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Seared flat iron steak, roasted asparagus, poached egg, pecorino

I don’t crave a steak that often. When I do, this is my go-to recipe if I don’t feel like making a heavy sauce a la steak au poivre. Flat iron is a cheap cut, usually about $5-6/lb, and when cooked right, it’s excellent and absorbs the flavor of your marinade. I usually slice it against the grain, and rarely do I need a steak knife. Here I used AZ grass-fed beef from The Meat Shop, which is $8.99/lb, but since it was a 12 oz steak, you’re still looking at less than $7. I used a slightly more expensive wine in the marinade (about $18 retail) because since you don’t need it all, you don’t want to use a wine you won’t want to drink with your meal.

12-16oz flat-iron steak

marinade:

• 1/8 c olive oil
• 1/8 c dry red wine
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1/2 tsp fresh parsley (curly or flat-leaf), chopped
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

asparagus:

• bunch of asparagus
• 1 egg (optional)
• 1 lemon, halved, and zested
• white vinegar
• Pecorino or other hard cheese, such as parmesan

tools:

• sheet pan
• heavy-bottom skillet (w/oven-proof handle), preferably cast iron (don’t use non-stick)
• sauce pan
• slotted spoon
• freezer bag

Mix all the marinade ingredients and the freezer bag and place on your counter for about an hour. You can also throw it in the frig for about two hrs, but it will take longer for the flavors to penetrate the meat, and you will also need to bring the steak up to temp; allow about 30-45 mins if you go that route.

When the marinating is done, remove the steak and pat dry, removing any bits of herbs stuck to the meat as these will burn when searing the meat. Season the steak generously with salt and pepper.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees for the asparagus. Break one about 2 inches from the bottom, noting where it snaps and cut the rest of the bunch at this point. Place on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. I usually let these go about 15-18 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally to brown on all sides. Remove and set aside, covered w/foil, leaving the oven on.

Meanwhile, fill your sauce pan and with a couple inches of water and about 1-1 ½ tsp of white vinegar; that will help the poached egg to stay together while cooking. Bring the water to a bare simmer. If you don’t like poached eggs and don’t want one on your asparagus, this step is completely unnecessary. Don’t even make asparagus for that matter – eat a bag of Doritos, it’s your life.

Preheat your skillet for about ten minutes on the stovetop. I use an electric stove, and usually turn the pan on somewhere between 6 and 7. Once heated, pour a couple of tablespoons of oil in the pan (vegetable or grapeseed oil) and swirl; it will probably smoke a bit. Cook the steak, undisturbed, for two minutes until a nice crust forms. Flip the steak over and cook for an additional minute, and then throw the pan in the oven for up to 5 minutes for medium, depending on the thickness of the steak. I usually will let it go about 2-3 minutes for med-rare if it’s about ½ inch thick. Remove the skillet from the oven and tent the steak with foil at least five minutes on a cutting board. Keep the skillet off of the heat for a couple minutes while the steak rests. (If you’re doing the poached egg, now is the time to drop the egg in the water for about 2.5 – 3 minutes, remove with slotted spoon into a shallow bowl, pat dry with paper towels, and set aside). Put a pat of butter in the skillet, making sure it doesn’t burn, and scrape up any bits that remain.

Once the steak is rested, slice the steak against the grain, place on plate and pour the melted butter from your skillet over the meat. Season the meat with a little salt (I used a gray sea salt). Arrange the asparagus on the plate, top with the poached egg if you made it, a little lemon zest, parsley, and some pecorino.

So there you have it…unless of course you wanted to spend $45 for a bone-in ribeye and $10 a la carte sides. You also have a nice wine for under $20 which you couldn’t touch for under $50 in the restaurant. I’m lucky to have an early 20th century cast iron skillet that was passed down to me – if you don’t have one, it doesn’t hurt to go antiquing for one…it’s an indispensible tool, and really makes a difference when cooking a steak at home.

One final note…those plastic herbs in the grocery store might be one of the highest margin items there. $2 for a couple ounces of rosemary is absurd, because it is easy to maintain and it’s always available to you. I recommend getting a big pot and planting some thyme, rosemary, sage and parsley in it if you’re so inclined. Trust me…it will be worth the 30 seconds a couple times a week to water it. Enjoy!