Chimichurri Steak

 

It was Ben's first weekend in Terre Haute and I wanted to make the boy a special dinner to enjoy after the long drive.  One of the things I was excited about moving to the TH for was the idea that Ben and I wouldn't have to go out so much and we could eat in more.  Not only would I get to cook more often, but I would have another judge on the taste panel and it would cut down on the leftovers left over.  And there would be another set of hands to help with the dishes afterwards.  Win, win, win.  The first welcome to TH meal was chimichurri steak from a recipe I had torn out from the Wednesday's New York Times two Aprils ago.

One of things I like about reading food blogs is that many times they get to make all the mistakes for you first.  So you hopefully don't have to make the same ones yourself.  I thought a lot about this as I was making the steak.  Not that there were huge mistakes made, but there are just all those little things you might forget because they aren't written out in the recipe.

Things like, not spreading the chimichurri sauce all the way to the edge of the butterflied steak, because you have to close and secure it with toothpicks and it's much harder when it's slippery with oil and parsley.  And to dump out some toothpicks on your work surface while you still have clean, non-raw-meat-covered hands so you don't ruin the whole box.  And while you're at it, knowing the number of toothpicks you have stuck in is a useful bit of knowledge too.  Not that any of these are huge impending disasters, but aren't they nice to know before you tackle a recipe?  Would have kept toothpicks off of my next shopping list.

Another thing it would have been nice to remember is that I'm not the biggest parsley fan and neither is the boy.  Which is kinda key to remember before making a steak marinated and slathered in a parsley based sauce.  Ok, that's sort of a lie, I did remember, but I had convinced myself it wouldn't matter.  And to a degree, it didn't, because the steak was good.  Got two stamps of approval, but unfortunately it just might be another one shot recipe, a culinary one night stand.  

Don't fret though, because dessert was a keeper.  Dessert was fantastic.  Dessert is going in the Big Green Cookbook.  And dessert is going to have to wait for another post.  Cliffhanger?  Oh yeah...

Chimichurri Steak 

Adapted from the April 27, 2010 NY Times

As a note, I used curly parsley and 1 1/4 inch thick london broil.  Because, that's what my store had.  I'm guessing hanger (what the recipe called for) or skirt steak may have been even better, but the london broil worked well if you can't find them.  Also, mine was only about 1.3 lbs.

1 c.  packed flat leaf parsley
1/2 jalapeno, seeded
1 garlic clove
2 Tbsp. minced mint leaves
6 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp. crushed red chili flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste
Cayenne, to taste
3 Tbsp. panko bread crumbs
1 hanger steak, about 2 lbs

Mince parsley, jalapeno and garlic.  Add to a small bowl and mix with mint, oil, vinegar and chili flakes.  Add salt, pepper and cayenne to taste.  Set aside 3 tablespoons.  To remaining mixture, add panko.

Using a sharp knife, butterfly steak so it lies open like a book.  Lightly pound steak to a uniform thickness.  Spread chimichurri mixture evenly on side of steak, leaving a small border around the edge.  Fold steak back over and secure close with toothpicks.  Keep track of how many toothpicks you use.

Place steak on broiler pan.  Coat outside (I took this to mean top and bottom) with reserved sauce.  Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in fridge for 3 hours.

Remove steak from fridge to bring up to room temperature.  Preheat broiler.  Broil on high heat about 6 to 8 minutes per side until medium rare.  Let rest 10 minutes, remove toothpicks and cut into thick slices.