I recently came across a calendar listing various food events that are celebrated throughout the year. According to this calendar, Wednesday, April 23 has been reserved for the annual “Peppercorn Ceremony.”

What exactly is the Peppercorn Ceremony?

Using some good old-fashioned common sense, I was able to deduce that this ceremony had something to do with pepper, one of the world’s oldest known spices, which is prepared from the fruit of the pepper plant – the peppercorn. But a quick trip through numerous cookbooks proved futile. They revealed the difference between black and white pepper, white pepper being the result of soaking the dried berries in water and removing the outer covering before they are ground, but they contained no details of the celebrated ceremony. I eventually took my investigation online, where lo and behold, my question was soon answered.

“Chase’s Calendar of Annual Events” notes that the Peppercorn Ceremony commemorates the 1816 payment of one peppercorn to the governor of Bermuda for rental of the Old State House by the Masonic Lodge. Back then, pepper was a common form of currency and was considered to be as negotiable as silver. The phrase “peppercorn rent” today translates into “a nominal sum,” whereas during medieval times it was equivalent to several weeks’ wages.

In honor of this age-old ceremony, why not spend your peppercorn rent on some juicy steaks and prepare Steak Au Poivre on April 23rd? I assure you, if you enjoy the fiery flavor of pepper, your taste buds won’t be disappointed.

Steak Au Poivre

Ingredients:

• Strip sirloin or filet mignon steaks, cut 1-inch thick
• Peppercorns, about ½ cup per steak
• Salt
• Water for gravy, about ½ cup per steak (optional)

Method:

Crush, don’t grind, the peppercorns coarsely on a board with a pressing, rolling movement, using the bottom of a pan. Press the steaks into the crushed pepper and work it into both sides of the meat with the heel of your palm or flat side of meat cleaver. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons salt on the bottom of nine-inch skillet. Cook over high heat until the salt begins to brown. Add a single steak and brown on both sides over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and continue cooking until desired degree of rareness is reached. Add a small amount of water to the pan and scrap up the drippings to make peppery gravy. Remove steak to platter and pour gravy on top. Repeat entire process with remaining steaks.