Peppered Fillet Steak with Potatoes

Peel the potatoes, then cut them into fairly large, evenly-sized cubes. Place them in a pan of cold water, bring it to the boil, then simmer for 2 minutes. Drain the potatoes. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan, then tip in the potatoes and fry them gently for 20 minutes, turning them occasionally so that they become golden and crispy on all sides. When the potatoes are cooked, finely chop or crush the garlic and add it to the pan; fry for a further minute, then add the chopped parsley, season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.

Meanwhile, rub each steak with a little oil. Put the cracked black pepper on to a plate, then press each steak into the pepper. Heat a shallow pan until hot, and cook the steaks to your individual taste (as a rough guide, it will take 2½ minutes on each side for medium-rare steak; 3½ minutes for medium; and 4½ minutes for well done). Allow the steaks to rest for 5 minutes, then add a generous knob of butter to each steak and serve with the potatoes and some crisp salad leaves.