Hello people of the internet and welcome to another edition of “Name Plates.” This is where we take a look at the real-life people behind our favourite meals. Today we are looking at the classic American dish of Steak Diane.
What is Steak Diane?
Steak Diane is a panfried steak served with a sauce made from the pan juices from the steak, cream, brandy and Worcestershire sauce. Of course there are thousands of variations on this but if we hone it down to it’s core, this is what makes a Steak Diane.
Back in the day, the steak was dramatically flambeed at the table! No wonder it became so popular. Who doesn’t love a bit of theatre with their meal! How many over zealous patrons ended the night with burnt off eyebrows do you think? But hey, nothing speaks of a good night out like first degree burns right?
I did not flambe my sauce because I am a total klutz and the world is already going to hell. I don’t need to be setting my kitchen on fire as the cherry on top of that particular pile of woe.
It tasted pretty good regardless!
Who Was Diane?
There are hundreds of theories on the Diane that inspired the sauce which inspired the steak. One is that it was named after the young daughter of Chef Beniamino Schiavon who “invented” the dish at the Drake Hotel in Manhattan in 1948.
Another theory has the dish evolving from the Roman times where plates of game meat were often given in honour to the Goddess of the Hunt, Diana. Over time and in France, these became known as dishes prepared “a la Diane”. Soldiers stationed in France in World War I took versions of these dishes home and over time, Venison a la Diane became good old Steak Diane.
I actually believe that, in all probability, this is the origin of Steak Diane.
My Preferred Origin Story
I wanted to raise a less familiar theory, one that I found on this website.
Let’s take a little trip in the Wayback machine to London in 1938, specifically Mayfair, and even more specifically to a restaurant called Tony’s Grill. Head chef at Tony’s was the eponymous Tony Clerici.
September 30 1938 was a dark day for Alfred Duff Cooper (yes, I know he has a dumbarse name but bear with me on this, he’s one of the good guys). The Munich Agreement which allowed Hitler to “annex” Czechoslovakia was signed that day. War was averted but for people like our boy Duff, this was only giving licence to that Nazi madman.
He and his friends gathered at Tony’s Grill for a dinner and some talk of doom and gloom. I can almost guarantee that the phrase “thin end of the wedge” was used. More than once. Ditto “slippery slope”.
Recognising that the group were not in their usual jovial (ie big eating, big drinking, big tipping) mood, Tony Clerici wanted to inject some joy into the evening. He did so by preparing a dish in honour of Duff’s beautiful and glamourous wife, Lady Diana Cooper.
And voila, Steak Diane was born!
Is this the face that launched a million steaks? I really hope so!
Can we all forget about the other origin stories and enjoy Steak Diane as a celebration of anti-fascism?
The Recipe
I used the Steak Diane Recipe from the Australian Women’s Weekly Retro Cookbook. And I must say….I think I got a pretty close resemblance!
Here’s the recipe. I added a tsp of Dijon Mustard into my sauce as well as it appeared in a number of Sauce Diane recipes I looked at, even though it is not contained in the recipe below.
Variations
As with many of these classic recipes there are a millionty one recipes on the interwebs. Here are some variations to type not ingredients to the sauce:
- Steak Diane Pie….ooh yeah, this is going on my winter bake list for sure!
- Chicken Diane….just in case we want a change from steak!
- And here’s one for the vegetarians…Mushrooms Diane
Modern Day Diane
As ever, I get to choose a modern-day person to whom I would dedicate a Steak Diane. This one was possibly the hardest one yet. The early runner was Diane Lane, who starred in one of the movies that shaped my childhood, The Outsiders. I ADORED the book of this film. Sodapop Curtis was one of the first loves of my life and I cried a river or two when (spoiler alert) Johnny died. Diane Lane is perfectly cast as the beautiful Cherry!
However, in the end, Diane Keaton pipped her at the post. What is not to love about Diane Keaton? She is an outstanding actress, a style icon, a director, producer, photographer, real estate developer…is there anything she cannot do? If anyone deserves an eponymous steak it is surely she.
The above picture is a scene from The Godfather which is our current film club pick. I am going to try to watch 1 (tonight) and 2 (tomorrow) before our meeting on Wednesday. Good thing I have my reduced working week day off on Wednesday in case that plan goes awry! I have never seen any of The Godfather films so this is a real knowledge gap for me. Such a knowledge gap that I had no idea that Diane Keaton was even in it! Okay, I have 6 and a half hours of movies to watch so I need to get moving.
Have a great week. Stay safe and stay gold!
