Espelette pepper butter turns a rib eye and a few ears of corn into a proper Basque cookout. Maison Bordier's plate pairs a spice-rubbed steak with sweet potato fries and corn rolled in melted Espelette pepper butter. The butter carries heat, salt, and fat all at once, which is why the cooking itself stays simple. Once the beef has marinated, you are roughly half an hour from the table.
At a glance
- Difficulty: Medium
- Serves: 4
- Active time: Bordier does not state one. Allow about 30 minutes, our estimate
- Cook: Not stated on the source page. Plan on 10 to 15 minutes over high heat, our estimate
- Key ingredient: 110 g Bordier Espelette Pepper Butter
Why this works
Bordier added Espelette pepper butter to the range in 2008, after Jean-Yves Bordier met a producer of the AOP pepper in the Basque country. It is AOP Espelette worked into salted butter, and the heat is gentle and fruity rather than sharp. That matters here, because you are using the butter as a cooking medium and a finishing element at the same time. A hotter chili would scorch on the grill and turn bitter. Espelette holds its flavor through direct heat and comes out smelling faintly of dried tomato and paprika.
The technique splits the butter in two. Roughly half is melted and brushed onto the corn, where it acts as a baste: the milk solids catch and brown against the hot grate, which is what gives the kernels their color and their toasted edge. The rest goes on the steak at the very end, off the heat, where it stays a soft knob rather than a sauce. As it slumps into the resting juices it makes a short, sharp pan sauce with no work at all. All Bordier butter is churned by hand in Brittany on a traditional wooden malaxeur, and the higher fat content means it browns rather than steams.
Ingredients
Serves 4. Metric is what Bordier specifies, so treat it as the accurate column.
| Ingredient | Metric | US |
|---|---|---|
| Rib eye beef steak, or an equivalent cut | 1 | 1 |
| Sweet potatoes | 3 | 3 |
| Corn on the cob, vacuum packed | 4 cobs | 4 ears |
| Bordier Espelette Pepper Butter | 110 g | About 4 oz, roughly 7 1/2 tbsp |
| BBQ spice mix | To taste | To taste |
| Olive oil | A little | A little |
| Parsley | To taste | To taste |
| Fleur de sel | To taste | To taste |
Method
Step 1: Season the beef and butter the corn
Brush the steak all over with olive oil, then rub it with the BBQ spice mix and the salt. Leave it to marinate and come up in temperature while you deal with everything else. Melt 50 g, about 1/4 cup, of the Espelette pepper butter and coat the corn cobs with it. Cut the cobs into large pieces.
Step 2: Fry the sweet potatoes, then grill
Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them lengthwise into fries. Fry them in a deep fryer, watching the color closely, since sweet potato goes from golden to dark fast. Cook the steak and the corn over high heat, turning the corn regularly so every side browns. Serve the beef with a knob of Espelette pepper butter on top, a pinch of fleur de sel, and chopped parsley.
Tips from our kitchen
- Melt the butter gently. Take the 50 g off the heat while a few lumps are still solid and stir them in. Espelette pepper is finely ground and will settle to the bottom of a hot pan, so whisk the melted butter again right before you brush the corn.
- Sweet potato fries are not regular fries. They have far more sugar, so they brown well before they are cooked through. Hold the oil at about 325°F, around 165°C, for the first fry, then raise it to 375°F, about 190°C, for a quick second pass. A single high-heat fry gives you a dark exterior over a raw center.
- Let the steak rest before the butter goes on. Give a rib eye at least 8 minutes off the heat. Butter added to a screaming hot steak just runs off the plate. Butter added to a rested one melts slowly into the juices and stays where you put it.
- The corn wants a dry grate. Blot the cobs after buttering if they are dripping. Excess butter in the fire means flare-ups, and flare-ups mean soot rather than char.
- Bordier does not give a cook time here. That is our note, not theirs. For a thick rib eye, work to internal temperature instead: 130°F, about 54°C, for medium rare, pulled a few degrees early.
- Watch the butter split. If the finishing knob turns greasy and separates on the plate, the steak was still too hot. There is no fixing it after the fact, so err on the side of a longer rest.
How to serve it
This is a plate to put in the middle of the table rather than portion out in the kitchen. Carve the rib eye across the grain into thick slices, pile the fries alongside, and let people take corn with their hands. A dry Basque white or a chilled young red suits it. If you are new to Bordier's flavored range and want to know which one to reach for next, our guide to Bordier butter walks through all of them and what each is actually good at.
Where to buy Espelette Pepper Butter in the US
The French Pantry ships Bordier butter across the United States in insulated overnight packaging, straight from the workshop in Brittany.
- Churned Espelette Pepper Butter by Bordier (4.4 oz): AOP Espelette pepper worked into salted butter, with a warm fruity heat that holds up to a grill.
For the rest of the range, including the seaweed, buckwheat, and Roscoff onion butters, browse the Maison Bordier collection.
Frequently asked questions
How much Espelette pepper butter do I need to buy?
The recipe calls for 110 g. Our blocks are 125 g, or 4.4 oz, so a single block covers it with a little to spare. If you plan to put extra on the table for the corn, buy two.
Can I substitute a different butter?
You can use Bordier salted butter with a pinch of ground Espelette pepper stirred through it, and it will work. It will not taste the same. The pepper in Bordier's version is worked into the butter during churning, so the heat is distributed evenly rather than sitting in hot spots.
What if I do not have a deep fryer?
Roast the sweet potato fries instead. Toss them in olive oil, spread them in a single layer with space between them, and roast at 425°F, about 220°C, turning once. They will be softer than fried, which is a fair trade.
How do I store the butter?
Keep it wrapped and refrigerated, and use it within the date on the pack. It freezes well for up to three months if you wrap it tightly, though the texture is slightly firmer after thawing.
Does the butter need refrigeration?
Yes. Bordier butter is a fresh, hand-churned product and ships cold. Move it to the refrigerator as soon as it arrives, and take out only what you need for the next hour.
Is this dish very spicy?
No. Espelette pepper sits at the mild end of the scale, closer to a good paprika than to a chili. It reads as warmth and fruit rather than burn.
Related reading
- Bordier Butter: What It Is, Why Chefs Love It, and How to Use It
- How to Choose Your French Butter: A Buyer's Guide
- Terre Exotique
Recipe and photograph adapted from Maison Bordier, with thanks. The French Pantry is an authorized US retailer of Bordier butter.