This Peppercorn Sauce without brandy is about to be your go-to sauce for steak, chicken, portobello mushrooms, potatoes and everything in between. Better still, it couldn’t be easier to make!
Here I’ll show you how to whip up a classic peppercorn sauce that you can make from scratch, with or without steak. It also uses no flour or alcohol!
Reader, Paul says: ‘Omg this went down so so well it has to be one of the easiest and the best tasting sauce Iāve ever had ā ā ā ā ā ’
Peppercorn Sauce
I’ve been obsessed with peppercorn sauce for as long as I can remember. But honestly, it can be hard to find a decent pepper sauce in a restaurant. Most are watery and flavourless and many just aren’t peppery enough. In fact, a lot are almost like gravy with a few whole peppercorns floating in it.
As such, I made it my mission to create a gorgeous homemade peppercorn sauce that never fails.
Crushing the peppercorns
The first thing you want to do is crush some whole peppercorns. Do not use powdery pepper for this recipe. Crushing whole peppercorns gives you more texture. You can then also fry the crushed pepper, which releases its flavour.
To crush the peppercorns, I typically use 1 of 2 methods:
- Pestle & mortar
- Zip-lock bag & rolling pin
Steak and Peppercorn Sauce
Whilst this sauce goes tremendously with a range of foods, peppercorn is notoriously served with steak. As such, there are two main ways you could make it:
- With steak – This is my preferred method because you can use the leftover fat in the pan from the steak to get going with the sauce. You can then also stir through the resting juices from the steak for bonus flavour!
- From scratch (without steak) – This is for when you want to make it ahead of time, or you’re simply pairing it with something other than pan-fried steak. It’s not much different ,other than you’ll start with butter and you won’t get the bonus flavour from the steak.
Thickening the sauce
You do not need flour or any other thickening agent to thicken this sauce. Because you’ll be using double/heavy cream, it naturally thickens as you simmer it. It’ll look watery at the start, but if you just keep simmering and stirring away, it’ll thicken – promise!
Process shots: fry onion and garlic in butter (photo 1), add beef stock (photo 2), stir in cream and Worcestershire sauce (photo 3), simmer to reduce (photo 4), serve (photo 5).
Peppercorn SauceĀ withoutĀ Brandy or Alcohol
There are a lot of peppercorn sauce recipes that use brandy (or even cognac) and honestly, when I first developed this recipe way back when, I did include brandy.
It does add a nice background flavour, but I personally find the difference minimal. It’s rare that I’ve got brandy on hand and since the other ingredients in this sauce are fairly cheap, I begrudge buying brandy just to use a splash in the sauce.
Having said that, you can absolutely add brandy if you’d like to. You just have to simmer it down to burn off the alcohol to remove the pungent flavour.
Serving Peppercorn Sauce
This sauce goes perfectly with a range of foods. Here’s some of my favourites:
- Steak – The classic and my preferred option.
- Chicken or pork – If you’ve not got steak then pan-fried chicken thighs or pork chops work perfectly!
- Potatoes – You’ll sometimes catch me pouring this over roast potatoes or mash (so good!)
- Mushrooms – Portobello mushrooms act like cups for this sauce (yep, it’s as good as it sounds).
- Sausages – If you’ve never had sausages and peppercorn sauce, you’ve not lived.
Looking for more steak sauces? I’ve got you covered:
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this creamy peppercorn sauce we?!
How to make Creamy Peppercorn Sauce without Brandy (Full Recipe & Video)
Creamy Peppercorn Sauce
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board (for shallots/garlic)
- Pestle & Mortar or Zip Lock Bag & Rolling Pin (for peppercorns)
- Medium-Large Frying Pan
- Wooden Spoon
- Jug (for stock & serving)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Whole Black Peppercorns, crushed (see notes)
- 1 tbspĀ Butter (see notes)
- 2 small Shallots, very finely diced
- 1 clove Garlic, very finely diced
- 3/4 cup / 180ml Beef Stock
- 3/4 cup / 180ml Double Cream, at room temp (Heavy Cream in US)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- If you're frying steak leave the juices in the pan. This will add a huge amount of flavour to the sauce. Melt the butter over medium heat and fry the shallots until soft and golden (careful they don't burn).
