Ultimate steak and chips with clotted cream peppercorn sauce

For the garlic and rosemary chips:

• Maris Piper potatoes 600g, peeled and cut into chunky wedges
• Beef dripping 75g
• Rosemary 3-4 sprigs, torn
• Garlic 1 bulb, cloves separated and lightly bashed
• Sea salt and ground black pepper

For the steak:

• Bavette steak 500g
• Olive oil 1 tbsp
• Butter 25g
• Thyme 4-5 sprigs
• Garlic 1 clove, peeled and bashed
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the peppercorn sauce:

• Shallot 1, peeled and finely sliced
• Garlic 1 clove, peeled and finely sliced
• Green peppercorns in brine 1 tbsp, drained
• Black peppercorns 1 tbsp, bashed
• Brandy 75ml
• Beef or chicken stock 350ml
• Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream 127g
• Sea salt

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C / gas 7.
2. For the garlic and rosemary chips: wash the potato wedges under cold water to remove any excess starch, then put in a large saucepan of salted water. Bring the water to the boil, then turn down the heat to a simmer. Cook the potatoes for around 6 minutes until just tender. Drain the potatoes using a colander, then allow them to cool for 10 minutes.
3. Spoon the beef dripping into a large roasting tin and place in the oven to heat up. When it’s hot, add the potatoes and use a wooden spoon to coat them in the dripping. Season with sea salt and black pepper, then roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes, giving the potatoes a stir once or twice.
4. Remove the potatoes from the oven, add the garlic and rosemary and give them a stir, then return to the oven for 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are crisps and golden.
5. For the steak: heat a large, heavy-based frying pan over high heat until hot. Turn the steak through the olive oil and season it with plenty of salt and a little cracked black pepper. Lay the steak in the pan and cook, pressing it down every so often with the back of a spatula, for 2.5 – 3 minutes. Carefully turn the steak and cook for a further 2 minutes to achieve a medium/rare cook.
6. Add the butter, thyme and bashed garlic. As soon as the butter is bubbling, baste the steak with the foaming butter. After 1 minute, lift the steak out of the pan and transfer to a warm dish. Cover it loosely with parchment paper and let it rest somewhere warm while you make the sauce.
7. For the peppercorn sauce: using the same frying pan used for the steak, sauté the shallot in the bubbling butter. Cook for around 4 minutes, stirring regularly, until it begins to soften. Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes.
8. Sprinkle over the green and black peppercorns. Sauté for a moment to release the flavours, then add the brandy and let it bubble furiously.
9. Pour in the stock, as well as any resting juices from the steak ,and bring the pan to a lively simmer. Allow the stock to reduce by at least half, then stir in the clotted cream and bring the pan back to a simmer. As soon as the peppercorn sauce thickens, add a good pinch of salt and remove the pan from the heat.
10. To serve: carve the steak into thick slices, and serve on warm plates with the garlic and rosemary chips and peppercorn sauce.