Steak Diane is a classic dish that gained popularity at the beginning of the last century and later became an American classic that was synonymous with fine dining.
If you’re looking for a delicious and easy-to-prepare steak dinner with a creamy rich sauce, look no further than our Steak Diane recipe.
Steak Diane may be a retro restaurant dish, but I promise you after one bite, it will become one of your favorite steak dishes! And the best part is, it takes less than 30 minutes to make.
Don’t wait for special occasions to make our Steak Diane. It’s easy perfect for your next date night, and easy enough to make for a fancy dinner party.
You’re going to love the creamy Steak Diane sauce coating the tender steak medallions! Flavored with Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, and Jack Daniels, it’s one of my all-time favorite steak sauces.
If you love steak, make sure to try my steak au poivre and pan-seared filet mignon recipes.
What Is Steak Diane?
Steak Diane is a dish that has been around since 1914 as a venison version of the dish. However, the version using a filet mignon was attributed to Chef Bartolomeo Calderoni of Quaglino’s restaurant in the Mayfair area of London.
It regained popularity at the Drake Hotel in New York City in the 1960s, where It was served table-side by the maitre’d and flambeed with Cognac.
Filet mignon was used for the dish, but over the years, different, less expensive cuts of beef have been substituted.
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make our Classic Steak Diane recipe. In Chef Speak, this is called the Mise en Place, which translates into Everything in its Place.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed the cooking process, but it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
What type of alcohol is best for Steak Diane?
Traditionally, this classic recipe is made with cognac, but I like to use Jack Daniels, as I prefer the flavor it gives the sauce. You can also use your favorite bourbon to make the dish.
If you prefer a non-alcoholic version, the alcohol can be omitted. There will be a slight flavor change, but nothing that would make the dish less appealing.
How to make Steak Diane
Slice the beef tenderloin steaks in half or thirds to make medallions.
- Pat dry the beef tenderloin medallions with a paper towel, then season with sea salt and black pepper
- Dredge the filet pieces in all-purpose flour.
- Melt butter in a large skillet or saute pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the beef tenderloin medallions and saute for about one minute on the first side, then turn over the beef and saute on the other side for about one minute.
*Remove the beef from the pan, place it on a plate, and cover it loosely with aluminum foil to keep it warm.
- Add the mushrooms, shallots, and garlic to the pan.
- Saute, stirring often, until the mushrooms are soft (about 2 minutes).
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the Jack Daniels. Light the alcohol with a grill lighter or saute for a minute to allow the alcohol to burn off.
- Add the Dijon mustard and heavy cream, mix thoroughly, and cook the creamy sauce, stirring, for about 1 minute.
- Add the beef stock to the sauce and simmer for 1 minute. Add the Worcestershire and stir to combine.
- Place the pieces of butter in the flour and push the flour into the butter. This is called a beurre manie (butter and flour).
- Add the beurre manie to the pan to thicken the sauce.
- Return the meat and any accumulated juices to the pan and turn the meat to coat with the sauce.
The steaks will be medium to medium rare. For more well-done, cook the medallions a little longer. For a precise internal temperature, use an instant-read thermometer or meat thermometer to check the internal temperature.
Garnish the Steak Diane with sliced green onions and chopped fresh parsley. Serve this classic dish with mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, asparagus, or green beans for a true restaurant-style experience.
And trust me, our version is so much better than the Cheesecake Factory version.
Save any leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Reheat in a saute pan with a bit of beef stock.
Recipe FAQ’s
Named after the Roman goddess Diana, the huntress of wild animals. Diana sauce was created and named by Auguste Escoffier. The original version was made with venison. Others have speculated it was named after Lady Diana Cooper, a female British aristocrat, in the 1930s.
Yes, you can. Flank steak, skirt steak, or flat iron steak are all good choices for this dish. The idea is to get a thin piece of steak that will cook quickly in the saute pan. In some cases, that may mean flattening it with a meat hammer.
This dish can also be made with slices of pork tenderloin or chicken breast.
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Steak Diane Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounce filet mignon cut into medallions *Flat Iron or Flank Steak can be substituted as well as pork or chicken
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 1 tablespoon shallots minced
- ½ teaspoon garlic minced
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced
- ¼ cup Jack Daniels cognac, or your favorite bourbon
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup beef stock
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon scallions sliced for garnish
- 1 teaspoon Italian parsley finely chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Slice the beef tenderloin steaks in half or thirds to make medallions.
- Pat dry the beef tenderloin medallions with a paper towel, then season with sea salt and black pepper
- Dredge the filet pieces in all-purpose flour.
- Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the beef and saute for about one minute on the first side, then turn over the beef and saute on the other side for about one minute.
