BBQ Diaries BBQ Steak With Chimichurri
Steak is one of the best ways to enjoy Greendale's Beef in all its glory. I was never any good at cooking a decent steak until I learned proper BBQ; now I can now cook the most incredible steak ever. Cooking to temperature, not time, is the deal-breaker here, and it really is worth investing in a meat thermometer, especially one where you can leave the probe in and monitor it whilst cooking.
I also find that cooking a single, larger steak (to be sliced and shared when cooked) is better than trying to cook several thinner steaks - about 200g weight of steak per person is a good portion. My favourite cut to use on the BBQ is sirloin, as it has a decent fat cap which renders and crackles up amazingly well with charcoal.
‘Reverse searing’ is a cooking method in which the steak is cooked over indirect heat until it has almost reached the desired level of ‘done’ness; the temperature is then ramped up and the steak is placed over direct heat to give it a quick sear to finish. If you’re brave enough – and have quality local charcoal – you can even sear it ‘dirty’, i.e. directly on the coals, for this final stage; the intense heat really ramps up the Maillard reaction in the meat, giving flavours beyond this world. That said, a normal sear on the grill over raging coals will be more than good enough!
At Greendale we never get tired of the BBQ – there’s always a good reason to fire up the grill as far as we’re concerned, especially as we have such a great selection of fresh meat, fish and veg to play with! We recently asked Exeter-based grill guru, Simon Osmond (catch him on Instagram @bbqdiariesuk) to come up with some tasty BBQ recipe suggestions for our produce, and he didn’t disappoint; as well as creating a delicious courgette and halloumi recipe and using our marinaded spatchcock chicken to make a superb summer meal, Simon has given us a chilli recipe that’s changed the way we want to cook chilli forever (why didn’t we think of cooking it like that?!).
Ingredients
For the Steak:
Greendale Sirloin Steak - allow 200g per person, in a single large steak (up to 800g - I wouldn’t go bigger than this, otherwise you’re pretty much doing a full roasting joint, rather than a steak).
A couple of knobs of butter
2 cloves of Garlic (crushed)
For the Chimichurri:
100ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
3 cloves Garlic, crushed
Small handful fresh Parsley, washed and finely chopped
Small handful fresh Oregano leaves, washed and finely chopped (or 1 heaped tsp dried)
2 Red Chillies, deseeded and finely chopped (or 1 tsp chilli flakes)
Pinch of Sea Salt
½ tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
Method
Take the steak out of the fridge, so it can come up to room temperature while you set up the BBQ, and season it well with salt and pepper – nothing more needed when you have quality local beef! Light your BBQ, with the coals on one side in order to create direct and indirect cooking zones. You don’t need the coals raging; more of a medium heat is better here. I often start cooking when the coals are half-lit, and by the time the steak is at the cooking temperature I want, the coals are fully lit and ready for the final sear. When you’re ready, place the sirloin on the grill over the indirect zone, with the fat cap of the meat facing the coals. This will help that fat start to render and crackle up, whilst the meat is facing away for a gentler cook. Put the lid on the BBQ, then - using the guide below - cook the steak until its temperature is about 5°C below your desired level of done-ness (searing and resting the meat will continue the cooking process). For example, I like my steak at the rare end of medium-rare, so I take it off at 50°C and it’s perfect by the time the sear and rest are over.
Steak Done-ness Guide
Rare: 52-55°C
Medium-Rare: 55-60°C
Medium: 60-65°C
Medium-Well: 65-69°C
Well: over 69°C
Take the steak off the grill momentarily, and get the coals raging (open the air vents or blow on the coals to heat them up). Next, place the steak back on the grill over the hot coals (direct heat zone) and sear it for one minute on each side, or 30 seconds if you’re using the ‘dirty sear’ method. Remove the steak and put it on a plate or dish, then put the butter and garlic on top of the meat, cover the dish with tin foil and leave to rest for 10-15 minutes. Now’s a great time to make the chimichurri; you can either finely chop all the fresh ingredients and mix well with the oil and vinegar, seasoning well to taste, or – like me – just chuck all the ingredients into a mini food processor and blitz.
When the steak has rested, slice it sideways so that each piece has a bit of that delicious sirloin fat at the end. Plate up with the chimichurri, then sit back, enjoy and marvel at how good the steak you just made is!
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