Rumsteck, as this cut produces some of the best rump steaks on French menus. N.B. All the Rumsteck cuts are at their best served medium-rare to medium.
I read an article where a French butcher, after visiting the USA, accused US butchers of selling a thick cut from the USA top sirloin as a Chateaubriand. If correct, the cut used would be similar to the French Filet de Rumsteck. Despite that accusation of Lèse-majesté, the French are themselves not sure of the original cut used for a ChateaubriandIn any case, since a Filet de Romsteck will provide a delicious steak, an American diner will have little to grumble about

 

Cœur de Romsteck on French menus:

 

Cœur de Romsteak, Beurre Maître d’Hôtel –   The cœur de romsteak served with Maître d’Hôtel Butter.

Beurre Maître d’Hôtel: This is a compound butter flavored with lemon juice and parsley and placed on a steak, roast or fish just before serving so that it adds flavor as it melts.

 


Cœur de Romsteak
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Bistro Régent, Aubiere France

(Aubiere is about 4 kms (2.5 miles) from the city of Clermont-Ferrand, the headquarters the Michelin tire company who also publish the red and green Michelin guides.

 

Cœur de Rumsteck Grillé, Sauce au Bleu et aux Baies de “Sansho” - A grilled Cœur de Rumsteck served with a sauce made with blue cheese and sansho berries. 

Sansho : The Sancho berry originated in Japan (where it’s called the Kona- Zansho).  It looks somewhat like Szechuan pepper but it’s much milder and comes from a spiny shrub where its lemon tang gives away its origins as a member of the citrus family, though it has a slightly numbing effect if eaten in quantity. The Shansho (Kona-zanshō) berry is used in many Japanese dishes, including the Shichimi Togarashi spice group.

 

Cœur de Rumsteck en Carpaccio  -  A Carpaccio made from the heart of the rump steak.

Carpaccio:  An original Italian creation that has made France a second home. The steak is paper thin, marinated, uncooked beef, and here it’s taken from the rump.   The traditional recipe calls for the beef to be marinated and when served drizzled with a white sauce made from fresh mayonnaise, Worcester sauce, and lemon juice. To that may be added copeaux, shavings or flakes, of  Parmesan cheese.

 

Coeur de Rumsteck Sauce au Poivre et Pommes Sautées - A cœur de rumsteck pepper steak. with a green peppercorn sauce and sautéed potatoes."

Pepper steaks:  Unless otherwise noted French pepper steaks are made with green peppercorns.   When black peppercorns are used, it is difficult to control the peppers’ heat, and green pepper adds a light herbal accent.  Green peppercorns are picked before they ripen; then, they are pickled in brine and dried but are not fermented. The result is a pepper with a light herbal flavor, much less pungent than black or white peppercorns.

 

Tataki de Cœur de Rumsteak - Tataki from the heart of the rump steak.      

Tataki:  Tataki is a Japanese cooking method for beef and fish. It's a dish that's often served as an appetizer in Japan wheren it’s known for its contrast in textures and flavors; outside Japan Tataki is often served as a main course.

To prepare the  steak it is briefly seared over very high heat, creating a browned crust on the outside while leaving the inside very rare, almost raw. The goal is to cook the outer layer without letting the heat penetrate too deeply.

After searing, the steak is rested and then thinly sliced.  This thin slicing is crucial for achieving the dish's delicate and tender texture.

The thinly sliced beef is, in Japan, typically served with a citrusy and savory sauce, often a ponzu sauce (a Japanese sauce made with soy sauce and citrus juice). The sauce complements the rich flavor of the beef. French chefs have experimented and changed the flavors enriching the options.

The term tataki includes two different techniques.  In the case of beef or fish tataki, it’s the method of lightly searing meat or fish and then slicing it thin. The other technique that is often used with bonito tuna involves pounding the fish with aromatics.  (The word tataki meanspoundedorhit”).

 


Tataki de Cœur de Rumsteak
Tataki of beef from the heart of a rumpsteak.
Photograph and recipe courtesy of Atelier des chefs


Cœur de Rumsteck, Ratatouille et Pommes BoulangèreCœur de rumsteck served with the classic Ratatouille from Nice on the Côte d'Azur and Pommes Boulangère.

Ratatouille: A classic recipe from Nice, with eggplants (aubergines in the UK), zucchinis (courgettes in the UK), onions, tomatoes, sweet peppers, garlic, herbs, and olive oil. Seasonal variations are accepted, and to the ingredients, chefs may add champignons, button mushrooms, lardons, which are fried or smoked bacon bits, and occasionally eggs. Many chefs present their Ratatouille with gruyère cheese browned on top (gratiné) or grated and placed on the side for the diners to add to their taste.

While in this listing, the Ratatouille will be served hot, it may be served hot or cold, and that was always part of the dish's history. Ratatouille began as a main dish and only later gained popularity as a side dish, as it is in this listing. Now, in a return to its origins, Ratatouille is again often offered as a main dish accompanied by rice or pasta.

Pommes Boulangère: The baker's potatoes. Pommes Boulangère is a traditional dish of sliced potatoes baked in a vegetable or meat broth and allowed to simmer until all the broth has been absorbed or evaporated. Its name gives away its origins. In villages and towns, people without ovens would bring their potatoes in their own dishes to cook in the baker's oven as it cooled after making the day's bread.

