It’s A Piece Of Steak! is a bag with a picture of a steak on it. You should buy one from the etsy!
May 3, 2010
April 14, 2010
We Totally Agree With TOTFC: Tenderloin
It’s expensive, and flavor-wise there are better cuts of beef. Mario Batali compared the cut to Paris Hilton — it’s nothing special, and yet for some reason everyone wants to get a hold of it.
… like my wife… does that make her gay for Paris Hilton??
Read the whole thing: Top Of The Food Chain: Tenderloin – Eat Me Daily (makes me wonder what kind of wonderful things you can do with all those different loin cuts besides fillet. Ryan gives a handful of recipe links, maybe I’ll investigate more for a later post on here).
April 1, 2010
Notes about that flank steak
It was really quite good. Not over-marinated at all, I think that actually did what I wanted, as the flavors of cumin and oregano stayed with the meat even through grilling.
I really need to clean the inside of my grill — FIRE!!
Once that calmed down, things proceeded just fine, maybe a little too fast after searing, because it ended up too rare in the center and too done on the edges. But it was a thousand times more tender than other times I’ve done flank. Or had flank.
One thing to remember is, flank, being a thinner cut, will lose heat way faster than you think it should. Especially upon slicing it. There might be some benefit to letting your flank steak rest in a warm oven, or on a pre-warmed plate, before slicing, and serving on a warmed plate, or one of those nice metal serving trays you see in steak houses.
The sauces from the Colombian Beer-marinated recipe were way too spicy for our tastes. Probably because I was a smart-ass and bought Serranos instead of Jalapenos. For future reference, one eighth of a Serrano equals one whole Jalapeno. Roughly.
Overall this was a great trial of what could be an outstanding preparation of flank steak. Moderation in the sauces, and minding the temperature of the meat post-grilling, are key. Luck would have it that this flank steak was the free one in the buy one get one free deal!
March 22, 2010
How to Grill the Perfect Steak - Victoria Blog Posts - Foodbuzz
How to Grill the Perfect Steak - Victoria Blog Posts - Foodbuzz
Yes.
While we didn’t fire up our behemoth grill this past weekend, we’re sure itchin’ to real soon. There is a good review article from a Foodbuzz blog that is worth looking at. However, in the interest of simplicity, I’ll summarize in the SteakFeed crib-notes format:
Most important to remember, above all: “learn the art of touching your meat to test for doneness.” If you know how to touch your meat, you can tell when you’re close to finishing. [ Also go Lifehacker for a two handed approach to meat-touching, with diagram:
]
And then:
- always bring your meat to room temperature before hand
- always rub your meat with a little oil to get started, or with spicier things if you like
- don’t put on the salt too early or your meat will dry out
- never poke your meat with a fork or a knife or you’ll be sorry
- be sure to warm up your device ahead of time
- start your meat at a 45 degree angle, and then when half done, turn 90 degrees
- allow your meat to rest before you eat it
There’s a lot more good info in here too, like a descriptive chart describing the coloring and characteristics of various tenderness of meat when it’s done. I’ve found that it’s best to stay away from meat that is blue, bloody, and cold on the inside; as well as meat that has turned gray and leathery.
With the right treatment (including a small dollop of soft goat cheese, or even warm butter on top) can enhance the pleasure you can derive from your meat!
March 17, 2010
Prime Rib – Top of the Food Chain @ Eat Me Daily
Eat Me Daily starts a new column called Top Of The Food Chain with a nicely detailed piece about Prime Rib… How to buy it, the bovine anatomy behind this royal cut of beef roast, and suggestions for preparation. It’s a little bit technical, and less practical and informative than I’d like. But it’s definitely spurred me to shop for prime rib, and take a crack at preparing one.
I have one main handicap though, with regard to prime rib: I’ve never had good prime rib. Or perhaps I should say, I’ve never had prime rib I liked. It’s always been tough and bland, and most times, cold (ie served at a wedding buffet, what a waste!!).
