Simple Steak And Mashed Potatoes For Esteban Ocon
Hone your homemade steak skills with Esteban Ocon's favorite dish
Welcome to Grand Prix Gastronomy! In 2024, this series is dedicated to cooking the favorite dishes of every driver on the grid.
The Foods That Esteban Ocon Loves
Back in 2016, Formula 1 sat down with then-Manor/Renault/Mercedes driver Esteban Ocon to ask a series of quick questions about things like his favorite holiday destination and his favorite race car. F1 also asked ol’ Esteban what one meal he'd eat for the rest of his life, and the French driver had a very simple answer: steak with mashed potatoes.
That story is a little old, but Esteban hasn't been particularly forthcoming about his favorites. One YouTube video claims he loves sushi; another story mentions that he enjoys McNuggets. We've already got sushi on our 2024 Grand Prix Gastronomy lineup, so I've decided to stick with that initial 2016 answer to whip up some delicious steak and mashed potatoes.
Esteban was unfortunately one of those drivers who didn’t really fit with any of the races on the 2024 calendar. I'd filled up most of the schedule and then paired the Frenchman with one of the races that was left (sorry Esteban). This poor gentleman has never performed particularly well at Azerbaijan — but my hope is that the power of this delicious steak n’ taters meal will turn that trend around.
This Week's Recipes
When someone says their favorite meal is steak and mashed potatoes, I fear that there are many countless numbers of ways to prepare that specific dish. You can go simple. You can go steakhouse. I'm sure Stebby Ocon loves a simple preparation, especially in keeping his race-car driver diet under control — but friends, I am not attempting to race a Formula 1 car. I am going to get crazy.
I've made mashed potatoes on GPG before, so I wanted to try a different style of preparation to show you kind viewers at home — which is why I opted for a fun recipe from The Stay At Home Chef that includes a few variations on tater mash that I'd never tried before. I left my meat decisions to the husband, who is more adept at the red meat game than I, and he decided on a grilled reverse-sear method from Hey Grill Hey. Finally, for that little extra kick of flavor, I used my favorite garlic herb compound butter recipe from CJ Eats Recipes.
Core Recipes:
Supplemental Recipes:
Cooking Steak & Mashed Potatoes
I had initially selected a cast-iron steak recipe for Esteban Ocon’s Baku dish, which would have featured a nice garlic herb butter in the pan while I cooked the meat. Upon realizing I did not have a big enough pan for that and also that I’ve never successfully cooked a steak indoors, I decided to switch things up!
To preserve that herby buttery goodness, I decided to make a compound butter, which is super super simple. Bring a stick of salted butter to room temperature, then plop it in a bowl with chopped herbs (I used chives, rosemary, and thyme), grated garlic, salt, and pepper. Mash that all together, then plop it on a piece of wax paper and roll the butter into a log. Put that in the fridge to set while you get started on the rest of your dinner.
Next come the mashed potatoes. You can use your favorite recipe here, but I decided to try a new one. Start with some washed red potatoes that you’ve sliced into small chunks, then fill a pot with chicken stock and garlic cloves. Bring the liquid to a boil before popping the potatoes in and cooking them until they’re soft.
(You can definitely use water in place of chicken stock if you want, but I actually highly recommend the stock! When you strain your potatoes, you can actually keep that cooking liquid; it’ll be starchy and flavorful, so it’ll make a great addition to any soups or pastas that might need a flavorful thickening agent!)
Once the taters are soft and drained, start mashing ‘em with cream cheese, buttermilk, butter, salt, pepper, and some cheese (if you want). Most mashed potato recipes I’ve seen include a combo of milk and sour cream to give you a really delicious creamy but tangy mash — so this recipe, with buttermilk and cream cheese instead, was a novelty to me! The great news is that it works pretty much the same way and delivers the same creamy, tangy flavor. The pecorino cheese wasn’t in the recipe, but I had a ton in the fridge leftover from Daniel Ricciardo’s pesto pasta (I cooked these way out of order) and decided this would be an excellent way to find some flavor. If you, like me, also realize your mash isn’t quite as creamy as you want, you can do what I did and add extra butter and some of that aforementioned potato cooking liquid until you’ve hit a texture and flavor that feels right for you.
