NEW YORK — I don't think I've ever actually drooled while cooking. But I came close on a July afternoon in the middle of La Brasserie's immaculate kitchen.

Chef Jaime Loja, the restaurant's executive chef who is classically trained in French cooking, was teaching me how to make the La Brasserie's steak frites.

In between the lunch and dinner seating, he walked me through the cooking process for La Brasserie's most popular dish, which he says accounts for about 80% of the restaurant's sales.

Between adding oil (soybean oil NOT olive oil, a big lesson for me), seasoning, searing, pan frying, popping in the oven and readying fries, the process was impressive — and the result was even more so.

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And it tasted better because I helped to make it. Preparing meals at home, I'm more of a chicken-in-the-air-fryer or pre-marinated-salmon-baked-in-the-oven kind of gal, and creating something this luxe felt special — especially since I've been wanting to up my culinary game. Making steak frites with a professional chef certainly took my lunch beyond the Trader-Joe's-shrimp-burger I make on the stove. 

While it was certainly a learning process with many steps, the experience instilled me with the confidence to try more upscale options at home — even if it can be intimidating to face down a recipe that runs $43 a plate at a Park Avenue restaurant.

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The recipe we used at La Brasserie was more suited to a professional kitchen given its complexities — and the sauces were prepped ahead of time. So, Loja prepared a more accessible recipe (see below) tailored for at-home cooks for USA TODAY.

"The Bavette, it is not difficult but it takes some practice to cook correctly, to cook at home I would recommend to use a New York strip which is more common, you can buy it anywhere," Loja says, noting it would also be easier to cook that cut of meat. 

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He advises at-home cooks to not be intimidated by new recipes they're interested in cooking — even if they seem challenging.

"Just try it, go for it," Loja says. "It doesn't matter if you fail doing it.... it's not about making it wrong it's about learning what you did wrong and moving forward."

Sear the steak in a skillet or on the grill. Finish the steak with 2 cloves of garlic, 2 strings of thyme and 2 oz. of butter and cook to your preferred temperature — rare, medium rare, medium, medium well or well done. 

Let sit for 2 minutes before slicing.

Using a blender, add eggs yolk, vinegar, Tabasco, water, salt and blend on slow speed.

Once everything is mixed well, slowly add the warm clarified butter, transfer to a mixing bowl to finish with minced shallots and tarragon.

In a small saute pan, start off with the oil at medium heat. Add the shallots and let them caramelize for about 5 minutes. Then, add the vinegar. Finally, add the beef stock and simmer for about 4 minutes. Add the chopped parsley, and be sure to keep it warm for the meat.

Slice in half then submerge in water for 12 hours. Blanch at 250 degrees for 5 minutes. Let cool in a sheet pan with parchment paper. Fry at 350 degrees until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*Note: There are alternative ways to making fries. For example, this recipe from Tastes Better from Scratch uses an air fryer to cook.

Place the steak in the middle of your plate. Then, arrange shallot marmalade on top of the meat. After that, add the fries beside the steak. Place the Béarnaise sauce in a small bowl or gravy boat and serve on the side.