How To Make A Red Wine Reduction For Steak 9 Steps

Place a large saucepan over medium heat. Allow it to heat for 1-to-2 minutes.

Pour olive oil into the pan and swirl the pan so the oil evenly coats the bottom. Let the oil heat up in the pan for 2-to-3 minutes.

Add minced garlic and onion to the hot oil. Cook the garlic and onion for 3-to-4 minutes or until they soften and start to become translucent. Stir the vegetables continuously to cook them evenly. Reduce the heat under the pan slightly if the garlic and onion start to brown or smell bitter. This means your pan is too hot and the vegetables are starting to burn, which will give your sauce a bitter taste.

Add beef broth to the pan. Use a spoon or whisk to scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pan and incorporate them into the beef broth. Reduce the heat under the pan to low, cover it and allow the beef broth to simmer for 20 minutes. Upon completion, the volume of liquid in the pan should be reduced by about half.

Stir the reduced beef broth and add the wine to the pan. Stir the mixture so the wine and broth are combined.

Cover the pan again and allow the sauce to simmer for another 20 minutes. Stir the sauce halfway through this period to ensure that nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan. The volume in the pan will reduce by about 1/3 during this time.

Dip a spoon into the sauce and turn it over. The reduction is the desired consistency if it holds to the back of the spoon and glazes it instead of running off. If the sauce is too runny, let it simmer for another 10 minutes.