- Add in the garlic and peppercorns and fry for a further 30 seconds or so until the garlic just begins to colour (again, be careful it doesn't burn).Ā Add the beef stock, then stir in the cream and Worcestershire sauce.
- Simmer and stir somewhat frequently until the sauce thickens (approx 8-12mins). It will thicken, just keep simmering and gently stirring away. If you've cooked steak or any other meat you can stir in any resting juices just before you finish, just for extra flavour! Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if desired.
- Remove from heat and pour into a jug. Just be aware it'll thicken the longer you leave it. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Your Private Notes:
Nutrition
Looking for more?
You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’
Creamy Peppercorn Sauce FAQ
Yep! Just allow to completely cool then tightly store in the fridge for 2-3 days. You can reheat on the stove over LOW heat, stirring as you go to ensure the sauce doesn’t split. Only heat until it’s warmed through again, don’t rapid simmer or you risk the sauce splitting. You can also do this in short bursts in the microwave, stirring between each stint.
Just keep simmering and stirring away. It will thicken – promise!
Double/heavy cream is essential in this recipe. Not only for its fuller, richer flavour, but also to ensure the sauce thickens. Some lighter, say milk, will only thicken if you use a thickening agent (and the sauce won’t be as rich).
Followed the recipe although cut down on On the peppercorn cause I’m not a fan of spicy food O but I have to say it was not creamy it was kind of curdled with lots of little bumps
Hi Ann!
Sorry to hear you didn’t have much luck with the recipe. Unfortunately sometimes when cream hits heat it can curdle, which is what seems to have happened with you. If you were to try it again (which I’m hoping you will, it’s a truly delicious sauce!) I’d just check the following:
First that it’s double cream (heavy cream in the US) you’re using. This has a much lower chance of curdling than single/thin cream. Also, it’s important to have the stock simmering on heat no higher than a medium flame before you add the cream. Having it any higher would increase the chance of curdling. I know ‘medium’ can sometimes be subjective so just a little lower than last time should do the trick. Bonus tip would be having the cream at room temp.
Thanks for popping back and sharing your feedback and hope you love the sauce next time! Chris.
I used single cream, but to avoid it curdling I turned down the heat to low and took out a couple of spoons of the sauce from the pan in a separate bowl and slowly added the cream, while continuously mixing. This brings the cream to the same temp as the sauce in the pan and once all the cream is added, I take a couple more spoons of the sauce from the pan and mix well before adding everything back into the pan. Lovely sauce and added a lot of flavour to the steak.
Is IT possible to reheat? Looks great
Yep! You can definitely reheat.
Sweet. Will give a review after i make it.
This looks amazing! Is it possible to make this with a heavy cream rather than a double cream?
Yup! Heavy cream is perfect š
Are you able to make this in advance and refrigerate until ready to use?
You absolutely can yes! š
O trust me Liz it was gorgeous!!!!!!!
Wow that sauce sounds so good! I bet it would be delicious to dunk french fries in!
You should not have put that thought in my head.
*reaches for french fries and doesn’t stop dunking… ever*
So, I hate to admit this, but, I’ve never had peppercorn sauce – but your description and photos are making me wanna run out and get the ingredients and have a go at it! It looks scrumptiously creamy!
Shashi you’ve got to try it!! It’ll change your entire outlook on life.. or something like that.
That sauce looks incredible!
Thanks, Jessica! š
I love peppercorn sauce and yours looks delicious and so creamy! Will definitely have to give your recipe a try!
Isn’t it just the best!? That’s so awesome, enjoy! š
Wow Chris!!! This is incredible! Although I’m a vegetarian nowadays, steak and peppercorn sauce used to be my weakness! Just like you, I would pour this stuff over anything! Such an amazing sauce! And your pictures are just fantastic! Glad I came across your blog!
Anna! Your kind words have made my day! Steak and peppercorn is still my weakness (as i’m sure you’ve figured!) š