Tasty Emeril Recipe- Grilled Flank Steak

I have second degree burns on my right hand. They hurt. Why do I keep injuring myself?! Needless to say, it is making it a little challenging to cook - thankfully I managed to make an awesome meal and take pictures well before burning myself. (I actually burnt my hand while warming up water in the microwave at work to use my French Press, so I wasn't even really cooking! Thankfully, I believe I will survive just fine with my ointment and antibiotics.)

I found this recipe while searching FoodTV's website for ways to marinate flank steak. I have no idea what possessed me to buy this slab of meat a month or so ago, but I am happy that I did. I hoped to cook the steak when I first bought it, so I whipped up the marinade below and threw it in a bag. I soon realized, however, that I wouldn't have time to cook it, so I threw the steak, marinade and all, into the freezer for another day. Well that day came this weekend. I thawed the steak in the refrigerator and heated up the grill. However, I knew I didn't really want tacos - so I decided to just take the steak and add it to a bed of lettuce with some homemade pico de gallo. Some sliced avocados would have been perfect on this salad. I think I overcooked the steak (I really wanted the pretty grill marks, and they just weren't showing up!) but flank steak to me is one cut of meat that can stand up to well-done. The steak definitely had the essence of the marinade. I hate when I take the time to marinate a piece of meat and cannot taste it! In fact, if I make this dish again, I will marinate for at least 12 hours - maybe even 24 hours! I loved the onion flavor with the subtle hint of cumin in the background. It was a delicious salad - and I am sure the complete recipe would be awesome as well!


The complete recipe can be found here: Grilled Flank Steak Tacos with Roasted Poblano Chiles, Grilled Onions and Mexican Crema, Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2006

However - I only used the Marinade part listed below:

1/2 cup finely chopped onion
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
1/8 cup lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 pounds flank steak, trimmed of surface fat and silverskin

In a blender or in the bowl of a food processor, combine 1/2 cup of the onion, the garlic, 3 tablespoons of the vegetable oil, half of the lime juice, cumin, oregano and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Process until smooth. Place the flank steak in a shallow non-reactive dish and spoon the marinade over the meat. Turn the steak so that both sides of the meat are in contact with the marinade and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours, turning occasionally. (Obviously as I mentioned above, I used a bag and left it in the marinade for a month in the freezer :))

Preheat a grill to high.

Remove the meat from the marinade and shake or use a spoon to remove any excess. Rub the meat all over with the remaining 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and season on both sides with the remaining teaspoon of salt. Grill the steak, turning once, to the desired degree of doneness; for medium rare, this should be 6 to 8 minutes per side. Transfer the steak to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes.

Copyright © 2006 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved


Simple Pico de Gallo

2 parts seeded, chopped tomato
1 part chopped red onion
as many chopped hot peppers as you like (I used a lot!)
1 part chopped cilantro (use the stems!)
1 part lime juice
salt to taste
drizzle of olive oil

Okay so I know this isn't really a scientific recipe - but really you should just try it as you go. Add chopped bell peppers or cucumbers or pineapple or whatever sounds good! You can't mess it up!! :)