Flank Steak with Chimichurri

To all my followers, I've decided to get on a more regular schedule of posting, so look for new posts on MONDAYS (and maybe a few more if I'm feeling inspired, but definitely Mondays). Thank you for continuing to follow and enjoy my blog, I do apologize for my long absence.

Since I just shared about indoor grilling, what better way to follow that than with a marinaded flank steak and a chimichurri sauce. Chimichurri is a great sauce for grilled items, like steak, with its bold flavors of fresh herbs and garlic. 

Chimichurri:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

3-4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced or minced

1 shallot finely chopped

1.2 cups fresh cilantro with stems pick out

1 cup fresh parsley (flat leaf preferred) 

1/3 cup fresh oregano

3/4-1 cup EVO (refer back to my post of Olive oils)

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (more or less depending on you level of spice)

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all your ingredients except your olive oil in a food processor, while it's running gradually add your oil. Done! 

With the flank steak it is best to marinade (which is a form of tenderizing). You can can go any direction with your marinade, just keep these things in mind when making a marinade:

Salt is essential - it penetrates and goes deeper than the outer surface. Soy sauce is a common form of salt.

Sugar, when used in moderation, will help the meat brown better on the grill, creating strong smoky, charred flavors.

Aromatics are mainly a surface treatment, but they can still be quite powerful. Garlic, shallots, dried spices, herbs, or chilis are all good things to experiment with.

Oil is often a primary ingredient in marinades and helps spread flavors evenly across the surface of the meat, as well as lubricating the meat.

Acid can denature proteins in the meat so use sparingly. With very acidic marinades, it's particularly important to not over marinade or it will get grey and mushy overtime. Vinegar or lemon juice are common acids in marinades.

For Flank steak, ideally you want to marinade 4-8 hours, you don't want to marinade too long or it could change the texture of the meat.  

The secret to a tender flank steak is to cut AGAINST the grain. Flank steak is a great piece of meat to start learning how to cut against the grain. Watch this helpful video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRdX4U6hNLY

Thanks for reading, don't forget to comment with what you've been cooking and any questions you have. 



Mcnackskitchen. (2013, April 8) Cutting against the grain on a bias. [Video File] retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRdX4U6hNLY