I ordered it one time at a homely small-town restaurant, on their special “Prime Rib Nite” which was much talked about in town. What I received was both gray, and bloody, sitting in a pool of yellow oil. It had the mouth-feel of mutton. Creamed horseradish was the only good thing about it. I still do not understand the happy faces of the other diners in that room.
The basic cut from which prime rib is drawn is the same as for the titan rib-eye steak, which has most of the surrounding bone and tissue trimmed away. So, we know it’s a tasty part of the cow… Still, unless there’s something I’m missing in what I expect of roasted prime rib, I doubt I’ll order any at a restaurant any time soon.
If I make some, I’ll probably try the Peppercorn Crusted Prime Rib from bigoven.com, because it says “this WILL set off your smoke alarm!”
February 24, 2010
Steak Master Tip: do not cut this into steaks
… because you will be disappointed with them.
Steak Cook-Off at the Magnolia Blossom Festival
Hey, I may be planning way too far in advance on this one, but I think I’m gonna try to attend the Magnolia Blossom Festival: May 14th & 15th, 2010, in Magnolia, Arkansas. It’s only about a 2 hour drive outside of Shreveport.
Steak Cookers Gallery
Welcome to the 2010, 22nd Annual Magnolia Blossom Festival
and 21st Annual World Championship Steak Cook-Off. This will
also be the 60th Anniversary of the Sidewalk Art Show.
Will you join me on Saturday May 15th at 4PM for “The Lighting of the Grills” and stay until 6PM “Steak Eating on the Magnolia Square”? We could meet up earlier on Friday the 14th at the Farmers Bank West Stage for Singing Fine Gospel Music!
February 22, 2010
Bacon Wrapped Steak Recipe
Momswhothink.com shows of a Bacon Wrapped Steak Recipe is how it’s done. Making money by blogging I mean. Where you don’t actually post content that you have to think about, and the ads on your site take over, and have very little to do with your content. And the recipe you feature is something, that when I read it it actually makes no sense. That’s how it’s done. I’m doing it wrong. Huh.
What i should do is just wholesale repost other things, as frequently as possible.
February 12, 2010
Favorite Motif: Steak With Greens
I think one of the best things you can make with steak is to sautee some greens with it. You almost don’t need anything else, just the steak and a huge pile of greens. Arugula works really well, or you can mound some just on top of the hot hot steak so it can wilt a little bit, and break off a few nuggets of parm.reg or even gorgonzola with it.
Putting steak along side or in a salad is also very good! Just be sure to have the right assortment of green flavors that are strong enough to stand up to your grilled steak! I suggest bitter things, radicchio, endive, curly read oak leaf, mesclun or some other kind of really dark blend.
Also, sauteed Kale with bacon, in the winter time, maybe some shallots in there too, makes an absolutely wonderful accompaniment to steak. I suggest you pan-roast it for the lovely reduction you get at the end. Dress up your kale with that!
Here’s a great looking recipe along the same lines: Balsamic Skirt Steak, Fresh Greens, Pea & White Bean Puree from Recipezaar. We really love a mashed white bean side at our house! The thing seems a bit over-complicated, but it is a whole meal, after all.
Finally, no account of green stuff and steak would be complete without mentioning the famous South American green salsa “chimchurri.” So fabulous, especially when you’re growing all the herbs out your back door!
February 11, 2010
How to Wield a Knife - The Atlantic Food Channel
Here’s a very informative article about knives. You should read it. It’s got some nice gory bits, and isn’t all that practical, but has a sense of humor, even: How to Wield a Knife - The Atlantic Food Channel.
No matter how much care you take, if you spend lots of time cutting meat you will cut yourself severely at some time or another. Often you will do so just when your first aid kit has hit bottom. No matter! If you have paper towels and plastic wrap handy, you have all the necessary first aid to get you to a hospital, or, less desirable, to the end of your shift. Simply wash the cut to remove any parts that don’t belong to you and then wrap quickly with paper towels and plastic wrap, tightly if the cut is bad and you’re on the way to the hospital, and less snug to make it through your shift without your injured extremity falling asleep.
Now off we go to watch some youtubes about using a sharpening steel!