Steak au poivre (“pepper steak”) is a French ish that consists of a steak, traditionally a strip steak, coated on one side in loosely cracked peppercorns and then cooked. The peppercorns form a crust on one side of the steak when cooked and provide a pungent but complementary counterpoint to the rich flavor of the high-quality beef. The peppercorn crust itself is made by basting the steak in softened butter and then placing it into a bed of cracked black (or mixed) peppercorns. Once a thick coating has stuck to the steak, it is refrigerated for a short time to harden the butter once again. Typically, the steak is seared in a hot skillet with a small amount of clarified butter to cook it. The steak is seared at a high temperature to cook the outside quickly and form the crust while leaving the interior rare to medium rare. The steak is then left to rest for several minutes and then served.