And now, the steak!
If you were here for my tomahawk cooking experience earlier this season, then you’ll know I love a good reverse seared steak. Conventional steak-cooking wisdom says you should sear your steak first, then place it in the oven at a low temperature to cook through. In a reverse sear, you do the opposite: cook the steak through on a low oven temperature, then pull it out and sear the exterior at a high heat.
You want to get your steaks out of the fridge about a half-hour before cooking them to let them come to room temperature. Just before you want to cook them, pat them dry and then season both sides. If you’re a purist, you can stick to plain ol’ salt and pepper, but I like to get bold. I seasoned two steaks with St. Elmo’s seasoning (a blend from an iconic Indianapolis steakhouse that truly cannot get enough of), while the third I reserved for a mix of blackened and Cajun seasoning.Â
You’ll start cooking these steaks in a 250-degree Fahrenheit oven, until the internal temperature reads 105 degrees. Then, remove the steaks from the oven and sear them at a high temperature. I had initially picked out a cast iron pan recipe before realizing I don’t have a big enough cast iron pan, so my husband and I opted for the grill instead. Make sure the grill is about as hot as you can get it, then pop the steaks on and sear for a few minutes each side, or until you reach an internal temperature you’re happy with.
The best part about the reverse-sear method is that you don’t necessarily have to let your steaks rest for a super long time afterward; just give it a few to firm up before you slice in!Â
To serve, I plated some of my steak slices alongside my mashed potatoes. If you’ve gone the compound butter route, don’t forget to add that here like I did! It’s a dinner that pairs perfectly with a nice glass of Cabernet Sauvignon.
The Wine List
Sometimes I like to get a little wild with my wine selections, but today, I'm keeping things fairly low-key. I opted for a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon to go with this tasty steak dinner. Cabs have a really rich flavor and a high level of tannin — meaning that this is a robust wine that can be easily paired with rich, robust flavors. That means it's great with grilled meats, peppery flavors, and even ultra-creamy mashed potato dishes.
There are a few different Cab Sav locations to choose from, but I opted for California. Napa Cabs have earned a terrible reputation as being too in-your-face, too oaky, too oof. However, things have changed, and excellent vintners have been making delightful Cabs in Napa, Sonoma, and other locations in California that are full of nuanced flavor and depth.
The wine I selected was as smoky as it was mineral-y, which made it a really good partner for a smoky meat and a rich buttery side.
So, What's The Verdict?
My interpretation of Esteban Ocon’s favorite dish actually ended up being yet another example of why I love Grand Prix Gastronomy so damn much. It’s a fairly standard dinner, but it’s also not something I would ever really make on a random weeknight, since mashed potatoes and steaks are two foods I feel like I haven’t mastered. Then I go and make something like this meal, and I realize that it’s not only pretty easy — it’s also extremely delicious!Â
The potatoes I made last year for the Las Vegas Grand Prix were awesome, but the version I tried for Ocon’s Baku dish taught me so many fun tricks that I’m excited to use for future mashes. Never in a million years would I have considered cooking the potatoes in chicken broth — but now that I’ve done it, I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever do it any differently. I think I’m still a devout milk-and-sour-cream used in my mashes, but I’m also always stoked to learn new ways to achieve similar flavor and texture profiles that I already like. It’s just my husband and I in this house together, so we don’t always have even basic ingredients like milk and sour cream for a spontaneous mash — so it’s great to know that there are alternatives we can take advantage of!Â
And the steaks, omg. I love a good steak, but trying to make one at home has always felt like such a daunting task. I have historically decided to just go out for a steak when I’m craving one as opposed to making one at home. Learning about the reverse-sear method has totally transformed the way I think about making steaks, though. Somehow, it’s totally easier for me to comprehend cooking a steak in the oven at a low temperature and then searing it up as opposed to the opposite method. It’s given me more confidence, and I personally think it tastes much better. If you’ve struggled with your steak game, give the reverse sear a try — it may turn out to be just the method you needed!Â
Somehow I doubt that this is how Esteban regularly consumes his steak and potatoes, but that’s OK. I’ll enjoy the flavor for the both of us. If this doesn't give him the power to finally place well in Baku, then…
Ready… Set… COOK!
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