Grilled Hanger Steak with My Favourite Marinade

One of the many, many things that I both love and hate about my local (independent) grocery store is its selection of food. Sometimes, you'll be overwhelmed with options, and sometimes, you'll go in for a flank steak and be met with skirt and hanger steaks and nothing else.

This was the first time I've seen a hanger steak carried in our store, and I couldn't believe how inexpensive it was. If my reading of Bon Appetit is anything to go by, hanger steak has become really popular with chefs over the last few years for its depth of flavour. Its texture makes it a great steak to grill up for fajitas too.

I opted to marinate the steak before grilling it using my all time favourite marinade: a Pam Collacott recipe from way back in the day. This is both my mother's and my favourite recipe. Best of all, if you let the meat marinate overnight, you're practically guaranteed tenderness, regardless of the cut.

Pam Collacott's Budget Steak for a Bunch

(adapted from Canadian Living)

Ingredients

3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp canola oil
1½ tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp minced onion
1 small clove garlic, minced
½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
¼ tsp dried thyme

1 lb steak (your choice of cut)

Directions

1. Whisk all ingredients except steak together in the bowl/bag you plan on marinating the meat in. Place meat into marinade, turning to coat. Let marinade in fridge for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.

2. Grill steak for 6 minutes, turning once for rare, about 8-9 minutes for medium and 12 for well done. Let rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into thin slices.

In case you haven't seen hanger steak before, here's what the whole marinated and grilled looks like:

Deliciousness!

Kofta Meshweya

I'm so excited to finally be able to say that I've cooked my first recipe out of the Penguin Great Food series!

More importantly, it was easy and tasty to boot. And it's meat on a stick! You can't go wrong with food on sticks.

Unfortunately I was so focused on eating that I didn't bother to get a very good picture of the dish.

My apologies.

The pea green stuff is a batch of fava bean hummus I attempted. I don't think that particular recipe is ready for publishing yet, so let's return to meat on a stick.

This recipe comes from A Middle Eastern Feast. Author Claudia Roden says of this recipe:

"Each country and each area in the Middle East has its favourite flavourings for kofta. Here is a basic recipe, giving a few simple alternative seasonings. Use fat meat to keep it moist and juicy. If you find it difficult to put the meat on skewers, make it into burgers."

Kofta Meshweya


(from A Middle Eastern Feast)


Ingredients

1 lb beef, lamb or a mixture of the two
1 small onion, grated
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Place meat in a large bowl. Squeeze onion to remove excess liquid and add to bowl along with seasonings. Knead meat until it becomes paste like. Divide into 4 even balls. Shape balls into oblong shapes and run a skewer through the center.

2. Oil a grill or grill pan well. Place skewers on pan and cook, about 5 minutes each side until cooked and browned on all sides. Serve with pita to catch the juices.

Hamburgers with Spicy Kimchi Mayonnaise and Minted Slaw

Why have I not cooked out of the LCBO's magzine Food & Drink more often? Holy moly, there are some wicked recipes in there.

You know, the kind that make you go back for seconds, even though you're totally stuffed.

This is one such recipe.

I made 4 burgers and between my husband and myself we have no leftovers. I don't know if it was the Rowe Farms beef or the amazing slaw... whatever the case, I'm sad I didn't make a full recipe (one that serves 6), because, my god. I could SO go back for more.

For those of you unfamiliar with it, kimchi is a spicy Korean dish of fermented cabbage. It smells a little of old socks, in my humble opinion, but tastes amazing. I used to bbq it at yakiniku joints in Nakatsugawa.

For the record, these burgers call for a sturdy bun. I decided to make my own off an epicurious recipe that I'll be posting tomorrow.

