Knife

April 3, 2017
In his debut cookbook, Tesar, who runs various Dallas restaurants, cuts right to the chase, beginning with steak prepared with a straightforward method he calls “back to the pan.” That pan should be carbon steel and the recipe includes only salt, pepper, a little oil, and lots of attention. Before firing up the stove, readers are confronted with a lengthy biography of Tesar (writing with James Beard–winning author Mackay), covering his salad days in the Hamptons and his Manhattan training under the tutelage of Anthony Bourdain. Then he provides 40 pages of beef and equipment basics, covering types of cuts, grass-fed and grain-fed cows, and the joys of a portable gas burner. Despite his Texas residency, Tesar has no fondness for charcoal grills, even for burgers, as he demonstrates in a chapter that includes a classic patty melt recipe and a brief, smart rant on the structural and textural integrity of sandwiches. He strays away from beef for a sriracha pork belly sandwich, tuna tartare, and exactly one dessert (a chocolate coffee tart), but, with the help of Mackay and juicy photos by Dallas photographer Kevin Marple, Tesar returns again and again to perfecting the preparation of red meat.