In preparing the steak, Jester spreads a coating of medium-ground Starbucks espresso roast on an oval-shaped plate and presses each side of the steak into it; the meat picks up roughly the amount of coffee used in a single shot of espresso. Then she pats on the restaurant's seasoning mix, which includes salt, garlic, onion, black pepper and other spices.
Once grilled, the finished steak has a black char and a thin crust, slightly less coarse than that of a traditional pepper steak. It has a smoky flavor and a moderate coffee taste, and it doesn't carry the bitterness one might associate with eating coffee grounds.
Other chefs have used coffee as a marinade or coating. Putting coffee in a recipe was a natural for Jester, a self-confessed java junkie who starts each day with a triple iced mocha and has straight shots of espresso later in the day.
"I'm here for 15 hours a day," she said. "So I've got to have something to keep me going."
-------------------------------------
Jack Broom: 206-464-2222 or
[email protected]
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace