Francois-Rene de Chateaubriand's life
was an epic tale of love, political intrigue, travel, adventure, power,
and talent. He lived, made, and wrote history. He witnessed the fall of
the Bastille; was Louis XVI's hunting companion; dined with George
Washington; lived with the Iroquois Indians; fought
starvation; entertained lavishly as a French ambassador; helped restore
the French monarchy; started the Spanish War of 1812; was loved by
numerous beautiful women; and became one of France's major writers.
Chateaubriand's chef,
Montreueil, invented a novel way to cook a steak to leave the center rare.
The steak which was cut two inches thick was placed between two other steaks
trimmed to the same length and width, then grilled over a hot flame until
the outer two steaks were burned. The burned outer steaks were thrown to the
dogs and the inner steak, which was a perfect pink, was served with a butter
sauce. he chef claimed that this method was inspired
by
Chateaubriand's
Le Genie du
Christianisme
with the center
steak representing Christ and the outer steaks representing the two thieves.
The recipe, when modified to more conservative cooking methods, became known
as Chateaubriand.
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