Flank steak is one of my favorite cuts. Grilled just so, it can make your mouth dance with joy! I know, it’s odd to speak of food like that, but when you are as passionate about good taste as I am, it is the only way to speak of food! I didn’t plan on making this meal, but walked by the butcher shop and it immediately caught my eye. My mum used to do a London broil with fried onions, hot green chilies, tomatoes, assorted peppers and potatoes. Let me tell you, this was a meal to savor. She didn’t use a grill pan as I don’t think they were as popular back then – or just not as available, but she did use a heavy bottomed frying pan – it worked!
Simple marinade really, because you really want the flavor of the beef to come through. I’m not a big fan of adding a lot to beef – no steak spice please. Salt, pepper, garlic and olive oil is usually all I use on my beef steaks in the summer. But you know I never stay with the original intent so I’ve also used dry rubs and jerk marinades on this. If you are going to use the jerk or dry rub, then let it marinate for about 4 hours in the fridge, and about one hour after that at room temperature. A hot grill pan – you know the kind I’ve talked about it before, is all you need to make this steak sizzle, but please, only cook it to medium rare. Any more than that and you might as well eat shoe leather. The steak itself is usually thicker at one end then the other, so do your best to kind of level it off to the “middle of the steak” thickness by trimming it at the thick end. You don’t have to trim it, but then you have to be really good with the timing. The piece you trim off the thick part should be salted/peppered and then grilled for maybe 30 seconds then flipped for another 30 seconds. I call this the Chef’s sampler piece – make sure it’s salted right etc. 🙂 It should be a thin piece and once you try this, well, there will just be so may parties going on your mouth, your neighbors might stop by.
Get your pan good and hot, brush it with a bit of vegetable oil – just like you do the bbq. Put the exhaust fan on high, open some windows – trust me, it will be worth it. Besides, airing out the house in the winter is a good thing. If you’d prefer to be outside in this balmy weather, by all means fire up the “barbie” and grill away. Just get the grill really hot and get the steak to medium rare. On my gas cooktop, about 6 minutes per side. So either way, bundle up and grill away! Leftovers can be had with a salad, in a sandwich with caramelized onions (please don’t add cheese, this is not a fast food restaurant) etc.
1 flank steak – any size really, the more the better and it tastes great the next day!
2 red onions, sliced in rounds about 1/4″ thick
12 or more hot Thai chillies or Jalapenos or some other type of hot chili
Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper
Marinate the steak by rubbing some olive oil onto both sides, then salt and pepper it
Get the grill pan good and hot – if it doesn’t sizzle when you touch the tip of the steak to it, it’s not ready – don’t put it on
Put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a small bowl, using your fingers or a brush, rub the cut surfaces of the onion with the oil, sprinkle with some salt and pepper
Place the steak – it should sizzle – onto the grill surface
Lay out the onions onto the grill surface
Add the chilies to the remaining olive oil in the bowl – place them wherever they fit on the grill pan
You will only need to move the onions and chillies so they don’t burn, do not move the steak for about 4 – 6 minutes, then just rotate it 45 degrees to produce that lovely grill mark on the steak (remember the 70’s – Ponderosa steak house)
Note: By the way, the onions and steak will create the smoke, the chillies will provide that burning sensation in your throat that will make you cough – be forewarned, but again so worth it
Move the chillies around as you see the skin burn and blister, immediately remove them from the pan when done
The onions should be grilling nicely, flip them over – continue to cook them and remove from the pan when done
When both sides of the steak are done, remove from the grill pan and tent loosely with foil
Before serving, only before serving, slice the steak against the grain and at an angle – as thin or thick as you like, I usually cut some pieces about 1/4″ thick, but also vary it with thinner slices – always cut against the grain
Enjoy with the chillies and onions, and a cold beer!
Note: If when you are cutting through the thicker part and it is too red (okay really, no such thing) for you, just put the slices cut side down onto the grill pan for 10 seconds only – it will cook through
As always – enjoy!
