As many of you may know, Rob is big into this whole cigar business. He dedicates a lot of his time to reviewing cigars and promoting the brand of CigarFederation.com, or lovingly known by those in the ‘biz as CigFed. For those of you who enjoy a cigar once in a while and have never been to Cigar Federation, I highly suggest you go check it out. It’s a great online community for both the novice and experienced cigar smoker alike.
Why am I talking about cigars? Well, the inspiration for the following recipe came while Rob was on one of his cigar excursions. He has been lucky enough to have traveled to Nicaragua and toured the Drew Estate factory in Estelí twice now on what is called a “Cigar Safari.” This is important to me for two reasons. Number one: Momma gets five days at home alone to eat what she pleases and do what she pleases. (That typically consists of binge cleaning and organizing with reference to the latter and preparing numerous recipes full of artichokes, tomatoes, and seafood with reference to the former. Now I promise to stop talking about myself in the third person…) Considering that this recipe contains none of what I just mentioned, you must still be wondering, “Why are you talking about this???” Well, this brings me to reason #2: Rob has come back from both of these Nicaragua trips absolutely raving about the flank steak he was served. “So what?!” you might say. “Flank steak is delicious!” I agree, but you see, Rob is very ambivalent when it comes to flank steak. It’s not the flavor; no, no – again, my dear husband has an issue with texture. (Who here is shocked? Not me! Texture issues are a regular battle in our household, as many of you know from reading previous posts.)
Re-creating Rob’s beloved “churrascos” (or as I know it grilled, chimichurri marinated flank steak) has become somewhat of an obsession for me. I’m a bit of a nut and a slight perfectionist (Ummmm. Yeah – understatement of the year…). Knowing that a dish I have previously failed cooking at home has been created in a way my husband raves about is like my personal Mount Everest. I must somehow find a way to at least equal this enigma in order to have faith in my culinary ability again. After much experimentation and many, many, many, many more disappointments, I have finally nailed the marinade/sauce.
Instructions: In a medium bowl, combine the red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic, shallot, sugar and Worchester. Mix together well and let rest for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Add in the chopped jalapenos, cilantro, parsley, and oregano. Stir to combine. Whisk in the olive oil using a fork. (I would recommend against using a regular whisk because you will get a big glob of chopped herbs stuck in the middle!)
Pour about 1/2 of a cup marinade into a separate container for serving purposes later on. Store the reserved chimichurri sauce in the fridge until ready for use. Pour the remaining marinade into a gallon size Ziploc baggie and add the meat. Try to get as much air out of the baggie before sealing. Store in the fridge to allow the meat to marinate at least overnight and for up to two days. Flip the baggie occasionally to make sure the marinade is evenly distributed over the meat.
Remove the baggie from the fridge at least 30 minutes prior to grilling to allow the meat to come to room temperature. Place the meat on a clean surface, discarding the baggie and excess marinade. Gently pat the meat with a paper towel to help dry the surface. Also take the reserved marinade for serving out of the fridge at this time so it can come to room temperature as well.
Preheat your grill to 550 degrees and make sure it is free of any food debris from previous grilling adventures. Using tongs, place the meat on the center of your hot grill and sear one side for about two to three minutes. Stay nearby to make sure you can put out any flare-ups. Flip the meat and sear on the other side for the same amount of time.
Lower the heat and continue to cook the meat to your desired level of doneness. For rare to medium-rare, cook until an instant read thermometer reads 125 degrees. (You may need to flip the meat one additional time if you prefer it more well-done.) Obviously the cooking time will vary depending on which cut of meat you use; flank steak will cook faster than tri tip because it is a thinner cut of meat. When your meat is cooked how you like it, remove from the grill and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
Using a sharp knife, cut the meat against the grain into thin slices. Drizzle some of the reserved chimichurri marinade down the middle of the sliced meat. Serve with the remaining reserved chimichurri sauce on the side for people to add as desired.
