Saturday, December 15, 2012

Sweet and Sour Marinated Flat Iron Steak


I am a huge steak and beef  fan. To me, there's nothing quite like a fabulous, well seasoned, medium rare cut of tender beef, alongside a baked potato with all the fixins' and fresh steamed veggies with a green salad in tow.  Today's featured recipe is a marinated flat iron steak.   Flat iron steak is a term used by Americans.
This same cut is referred  to as a "butler"  or "oyster blade" steak in countries like the UK and New Zealand.  Other names for this cut include petite steak, top shoulder blade, top boneless chuck, lifter as well as book steak and chuck clod.  The flat iron is a more affordable way for people to enjoy a steak, but is somewhat tougher, because it is cut with the grain, as opposed to across.  This steak comes from the shoulder with normally fantastic marbling that generally weighs between 2 to 3 pounds, and is cut several times to make smaller marketable portions.  This is a piece of beef that responds well to marination, and care to cooking it only to medium rare for maximum tenderness and flavor. The marinade for this recipe consists of a sweet/salty/spicy which I favor highly, and is inspired by those flavors and spices familiar in Asian cuisine, as you can probably see from some of my recipes prior.  Feel free to use this marinade on your personal favorite proteins, including but not limited to tofu and Portobello mushrooms.  I served these sumptuous medium rare steaks with Stir-fry veggies and Couscous steamed together and tossed with a Thai Green Curry Spice blend.  Stay tuned for more recipes that utilize this spice to make the best of it's freshness and shelf life.  Also, look for recipes that I've created that involve the use of uncommon ingredients called for in some of my recipes to explore it's diversity and save on waste, i.e red pepper jelly, pickled ginger slices etc... in publications to come.
Recipe:
1 1/2 lb. flat iron steak
2 tbsp. tamari
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. less sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp. garlic flavored red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. pickled ginger slices
pinch of red pepper flakes
SPST (Salt and Pepper to Suit your Taste)
Black and plain sesame seeds for garnish
Combine all ingredients in resealable bag and shake until blended.
Pierce rinsed steak with a knife or fork and place slices of ginger atop.  Place in resealable bag and turn to coat.
Press out excess air and seal.  Marinate refrigerated for up to 24 hours and at least 4.  Take out of refrigerator 1 hour before cooking
Preheat grill or grill-pan to medium high heat.  Remove meat from marinade and pat dry.  SPST
Cook until desired done-ness, flipping once, with medium reached at 145*F.




Let rest and slice on a bias.  Serves 6 to 8.

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