- Remove the beef from the pan, place it on a plate, and cover it loosely with aluminum foil to keep it warm.
- Add the mushrooms, shallots, and garlic to the pan.
- Saute, stirring often, until the mushrooms are soft (about 2 minutes).
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the Jack Daniels.
- Light the alcohol with a grill lighter or simply saute for a minute to allow the alcohol to burn off.
- Add the Dijon mustard and heavy cream, mix thoroughly, and cook the creamy sauce, stirring, for about 1 minute.
- Add the beef stock to the sauce and simmer for 1 minute. Add the Worcestershire and stir to combine.
- Place the pieces of butter in the flour and push the flour into the butter. This is called a beurre manie (butter and flour).
- Add the beurre manie to the pan to thicken the sauce.
- Return the meat and any accumulated juices to the pan and turn the meat to coat with the sauce.
- The steaks will be medium to medium rare. For more well-done, cook the medallions a little longer. For a precise internal temperature, use an instant-read thermometer or meat thermometer to check the internal tempe
- Divide the medallions between two plates and top with sliced green onions and chopped fresh parsley.
Video
Notes
This dish can also be made with slices of pork tenderloin or chicken breast.
Heather says
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Steak Diane. I think my family would love it though. I’ll have to try it out.
Connie says
OMG this was so good! My husband loved it after saying your not going to ruin a good steak with bourbon!!! Will make again it was a wonderful New Years Eve dinner.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Its one of my wife’s favorite meals! Thanks for the great review!
Candace @ Cabot says
You can never go wrong with a classic dish like this one. I’ll try your preparation this weekend!
jason says
Hi, like the show. You should do more on the classics. I’m 36, so I was a kid and missed all of these. They happen to work great for the home chef. Not too fancy but big payoff.
Question: If I do this with a boneless pork chop or pork medallion, I’m sure I can do the same but would you reccomend any modifications? Pork is so much cheaper than beef now, and the sauce is really the star. Thanks!!
Chef Dennis Littley says
hi Jason
Happy to hear you enjoyed the show.
Pork would work well with the recipe or even chicken, For pork you can stay with the beef stock or use chicken and with chicken stay with chicken stock
Dennis
Melanie says
Thanks so much for posting this recipe and the lovely pictures–I just made it for Valentine’s Day and it was marvelous!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you for letting me know you enjoyed my Steak Diane Melanie, I hope it made your Valentines Day even more special!
Chef and Steward says
For sure!
Chef and Steward says
Dennis this looks absolutely scrumptious. Not a fan of fillet either but you have managed to make me look beyond that fact. Loving the great changes you have made to your website as well. The images are great!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you! Feel free to use another cut of beef, the sauce is really what makes the dish!
Kelly Green says
This looks delicious, Dennis. I have a lot of “meat and potatoes” men in my life, so this will make a great way to mix things up.
Chef Dennis Littley says
This will definitley make them happy Kelly! We need to get together for coffee soon and chat!
Monet says
It has been TOO long Dennis! This steak looks heavenly. I’m so glad to be back in your creative kitchen 🙂
Chef Dennis Littley says
Wow what a nice surprise Monet!! It has been way too long!! Hope all is well in your world my friend.
Linda says
My kind of dish. My husband loves this!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you Linda!
Donna S says
I bet this would be great with venison…. I’ll let you know
Chef Dennis Littley says
it was originally made with Venison Donna, and named after Dianna the Huntress a Roman Goddess. I look forward to hearing how it turned out!
Sylvia Tabor says
One of my fave dishes. Thank you for sharing your recipe which sounds simply delicious. I do miss the entrée s you mention, they are the ones I really looked forward to enjoying when sharing that special night out.
Chef Dennis Littley says
You’re very welcome Sylvia, I think I’ll start doing more of the old classics, a lot of them were just too good to forget!
Larry says
Looks delicious Dennis. We made it in June using rib eyes and a similar recipe to yours and we are ready for it again. We have a couple of strip steaks in the fridge and think we’ll make it using your recipe this time.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Rib eyes sound like a good idea Larry, the sauce is the real star of the show and would go great with just about any cut of beef you enjoy!
Susan says
Chef
Thank you for the instant trip down memory lane, dinner out at a ‘good’ restuarant with my parents, sitting patiently with a starched napkin across my skirt while waiting to see what an entree named after my best friend would taste like. I was 6 at the time and I truly believe it is one of the reasons I chose a career in in food service as well.
Excellent recipe sir, thank you for all you have done.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you Susan! I think music and food can instantly transport us to happy memories, I’m glad this dish did that for you.
cheers!
Jodee Weiland says
This looks absolutely delicious! What a great recipe to serve to family and friends… thanks for sharing!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you Jodee, I only tasted the sauce but it was amazing, and my wife finished every last bite!