Hamburgers with Kimchi Mayonnaise and Minted Slaw

(from LCBO Food & Drink Early Summer '11)

Ingredients


Burgers

1 lb lean ground beef (preferably grass fed, free range, if you can get it)
½ tsp sriracha
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp minced fresh garlic
salt and pepper to taste (I only added pepper as the soy sauce had plenty of salt)

Kimchi Mayonnaise

¼ cup chopped kimchi
¼ cup mayonnaise
½ tbsp lemon juice

Minted Slaw

1 cup shredded romaine lettuce
½ cup julienned cucumber
¼ cup finely chopped green onions (1 green onion)
2 tbsp slivered mint
½ tbsp rice vingear
½ tbsp canola oil
½ tsp soy sauce
½ tsp sesame oil
¼ tsp grated ginger

Directions

1. Mix together burger ingredients in a large bowl. Divide into 4 and shape into 4 patties, each ½ inch thick. Set aside in fridge.

2. Stir together kimchi mayonnaise ingredients and set aside in fridge.

3. Heat a cast iron grill pan (or a bbq) over high heat. Grill burgers for 4-5 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Serve on sturdy burgers topped with mayonnaise and slaw.

3. Combine lettuce through mint in a small bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together vinegar through ginger. Pour over lettuce mixture just before serving.

I've got to be honest, the May 2-4 weekend is coming up, and I think this is the perfect recipe to open cottage season!

A Japanese Inspired Soba Recipe

April is one of those months that teases. After cold winter nights and endless amounts of snow and frost, April is that month that whispers sweet nothings and tells you, soon, soon it'll all be over. She takes your hand and shows you the deep blue hyacinths and vibrant yellow crocuses, her sweet, blossom scented breath caresses your cheek.

And then, as you turn to meet her lavender eyes, she knees you in the crotch and punches you in the stomach with wild, blisteringly cold rain storms.

Heck, as I write this, sleet is bashing against our windows. Earlier this week, some of my students were wearing shorts.

This recipe is that warm blanket used on shock victims. Sink into its warmth and stay out of April's mood swings.

Soba with Beef and Onions in Shiitake Broth

(inspired by The Japanese Food Report)

Ingredients

3 cups water, divided
6 dried shiitake mushrooms
½ package (4g) dashi powder
4 tbsp soy sauce, divided
2 tbsp mirin
½ lb thinly sliced beef
1 medium onion, thinly sliced vertically
3 tbsp sake
2 tbsp sugar
4 oz dried soba noodles
shichimi spice powder to taste (Japanese 7 spice chili powder)
1 green onion, finely sliced

Directions

1. Bring 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Soak dried mushrooms in water for 30 minutes. Remove mushrooms from liquid and set aside. Stir in 1½ cups water, dashi powder, 2 tbsp soy sauce and mirin. Bring to a simmer and keep warm on back burner while you prepare the rest of the recipe.

2. Cut rehydrated shittake mushrooms into 5-6 slices each.

2. Place beef, onion, mushrooms remaining soy sauce, ½ cup water, sugar and sake in a frying pan, and bring to a simmer. Let cook until beef is cooked, onion is meltingly tender and liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

3. Cook soba noodles in a large pot of boiling water until al dente, between 6-8 minutes. Divide between two large bowl. Top noodles with beef mixture. Gently ladle broth over noodles. Garnish with shichimi and green onions.

Time for Chili!

That episode of the Simpson's where Homer eats the Guatemalan Insanity Pepper was on this week. That's definitely one of my favourites (along with the Scorpio episode). There are so many great one liners! My favourite is when Homer is doing the dance and whining "But Marge, we're missing the chili!".

This is a close second:

So, it seemed that chili was the totally reasonable thing to eat for dinner! Now, I'm not a huge fan of really spicy foods. This chili recipe was introduced into my family more than a decade ago through Canadian Living. It's called Stratford Heartburn People's Choice Chili, and because it regularly one that award at the Stratford (Ontario) Heartburn Annual Chili Cook-Off. It's sweet, tangy and smoky with bacon goodness.

Perhaps it shouldn't be called Chili. It doesn't actually have any chili powder in it.

