Purists will tell you that if a steak is good quality you should eat it on its own with nothing more than salt and pepper – but they must have had some poorly made sauces in the past. Drowning a beautiful piece of beef in a subpar sauce is never going to end well, but if you make your own from scratch and ensure you don’t overwhelm the steak’s flavour, you can make a dish that’s much tastier than the sum of its parts.
There are dozens of different sauces served with steak all over the world, from rich hollandaise to smoky mole-inspired Mexican chilli sauces. Here are five that have stood the test of time and, when made properly, will transform an already delicious piece of meat into something to write home about.