GET YOUR GRILL ON…IT’S MARINATED SKIRT STEAK GONE LITTLE ITALY STYLE

 

SKIRT STEAK….sounds as delicious as it tastes.  My favorite cut of beef and yes I’ll take this over any tenderloin OR Kobe steak you pass under my nose.  It’s a very forgiving OR unforgiving cut of beef.  If you like well-done..hmm..this is not the cut of beef for you unless you  braise the life out of it, but at these prices why would you do that??  Skirt Steak as far as I’m concerned is meant to be cooked over really high heat on both sides, left to rest, then sliced fairly thin and eaten  where is looks like this:

 

 

DROOLING YET?  Makes great salads, sandwiches and FAJITAS!  For this blogpost let’s discuss a favorite Sangwich of  A FOOD OBSESSION.  It’s  my version of the grilled rib eye sandwich on Hero rolls (hoagie, sub, grinder, discuss that among yourselves) with Fresh Mozzarella that they serve at the San Gennaro Feast in NYC in September,  My version here is with seasoned fresh sliced tomatoes and Baby Arugula.  I used the feast sandwich as a base and adapted it for this skirt steak version.The meat is marinated so…the other ingredients should blend in and not take over. The tomatoes are simply sliced and seasoned lightly with salt and pepper, the arugula is left unadorned and the mozzarella speaks for itself.  The meat, it’s smoky char and marinade and beefy goodness are what you want to primarily hit you in the taste buds.

For 4 sandwiches…

4 NICE HERO (SUB) ROLLS

1 1/2-3/4  lb SKIRT STEAK

Kosher Salt

Cracked Black Pepper

for Marinade

1/8 cup LOW SODIUM SOY SAUCE

1 tsp. Granulated Garlic

2 tbs. HONEY

2 tbs. DIJON MUSTARD

1/8 TSP. CAYENNE OR GROUND CHILES

1/8 TSP. INSTANT ESPRESSO OR ESPRESSO POWDER

2 tbs. CANOLA OIL

1/8 CUP RED WINE

1/2 TSP GOOD SWEET PAPRIKA or CHIPOTLE POWDER (flavor profile up to you..)

whisK ALL THE MARINADE INGREDIENTS UNTIL SMOOTH..do not ADD SALT TO THIS..PLENTY IN THE SOY SAUCE .

Sliced fresh mozzarella

Sliced ripe seasoned tomatoes.

Marinade the steak for at least 2 hours, you could do it over night if you want a strong marinade flavor.  Just , and this is important…DO NOT COOK THE MEAT DIRECTLY OUT OF THE FRIDGE..ever.  Serious loss of texture and flavor there.  It must be  brought to room temperature first.  Takes about 1 1/2 hours to get it down to the right temperature.

 

Here’s the hard/easy part..or I should say the most IMPORTANT PART…Skirt Steak needs a HIGH HEAT surface. If you are using your charcoal or gas grill, have it hot and the grates oiled and read…if you are using a cast iron skillet (open your windows or you may have your eardrums blown out from the smoke detectors going off) get it hot with a light film of oil rubbed into the skillet, not much you aren’t frying here.  All the steak needs is 4-5 minutes of cooking per side.  That’s it.  Then let it rest for 10 minutes.  I’m sure some of you want it more done than my picture suggests so you’re on your own with how much more you want to cook it.  If it’s dry and stringy and tough you can’t say I didn’t warn you. There are other beef cuts that hold up better with well done cooking, Skirt steak, not one of them.

Toast 4 GOOD Italian Hero Rolls, brush lightly with olive oil and rub with a raw clove of garlic while still warm. After the steak has rested then slice and divide the meat between the 4 rolls sneaking a few slices for yourself too..you made it, you cooked it..you deserve it.  Place the steak on one side of the roll. then add the a few slices of fresh mozzarella, a few slices of fresh tomato and a bit of baby arugula . How much?  Here’s where a recipe is useless.  I like more tomato and mozzarella so i’d add more, just use what you’d like.  Season the sandwich with salt and pepper right before serving (just a pinch) and dig in.

Happy Cooking!!

 

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