Sauce Bercy, as Served at Nixon’s Inaugural Luncheons

A lot of wine used to be sold in Bercy, a Parisian neighborhood. Naturally, the restaurateurs there featured wine in their menus, particularly in a sauce made with shallots and butter.

Sauce Bercy. One of President Richard M. Nixon’s favorite sauces. He liked it so much the chefs served it at both of his inaugural luncheons.

Only thing is, that’s not what Nixon ate at all.

The name is wrong on the menu. It should be Bercy Butter. Not Sauce Bercy. The official sauce recipe is for fish and includes fish fumet.

Beef marrow might be a light trying to come bu these days, I think. If so, just get some long bones and hack them open. You’ll have all the marrow you’ll need.

Bercy Butter

1/2 pound pound bone marrow (optional), diced into ¼-inch pieces and poached in salted water for 2 minutes
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup unsalted butter
1 T. lemon juice
3 T. chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Pepper

Drain marrow and reserve. Simmer the shallots in the wine until softened and wine reduces to a few tablespoons. Mix in remaining ingredients, let cool slightly, and pour over grilled steaks. Butter should not melt completely.