I saw this technique on an Emeril Live episode the other day.

Basically what he did was to take a rib-eye steak, slather it with Dijon
mustard on one side, dip that side in crushed pepper corns, repeat on the
other side, then pan-fry the steak. (He called it "steak au poivre" but
that's Emeril for you.) He also used olive oil I believe and rather high
heat and the thought occurred to me at the time that This Isn't A Good Idea.

When I attempted this technique, I used a mixture of olive oil and butter
and gentler heat instead. The result was great. The mustard+pepper corn
crust provides a beautiful texture and really keeps the meat moist.

Tonight I tried another variation. There was a leftover jar of a
basil-intensive spaghetti sauce in the fridge so instead of mustard I
slathered the meat with that. I also dusted the meat with grated Parmesan
cheese before applying the pepper corn coating. I let it sit for about half
an hour to dry things out then gentle-fried in butter and olive oil. When I
eyeballed that it was done, I removed the meat to a plate to let it rest.
Looking at the pan I said to myself "Self, you've got the makings of a great
sauce there." So I took the pan off the heat, poured in a jigger of brandy,
tipped the pan back over the flame to ignite it, and let it extinguish and
boil down. You end up with a tablespoon or two of highly favorable sauce to
pour over the meat. Yum.

Avenues to explore:

What other things can I slather the meat with? Mayonnaise? Peanut butter?
Garlic paste? Harrisa?

Will this work with meats other than beef? Chicken for example?

Enquiring minds want to know...