300 15-Minute Low-Carb Recipes (25 page)

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

1 to 2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

Salt and pepper

Broil the steak as close to the flame as you can get it, with the broiler set on High. For a 1-inch thick (2.5 cm) steak, I like about 6 to 6 1/2 minutes per side, but you should experiment and cook it to your liking.

While the steak is broiling, put the butter and the horseradish in your food processor with the
S
-blade in place or in your blender, and run just long enough to blend. When the steak is done cooking, salt and pepper it, divide it into servings, and scoop a dollop of the horseradish butter on each serving.

Yield:
2 or 3 servings. Each 6-ounce (170 g) serving will have no more than 1 gram of carbohydrates, no fiber, and 24 grams of protein.

Orange Steak

This gives a nice tang to a simple grilled steak.

3 tablespoons (45 ml) orange juice

1 tablespoon (15 ml) dry sherry

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon Splenda

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic or 1/2 clove garlic, crushed

12 to 16 ounces (340 to 455 g) steak, 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) thick—rib eye, sirloin, strip steaks, or anything tender and fit for broiling

Salt or Vege-Sal and pepper

Combine the orange juice, sherry, soy sauce, Splenda, and garlic. Put the steak on a plate, pour the orange juice mixture over it, and turn it over a few times to coat the whole surface. Let the steak sit for 2 to 3 minutes.

Now broil the steak as close as possible to a high flame until it's done to your liking—4 1/2 to 5 minutes per side is about right for me. Baste both sides with the orange mixture when you turn it! Salt, pepper, and serve.

Yield:
The number of servings will depend on the size of your steak. Given a 12-ounce (355 g) steak, I'd call it 2 servings, each with 3 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 25 grams of protein.

Costa Brava Steak

I was surprised that this traditional, anchovy-based Spanish sauce was not particularly fishy—just rich, mellow, and complex.

12 to 16 ounces (340 to 455 g) steak, 1/2- to 3/4-inch thick (1.3 to 1.9 cm)—rib eye, sirloin, strip, or anything tender and fit for broiling

1/3 cup (34 g) shelled walnuts

3 anchovy fillets

1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar

1/3 cup (80 ml) olive oil

Start the steak broiling as close as possible to a high flame. Set your timer to remind you when to turn it—for a steak 1/2-inch thick (1.3 cm), 5 minutes per side is about right for my tastes.

While the steak is broiling, put the walnuts, anchovies, and vinegar in your food processor with the
S
-blade in place. Pulse to chop everything together—unless your machine is smaller than mine, the mixture will end up out against the walls of the processor bowl pretty quickly!

Scrape down the sides of the processor to get the mixture back into the path of the blade. Put the top back on, turn the processor on, and slowly pour in about half of the olive oil. If necessary, scrape down the sides of the processor again at this point and then turn it back on and add the rest of the oil.

When both sides of the steak are done, spread this sauce over the steak. Turn the broiler to Low, put the steak back under it for just a minute, and then serve.

Yield:
The number of servings will depend on the size of your steak. Assuming a 12-ounce (340 g) steak, I'd call it 2 servings, each with 3 grams of carbohydrates and 1 gram of fiber, for a total of 2 grams of usable carbs and 31 grams of protein.

Inauthentic Bulgogi Steak

True Bulgogi is a popular Korean dish made with very thin sheets of sliced beef. We don't have time in our 15 minutes to carefully slice up our beef, so we're using good old steak, and boy, are the results spectacular!

1/4 medium onion

2 teaspoons minced garlic or 4 cloves garlic, peeled

1/4 cup (60 ml) soy sauce

2 tablespoons (3 g) Splenda

1 teaspoon pepper

A few dashes Tabasco

2 tablespoons (28 ml) toasted sesame oil

1 1/2 pounds (680 g) tender, well-marbled steaks, 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) thick—sirloin, rib eye, strip, or whatever you like

Put the onion, garlic, soy sauce, Splenda, pepper, Tabasco, and sesame oil in a food processor with the
S
-blade in place and run it until the onion is pulverized.

Place the steaks on a plate and pour the seasoning mixture over them, turning them so that they're coated on both sides. Let the steaks sit for a minute and then place them on a broiler rack. Broil the steaks as close to a high flame as possible until they're done to your liking—4 1/2 to 5 minutes per side is right for me. When you're turning the steaks, spoon some of the seasoning mixture from the plate, first over the side that's already done and then over the side about to be broiled.

Yield:
4 servings. Calculations show 4 grams per serving and a trace of fiber, but that would only be true if you ate all of the seasoning mixture, which you won't. Figure closer to 2 grams of carbs and 26 grams of protein.

Steak Diane

This is actually a simplified version of a classic recipe—the original version didn't fit into our 15-minute time frame. It's really good, though!

12-ounce (340 g) steak, 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) thick*

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

3 scallions, finely minced

1 tablespoon (4 g) minced fresh parsley

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon (15 ml) brandy

2 tablespoons (28 ml) dry sherry

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

* Use rib eye, sirloin, strip, or whatever you like.

In a heavy skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the steak in the butter—figure 5 to 6 minutes per side. While that's happening, mince up the scallions and parsley.

When the steak is done to your liking, remove it to a platter and keep it warm. Turn the burner down to medium. Add the scallions, parsley, and garlic and sauté in the butter for a minute or so. Add the brandy, sherry, and Worcestershire sauce, turn the heat back up, and boil hard while stirring, to scrape any nice brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Let it boil for a minute or so to reduce, pour it over the steak, and serve.

Yield:
2 servings, each with 3 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of fiber, for a total of just 1 gram of usable carbs and 25 grams of protein.

Many~Pepper Steak

This is so good! Make the
Cumin Mushrooms
(see
page 265
) as a side and toss some bagged salad with ranch or vinaigrette, and you're livin' large—without gettin' large!

12-ounce (340 g) steak, 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) thick*

Many-Pepper Steak Seasoning
(see
page 302
)

* I think rib eye is best for this, but it's not essential; use what you like.

Sprinkle both sides of the steak liberally with the
Many-Pepper Steak Seasoning
—about 1 teaspoon per side—and broil close to the flame until done to your liking (5 minutes per side is about right for me).

Yield:
2 servings, each with 3 grams of carbohydrates and 1 gram of fiber, for a total of 2 grams of usable carbs and 25 grams of protein.

Pan-Broiled Steak

This is a method rather than a recipe, but it's become our favorite way of cooking a steak. It's quicker than broiling and makes for a crustier outside. Don't worry about the measurements much, by the way; I just included them because they were needed for a nutritional breakdown. You know steak's got no carbs, so don't worry.

1 1/2 pounds (680 g) steak, 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick—We like rib eye, but T-bone, sirloin, or strip will all do.

1 tablespoon bacon grease (15 g) or olive oil (15 ml)

Put your big, heavy skillet—cast iron is best—over highest heat and let it get good and hot. In the meantime, you can season your steak if you like. We like the
Montreal Steak Seasoning
that's currently popular, or you could use
Southwestern Steak Rub
on
page 306
or the
Cocoa-Chili Rub
on
page 307
—anything you like. Or instead, you could top it when done with the
Bacon-Butter
on
page 297
, or butter and blue cheese, or sautéed onions and mushrooms, or go for classic simplicity and just salt and pepper it.