One Pan, Two Plates (17 page)

extra hungry?
Serve some ciabatta bread and a plate of extra-virgin olive oil sprinkled with sea salt alongside.

in the glass:
If you’re feeling flush, go for a Barolo here. They’re comparable to a fine Cabernet and the best ones are round and lush . . . perfect with a steak. If the coffers are a little low, go for a red blend like claret, which often combines Cabernet, Merlot, Zinfandel, and some of the lesser-known blendable red grapes. They are often a good value. One of my faves is Newton, which is delicious and priced right.

Flat-Iron Steak

with
GREEN BEANS, CHILI-HOISIN SAUCE,
and
SESAME SEEDS

When fresh and crisp, green beans are one of the best-tasting vegetables in the market. Especially when dressed up in a Chinese sauce of hoisin and sesame oil. Not only are these delicious beans something to get excited about, the flat-iron steak is destined to be your new favorite cut. Inexpensive and more tender than strip steak, flat-iron is from a part of the shoulder, so there’s a lot of flavor and marbling. Cook it like you would any steak, hot and fast, for the best results.

........

START TO FINISH
30 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
20 minutes

...

serves 2

........

One 12- to 14-oz/340- to 400-g flat-iron steak

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 lb/455 g trimmed and snapped green beans

1 tbsp hoisin sauce (see “It’s that easy”)

1 tbsp rice vinegar (see “It’s that easy”)

1 tbsp soy sauce (see “It’s that easy”)

2 tsp toasted sesame oil (see “It’s that easy”)

1 tsp chili garlic sauce (see “It’s that easy”)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp white or black sesame seeds

1.
About 30 minutes before you plan to cook, transfer the steak from the fridge to the kitchen counter. (This step removes the chill from the meat so that it cooks faster and more evenly, resulting in a juicier steak.) Pat it dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides.

2.
Fill a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet with water up to about 1 in/2.5cm from the top. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add 2 tsp salt and the green beans and cook until the beans are crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain the beans in a colander set in the sink and rinse them under cold running water to stop the cooking. Set aside.

3.
While the beans are cooking, in a small bowl, stir together the hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and chili garlic sauce. Set aside.

4.
Put the empty skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the steak. Cook until nicely browned on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Try to resist moving it; it’ll brown more quickly if you just let it do its business.
Flip it over with tongs and add the green beans to the pan, nestling them down into the sides of the pan so that they touch the bottom and heat up. Cook the steak for another 3 minutes, moving the beans around, and then drizzle in the hoisin mixture. The pan will sizzle. Cook the steak for 1 minute longer for medium-rare, or 2 minutes for medium. Reduce the heat if the bottom of the pan starts to burn, or add a splash of water. Remove from the heat and transfer the steak to a cutting board. Tent the steak with aluminum foil and let rest for 3 or 4 minutes to let the juices settle before carving. Cover the beans in the pan so they stay hot while the steak sits.

5.
Carve the steak into thin slices. (See “It’s that easy,”
page 91
.) Arrange the slices on warmed plates and mound the green beans alongside. Spoon the pan sauce over the meat and beans (thin it with a little hot water, if needed) and sprinkle the sesame seeds over the top. Serve hot.

it’s that easy:
Here are a few helpful notes on Chinese ingredients. Hoisin is like Chinese barbecue sauce and can be found with the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and chili garlic sauce in the international section of your grocery store. Rice vinegar is milder and not as acidic as regular vinegar. I generally use regular soy sauce and stay away from the “lite” versions. The toasted sesame oil has a nutty flavor and should be kept in the fridge after opening. Chili garlic sauce is hot, hot stuff, so use it with caution if you’re sensitive to heat. It will keep for up to a year in your refrigerator after opening and is a great addition to soups, stews, stir-fries, or anything that needs a little kick.

extra hungry?
A salad of romaine lettuce and grape tomatoes drizzled with balsamic and a glug of olive oil would hit all the right notes.

in the glass:
I can’t resist a spicy Syrah or Australian Shiraz with steak, and I love how there are so many great affordable bottles available. One of my faves is an Aussie label, Marquis Philips from McLaren Vale. It’s widely distributed and a great deal.

Flank Steak

with
CHIMICHURRI
and
SUMMER SQUASH HASH

Chimichurri
is Argentina’s version of ketchup. This tart and spicy salsa of parsley, vinegar, onion, garlic, and hot red pepper flakes complements everything from juicy grilled steak to roasted vegetables. The summer squash hash is a tasty blend of diced potatoes, yellow squash, and peas, all cooked up in the pan’s meaty juices. On a white plate, this colorful meal really sings. In your mouth . . . it’s a symphony.

........

START TO FINISH
40 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
30 minutes

...

serves 2

........

One 12-oz/340-g flank steak, at room temperature

1 tbsp Montreal steak seasoning or other spice mix for steak (see “It’s that easy”)

3 green onions, white and tender green parts, thinly sliced

½ cup/20 g minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 tbsp/60 ml olive oil, plus more if needed

2 tsp red wine vinegar

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 new potatoes, scrubbed and cut into ¼-in/6-mm dice

1 summer squash, about 8 in/20 cm long, quartered lengthwise and cut into ¼-in/6-mm slices

½ cup/70 g frozen peas, thawed

1.
Cut the steak into two portions (so it will cook faster) and rub it generously on all sides with the steak seasoning. Set aside at room temperature.

2.
In a small bowl, combine about one-third of the green onions, all of the parsley, and half of the garlic and toss to mix. Add 2 tbsp of the olive oil, the vinegar, the red pepper flakes, a pinch of salt, and a few grinds of pepper and stir with a fork to mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning. The sauce should be tart, but if it’s too vinegary for you, add a little more salt and olive oil. Set the chimichurri sauce aside.

3.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil. When the oil shimmers, arrange the steaks in the pan and cook, undisturbed, until nicely browned on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Turn and cook
on the second side for about 3 minutes longer for medium-rare steak, or 4 minutes for medium. (This cut is usually about ½ in/12 mm thick. If your steak is thicker, it might need to cook a little longer.) Remove the pan from the heat, transfer the steaks to a plate, and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.

4.
Add the potatoes to the hot pan and sauté until they soften, about 3 minutes. Add the squash, the remaining green onions, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and sauté until the all of vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes longer. Some of the steak flavor will come up from the browned bits on the bottom of the pan, so the vegetables will turn a little brown. It’s important to keep things sizzling; you may need to add a little more oil to the pan. Stir in the remaining garlic and the peas. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Sauté for another minute or so to blend the flavors and warm the peas. Remove the pan from the heat.

5.
Carve the steak into thin slices. (See “It’s that easy,”
page 91
.)

6.
Divide the steak and veggie hash between two warmed plates and garnish with a dollop or two of the chimichurri. Serve hot.

it’s that easy:
A widely accepted explanation for the wonder that is Montreal steak seasoning is that it evolved from the dry rub used for preserving smoked meats in that town in the ’40s. The rub itself is believed to be a spin on the traditional pickling spices used by Montreal’s Eastern European Jewish population. You can get all that history along with tons of flavor in a convenient bottle in any well-stocked spice section at the market. But if you have a favorite dry rub for steak, feel free to substitute that here, or mix up your own Montreal spice; there are recipes aplenty online.

extra hungry?
Toast up thin slices of ciabatta bread and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle some grated Parmesan over the tops and brown them under the broiler for about 1 minute.

in the glass:
Nothing goes with flank steak like Zinfandel. Brazin Old Vine Zin is a great weeknight bottle.

Hungarian Beef Goulash

with
PAPRIKA
and
DUMPLINGS