 

Pavé de Rumsteck on French menus:

 

Cœur De Rumsteck De Charolais 180 G - A 180 gram (6 oz) Cœur De Rumsteck steak from France’s  famed  Bœuf Charolais du Bourbonnais AOP.

The Charolais herds are free range for seven months a year and feed on grasses, wildflowers, and herbs all year.  All Charolais calves are raised by their mothers, and their beef is antibiotic and growth-hormone free.



Pavé De Rumsteck
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Beef & Co, Metz, France.

 

Pavé de Rumsteck Grillé, Crème de Camembert -  A grilled pavé steak served with a cream of camembert cheese sauce.

Camembert: Camembert is a soft, 22% fat, cow's milk cheese, and when perfectly ripe, has a fresh mushroomy smell and is creamy and spreadable, but not runny. (This menu listing is for a cream of Camembert sauce).  

Among the French Camemberts, those made with unpasteurized milk are considered the very best, though from my experience, there are plenty of excellent French Camembert cheeses made with pasteurized milk. Only real cheese addicts can tell the difference when two well-aged cheeses meet in a blind tasting.  Camembert's rind is natural (and edible) with a white to light brown color.  When choosing Camembert from a restaurant's cheese tray or trolley, the center should be soft, just beginning to bulge, but not running.  (Any cheese that looks hard and doesn't smell like Camembert should be left for the mice.) Camembert is the most famous of all French cheeses.  However, the tiny village of Camembert in Normandy (population 200) never got around to registering its name. So, the outside of the European Union Camembert cheese may be made anywhere in the world. Among French Camembert cheeses, the very best can be identified if you look for the yellow AOP label on the box.  The wording will also be precise: "Camembert de Normandie" with the giveaway yellow AOP label (in English, the same label would read PDO).

 

Pavé de Rumsteck aux Échalotes, Purée Mousseline, Légumes Grillés - A pavé steak prepared with shallots and served with very fine mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables.

Mousseline:  A very fine mousse. The name originates from the use of muslin fabric to sieve vegetables for a mousse. In the past, before the availability of the thinnest metal sieves, mousses and the finest mashed potatoes (or other vegetables) were sieved through the material muslin. The results would become a mousse or a purée mousseline if they were finely sieved.

 

Pavé de Rumsteck Mariné à l'Ail des Ours, Sauce Pinot Noir – A pavé steak marinated with wild garlic served with a sauce made from the mild red Pinot noir wine.

Ail des Ours Wild garlic grows all over Europe, the UK, and North America. There are other young wild plants that do look somewhat similar, especially wild onions and leeks. Despite the similarity in looks, worry not, wild garlic's clearly different smell makes it hard to make a mistake. French market gardeners also grow wild garlic for restaurants, and wild garlic can be replanted in private vegetable patches.

Wild garlic leaves may be used raw in salads and cooked in other recipes; the wild garlic bulb itself is very small and generally imparts a lighter garlic taste and odor than the cultivated varieties. Despite that, you should still be careful when cooking with wild garlic; I have had a dish where the wild garlic plants involved had not read my comments.

Pinot Noir: Pinot Noir in France is most famously associated with the Burgundy region, where it is the most important red grape. It is also very important in Champagne, Alsace, and the Loire Valley.  For a sauce, Pinot Noir is often used to deglaze the natural cooking juices, and as the wine reduces, it will concentrate the flavors and make a sauce that is perfect for steak.


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Connected Posts:

Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.

Beurre - Butter. Butter in French Cuisine.

Camembert Cheese; France's most Famous Cow's Milk Cheese.

Carpaccio on French Menus.

Charolais AOP – One of France’s Tastiest Goat’s Cheeses. Charolais Cheese from Burgundy on French Menus.

Chateaubriand Steak and Chateaubriand the Man. Ordering a Chateaubriand steak in France.

Citron – The lemon; the fruit behind many of France’s culinary successes. Also the Citron Vert - Lime, the Cedrat – the Citron, the Combava – the kaffir lime and the Chadec - the Pomelo.

Copeaux on a French Menu? Copeaux means shavings or slivers.

Crepes, Galettes, Gauffres, Mille Crepes, Pannequets and more. All on French Menus

Dining in Nice on 'La Côte d'Azur'. The Cuisine of Nice, Cuisine Niçoise.

Échalotes - Shallots. Shallots on French Menus. Shallots are One of the Most Important Herbs in the French Kitchen

Filet Mignon on French Menus and Filet de Bœuf in French Cuisine.

French Olive Oils. Enjoying France's Best Olive Oils.

Mayonnaise Fraîche - In France all Mayonnaise is Fresh Mayonnaise

Oignon or Ognon – An Onion. Onions on French menus. France’s most famous onions and their history.

Parmesan, the Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano is an Important Ingredient in French Cuisine.

Persil - Parsley in French Cuisine. Parsley on French menus.

Poivre - Peppercorns. White, Green, Black and Red Peppercorns. Grey Pepper and the Misnamed Pink Peppercorns. Pepper in French Cuisine.

Ratatouille, the essence of Provencal cuisine and Ratatouille’s Ancestor, the Bohémienne de Légumes.

Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine.

 

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman 
Copyright 2010, 2017, 2023. 2025
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

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