Saucy Steak Supper: “More Than Gourmet” Adds More Than a Little Elegance

I love to cook, and I love sauce.

I think it must stem from my childhood love of macaroni and cheese (OK, I still eat it whenever I get the opportunity), fettuccine Alfredo (an adult version of mac ‘n cheese), and Chicken Supreme – a wonderful dish my mother made back in the ‘70s featuring chicken simmered in a can of cream of mushroom soup spooned over rice. Haven’t had it in 30 years, but I still think about it.

So you can see my weakness – anything smooth, creamy, or cheesy – poured over pretty much anything. But since I hit 40, I’ve tried to cut back. My fettuccine Alfredo days appear to be over, and when I cook, I really try to prepare healthy, tasty meals using fresh, not-too-terribly-fattening ingredients. While I don’t cook with leaves and twigs, I also really try to avoid dumping a cup of whipping cream into a dish.

So recently, I had the opportunity to try a French Demi-Glace (made with veal and beef stock) by More Than Gourmet and immediately decided to make the Madeira, Marsala, or Port Sauce printed on the back of the packaging. The Demi-Glace itself came in a small round package and simply adding it to wine, herbs, and spices would replicate a complex French sauce that could otherwise take over 24 hours to prepare.

I stopped on the way home from work and picked up beef tenderloin and the rest of the ingredients I needed. I really like to make homemade meals versus opening a jar of sauce, so I loved that I actually had to “make” this sauce by mincing shallots, chopping parsley, tossing in the peppercorns, and reducing the sauce after adding the wine.

I found the sauce pretty forgiving for substitutions since I didn’t have quite enough Marsala wine in the fridge (added regular red wine to make up the difference) and used light cream (just a quarter cup!) instead of the real stuff. Just before adding the cream, I whisked in the Demi-Glace, which gave the sauce a deep, rich color.

My favorite aspect of the sauce turned out to be its smooth, creamy texture. Many times when I’ve made sauces with beef stock or broth, they seem a bit thin – maybe I lose patience and fail to reduce them down enough. But this sauce, even with light cream, proved smooth and creamy – a really lovely texture. And when poured over the filet – and finished with an extra sprinkling of chopped parsley – it looked truly elegant.

I also really liked the sauce’s deep, rich flavor, although I thought it needed some salt and the recipe didn’t call for any. My husband thought it had a bit of bitterness to it, but I didn’t taste that. I do agree that the sauce featured intense flavor, and the next time I use it or one of the other Glace flavors (including roasted vegetable Demi-Glace and seafood stock), I most likely would use a bit less to tone down the intensity.

As the summer turns into fall, I look forward to pulling the roasted vegetable Demi-Glace out of my pantry and preparing the Winter Vegetable Stew Dijonnaise. Who knows? Maybe I can replace my lifelong craving for creamy sauces with a rich, hearty vegetable soup.

Mom Central received samples of Demi-Glace Gold, Veggie-Glace Gold, and Glace de Fruits de Mer Gold courtesy of More Than Gourmet to facilitate this review.

Stephanie Kaufman

Feeling for much of her life that she couldn't sit still long enough to thread a needle and that all in all, she'd rather be reading, Stephanie Kaufman discovered crafting in her late 40s and now loves knitting, sewing, and household decorative arts.