1tsp.fresh thymerub the leaves between your fingers before adding to release aromatics.
salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
Pan fry any meat (in this case tenderloin steak) in a cast iron pan. Remove the meat when it's done and do NOT clean the pan for the love of all that is holy. Leave it. That's the fond and it's VERY important for flavour.
Heat a tablespoon or so of oil in skillet over medium. Add your minced shallot and cook until shallot is softened (about 2 minutes.)
Deglaze the bottom of the pan with a bit of broth or red wine. Just add enough to the hot pan to release the fond stuck to the bottom of the pan. That's the good stuff with all the flavour of your meat. The deglazing agent will bubble away violently, so get ready to loosen the fond at the bottom of the pan immediately.
Once deglazed, add the rest of your broth, wine, thyme and brown sugar.
Finish by whisking in chilled butter.
Serve over, on and with meat. Or just eat all of the sauce out of the pan ... your choice. For sure you can lick the pan, just maybe wait for it to cool off first.
Notes
For a white wine, or beer pan sauce you can just swap out the red wine for either one.For a whiskey sauce, instead of using ½ cup and ½ cup of wine to broth, use ¼ cup and ¾ cup of whiskey to broth. If you're missing the thyme or shallot, don't worry about it. Just soldier on!