We'll forgive it that, and in return you'll discover that it's a really forgiving recipe. Don't have enough bacon? Fine. Use what you've got. Have a 28 oz can of tomatoes? No worries. Throw it in, and let reduce longer. Don't eat beef? Use turkey. Because it cooks low and slow for 3 hours, the sauce is super flavourful and really infuses the meat and beans with its lovely goodness. By the time it's done, you won't be missing the traditional chili seasonings at all!

Stratford Heartburn People's Choice Chili 
Ingredients
(Canadian Living Magazine, February 1997) 
7 slices lean bacon (I often use whatever I have on hand. I used 2 slices this time)
1 lb lean ground beef
1 onion; chopped
1 clove garlic; minced
2 tablespoons brown sugar; packed
2 tablespoons fancy molasses
1 can (19 oz) tomatoes (again, feel free to use whatever you have, I used a 28 oz can)
1 can (14 oz) kidney beans
1 can (14 oz) baked beans with pork and molasses
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon each pepper and hot pepper sauce

Directions

Preheat oven to 300º.

In a Dutch oven (or any large ovenproof pot), cook bacon over medium heat. When crisp, remove and drain on paper towels. Crumble and set aside.

Add beef and onion to the pan. Sauté until beef is browned, about 10 minutes, breaking beef up. Drain off fat.

Add all remaining ingredients to the Dutch oven. Stir thoroughly.

Cover and place in oven for 2 hours, stirring occasionally (like once an hour). After the two hours are up, pull the chili out of the oven and remove the lid.

At this point, it's all about thickening this bad boy up. Return the lidless Dutch oven to the oven and let cook for another hour, stirring every 15 minutes or so (totally not a necessary step, but I like to make sure everything is coated with the delicious sauce). When it's ready, it'll look like this:

See how much liquid has reduced? Welcome to flavour country!

This recipe theoretically serves 4, but I think it serves more like 6, especially when accompanied with bread and a crisp green salad!

Beef and Barley Soup

For the past 2 years, practically every Tuesday night I have eaten alone. Phil usually has a class that night, and so I am left to my own devices.

Confession: when cooking for myself, my own devices usually involves the jar of peanut butter and bread.  Or crackers eaten directly from the box.

Or if I'm really feeling like I want to cook, then scrambled eggs.

I do not like cooking for myself - not because I don't like cooking, but because I hate cleaning up after.

Last night, as I walked home through the downtown core, the windchill brought the temperature down into the negative double digits. I knew peanut butter was just not going to work for me.

So, I braved the thought of creating a mountain of dishes and decided to make soup. Of course, I didn't have all the ingredients I needed for either my beef barley recipe (I only had ground beef) nor my dutch meatball soup (no leeks or egg noodles). In the end, I created a hybrid. And, if I do say so myself, I think it turned out pretty well.

Using dried mushrooms and their soaking liquid infuses an earthy flavour to the soup.

Ingredients

1 lb lean ground beef
½ large onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp thyme
½ tsp sage
½ package dried porcini mushrooms
7 cups water
1 beef boullion stock cube
½ cup pot barley, rinsed and drained
2 bay leaves
2 tsp tamari soy sauce
3 tbsp dry sherry
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper

Directions

1. In a large pot covered with cooking spray, sauté beef until just brown over medium heat. Remove from pot with slotted spoon and leave in a bowl while you prepare the vegetables.

2. Meanwhile, cover dried mushrooms with 4 cups of boiling water. Let sit, while you prep the remaining ingredients.

3. Sauté onion, celery, carrot and garlic with thyme and sage until soft, about 5 minutes.

4. Remove mushrooms from liquid (be sure to save this) and coarsely chop.

5. Return beef and its juices that have accumulated in the bowl to the pot. Add chopped mushrooms, their soaking liquid and the remaining 3 cups of water along with the bouillon cube and the barley and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Let simmer for 30-40 minutes until barley is tender.

6. Just before serving, add sherry, tamari, parsley. Taste and then add salt and pepper accordingly.

Serve with a grilled cheese sandwich, and you're set for that brisk winter night!