Skirt steak. Tough but delicious. Add chimichurri.
Monday, April 14th, 2008
Colorado’s Best Beef is local and family-owned, providing all natural beef that is raised humanely with no antibiotics, no growth hormones, and no steroids. Charolais (and crossbred) cattle are grass-fed and finished on grain, and the meat is dry-aged for 14 to 21 days.
I selected skirt steak, a tough but flavorful cut that is increasingly popular in groovy bistro-influenced restaurants. Skirt, and very similar hangar, flap, and flank steaks are best marinated, then cooked hot and fast to about medium-rare. “Grass-fed” immediately evokes Argentina, and what better marinade than a classic chimichurri sauce?
Chimichurri Sauce
- 1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley
- 5 garlic cloves
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
- 3 Tb lemon juice
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, or more to taste
- 1/2 tsp cayenne, or more to taste
Combine and process well in a blender or food processor, but do not liquify. This makes over 1 cup of fairly loose chimichurri sauce, enough for at least 2 lbs of meat. Make it your own: substitute any spicy greens for the parsley, and varying the spices and acid ingredients can provide infinite variations.
Skirt steak is usually thin cut, but can also be pounded to a uniform thickness. Marinate with chimichurri sauce in a ziploc bag, an hour or two is fine. Be sure to reserve some sauce for final prep and the table.
Grill or broil the steak to taste on a hot fire, hopefully gaining a bit of char. Rare skirt tends to be chewy, but medium-rare seems to hit the sweet spot. Carve in diagonal slices against the grain, slather with reserved sauce, and serve.
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