Foodstuff: Giddy up!

I recently made my maiden voyage to Oklahoma City to visit my plus-one’s family, where I gained 11 new family members and 16 new pounds (give or take). Between performing an original play, written especially for the occasion and staged in the living room, walking a duo of dachshunds, and competing in a few rousing rounds of battle-of-the-sexes Taboo, our dance cards, hearts, and stomachs were full.

Oklahoma is smack dab in the middle of cow country, and I knew I wanted to visit the culinary mothership: Cattlemen’s Steakhouse in Oklahoma City’s historic Stockyards City neighborhood. This joint has been featured everywhere from The Food Network to Southern Living magazine, and as Oklahoma’s “oldest continually operating restaurant,” was also inducted into the National Steak House Hall of Fame (Who knew?!?). It’s clear big-money ranchers and crusty cowboys have been making deals over steak dinners here since 1910, but they welcomed me and my holiday-hued sweater, skinny jeans, and healthy appetite with open arms.

We started with the house specialty of lamb fries, which are not, in fact, potatoes cooked in lamb fat, but thinly sliced nether regions, battered and deep fried. Think Rocky Mountain oysters (but “baaaah”) served with a side of marinara. I loved them and loved that they use the whole animal here. The Presidential Choice came next: a T-bone steak with choice of soup or salad, housemade yeasted rolls, and a side of French Fries (the potato variety), steamed vegetables, or baked potato. I also got a hot tip to order a secret, off-menu, pan-fried steak. The waitress seemed impressed. Finally, a side of fantastic macaroni and cheese gilded the lily.

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Dressings are made in-house, bombers of beer, called the Double Deuce, are brewed especially for Cattlemen’s in nearby Krebs, Oklahoma, and the steak is genuinely the best I’ve ever had. The restaurant attributes this to high-quality, hand-cut beef, a secret aging process, and a scorching charcoal grill, probably seasoned for ages. The ambiance of two backlit murals — photos of the owner and his father and two gentlemen ranchers rounding up cattle while sporting jackets and ties — didn’t hurt the experience, either.

This recipe for peppercorn steak, courtesy of Cattlemen’s, was featured when “Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives” visited the spot way back on Oct. 19, 2009, and is a great representation of how they do things at the restaurant: classic and old-school.

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PEPPERCORN STEAK

Serves 4
Four 7 oz. top sirloin steaks 
Half of an ounce package of au jus mix
2 oz. brandy 
2 T margarine*
2 ½ T all-purpose flour 
1 c heavy cream, such as Minor’s Culinary Cream**
1 ½ T coarsely ground black pepper

Heat a grill*** to medium. Grill the steaks to desired doneness.

Bring four cups water to a boil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add au jus mix and brandy. Boil for 10 minutes. While that cooks, in a separate small saucepan, combine margarine and flour to make the roux. Let roux cook for 5 minutes. Add roux to the au jus mixture, and stir with a wire whisk until smooth. Stir in the cream and the black pepper. Arrange the steaks on serving plates, and serve drizzled with the sauce.

COOK’S NOTES

* Butter would work fine here.

** This seemed like something a restaurant would order in bulk, so just substitute generic heavy cream from the grocery store for excellent results.

*** Go outside if you want to, but a grill pan works just as well in late January.

If you find yourself in the Sooner State, check them out at cattlemensrestaurant.com/. Just trust me, and wear elastic waist garments.

Katherine Roberts is a mid-Valley-based writer and marketing professional who loved her close-up view of where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain. She can be reached via her marketing and communications firm, Carington Creative, at katherine@caringtoncreative.com.