Red Wine Reduction Sauce

Red wine reduction sauce is an easy, rich, and flavorful condiment that pairs wonderfully with any steak dinner. This delicious sauce recipe is made with beef drippings, shallot, garlic, beef broth, red wine, balsamic vinegar, and fresh herbs. It's the perfect way to add a touch of elegance to your favorite cut of steak!

Jump to:

• 🥘 Ingredients
• 🔪 How To Make Red Wine Reduction Sauce
• 💭 Angela's Tips & Recipe Notes
• 🥡 Storing
• ❓ Recipe FAQs
• 😋 More Tasty Sauce Recipes
• 📖 Recipe Card
• 💬 Reviews

This red wine reduction sauce is a very easy condiment to prepare, but makes a world of difference when serving it with your favorite steak dinner. If you haven't tried a wine reduction sauce before, be prepared to have a new go-to sauce.

Red wine reduces to intensify the flavors of beef drippings, shallot, and garlic, then the balsamic vinegar adds a sweet and tangy flavor that pairs so wonderfully with steak. This is hands down my favorite sauce to serve alongside steak, pork, and braised ribs.

🥘 Ingredients

There are no complicated ingredients on this list. Just grab a quality red wine the next time you are at the grocery store.

• Beef Drippings - 1 tablespoon of beef drippings. You may also use beef tallow or butter.
• Shallot - ¼ cup of finely diced shallot. A diced yellow onion or red onion would work too.
• Garlic - ½ tablespoon of garlic (minced).
• Beef Broth - 1 cup of beef broth.
• Red Wine - 1 cup of red wine. I recommend using better-quality red wine for the best flavor results in your sauce. Plus you can enjoy a glass of wine with dinner! Pinot noir, merlot, or a cabernet sauvignon are all great choices.
• Balsamic Vinegar - 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar.
• Fresh Thyme - 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme.
• Fresh Oregano - 1-2 sprigs of fresh oregano (or rosemary).
• Butter (Optional) - 2 tablespoons of butter. You may add butter after the sauce is reduced for added richness to an already amazing flavor!

🔪 How To Make Red Wine Reduction Sauce

If you've ever made a sauce for a recipe before, this red wine reduction is as easy as it gets. You will need a wooden spoon, whisk, measuring cups, saucepan (or skillet), and a fine mesh sieve to get started.

This red wine sauce recipe will yield around 6 servings. There is plenty for your steak main course and you might even have some leftovers.

1. Heat. In a skillet or saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of beef drippings (or tallow, or butter) or medium. Add the ¼ cup of diced shallots (or onions) and ½ tablespoon of minced garlic and saute briefly for about 1 minute.
2. Add ingredients. Pour in the 1 cup of red wine (use a wooden spoon or spatula to deglaze the pan if needed, scraping any browned bits on the bottom of the pan from cooking the steak). Then add the 1 cup of beef broth and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar as well as the fresh herbs (thyme, oregano, or rosemary).
3. Simmer sauce. Stir, increase to medium-high heat if needed, and bring your sauce to a simmer. Allow the sauce to reduce at a low, steady simmer until reduced by half and thickened. This should take anywhere between 15-30 minutes.
4. Add butter (optional) - Once the sauce has reduced by half and is slightly thickened, add the 2 tablespoons of optional butter, remove the skillet or pan from heat, and whisk the butter into your sauce.
5. Serve. I like to strain the sauce before serving, however, you can serve the red wine reduction sauce immediately after removing the herbs from the pan.

This sauce is the perfect pairing for grilled steak, pan-seared steak, or broiled steak dinners. It will also taste wonderful with pan-seared pork chops or baked short ribs. Enjoy!

💭 Angela's Tips & Recipe Notes

• Your red wine reduction sauce should yield 1 ½ cups when reduced, with each serving being ¼ cup for nutrition calculation.
• Serve with your favorite cut of steak or pork, or use it to make delicious braised short ribs.
• Using a better quality red wine is recommended to yield the best flavor in your sauce (as well as to serve with dinner).
• Adding the optional butter after the sauce has reduced adds richness to the already amazingly flavorful sauce.
• Optionally, you can whisk 1 tablespoon of flour with your pan drippings or butter at the beginning of making this sauce to add a creamy texture.
• This sauce will be wonderfully tasty if you make it as instructed above with a 1:1 ratio of broth and wine but is equally wonderful with a slightly more mellow wine flavor with a 2:1 ratio of broth to wine. Starting with 2 cups of broth will require a few more minutes of cook time to reduce the sauce.
• Be patient when simmering and keep the heat just high enough to hold the sauce at a low, steady simmer. Rapidly simmered or boiled sauce can turn out tasting bitter or reduced too much.

🥡 Storing

Transfer the cooled red wine reduction sauce into an airtight storage container. Store in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.

Store the cooled sauce in an airtight freezer storage bag or shallow container for up to 4-6 months. I feel that this sauce is best used within the first 3 months after cooking.

❓ Recipe FAQs

😋 More Tasty Sauce Recipes

• Horseradish Sauce For Prime Rib - If you are a fan of prime rib, beef tenderloin, or steak dinners, you have to try this delicious condiment.
• Mint Sauce For Lamb - This 3-ingredient sauce only takes a few minutes to prep, but makes a world of a difference to roasted meat meals.
• Lemon Butter Sauce For Fish - The next time that fish is on the menu, you have to try this incredibly easy lemon butter sauce recipe.
• Tzatziki Sauce - Who doesn't love a creamy, fresh, and savory dipping sauce that pairs well with anything?
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📖 Recipe Card