seared ribeye steak with chimichurri sauce

happy new year! it’s our first post in 2014. what a delicious way to welcome the year. happy eating, happy cooking!

everyone has their own personal proven method when it comes to cooking the perfect steak. sometimes when we try those techniques in our own kitchen, it doesn’t always produce the same result. that’s because there are slight variations that will affect the outcome… things like thickness of the cut, heat source, and type of pan. so what might work for one person in their kitchen might not work in yours. you really have to play around with your cookware and stove to find the timing that creates the right doneness for your steak.

for ours, we had a 12 oz half inch thick ribeye, seared on a cast iron or any heavy bottomed pan with plenty of oil for about 4 minutes on high heat. that was enough to get a good sear on the surface and still medium-rare on the inside. and of course, we allowed the steak to rest at least 5 minutes before digging in.

a chimichurri sauce is probably one of the better pairings for beef. it’s tangy and bright, which helps cut the fat and richness.

chimichurri

flat-leaf parsley 1/2 cup (120 g) firmly packed and finely chopped
garlic 1 clove finely chopped
shallot 1 finely chopped
oregano 1 tbsp
red or white wine vinegar 1 tbsp
olive oil 5 tbsp
lemon juice 1 tbsp
salt 1/2 tsp

• let the steak sit at room temperature for an hour
• salt on both sides, don’t add pepper as this might burn
• turn heat on high and add a good amount of oil to a pan
• once the oil begins to smoke, sear the steak on both sides, cook to desired doneness (4 minutes for ours to medium-rare)
• plate the steak and let it rest for at least 5 minutes
• to make the sauce, combine all of the ingredients above in a sauce bowl, mix well

sear the steak on high heat with plenty of oil

let it rest before cutting, resist the temptation to cut

drizzle with chimichurri sauce and dig in!

commentaries

priscilla

aging the steak allows the flavour to concentrate and the meat to tenderize. many people have the misconception that dry aged beef are only sold at upscale butcher shops. part of it is true, for you need a good quality steak for aging. yet, we learnt from heston blumenthal that we can actually age a steak at home.

• age the steak by putting it on a rack and in the fridge (with our half-inch thick ribeye steak, it needs around 1 day to age. we tried 2 days before, but because most of the moisture was gone, it became a bit chewy though it was flavourful.)
• let the steak sit at room temperature for an hour
• turn heat on high and add a good amount of oil to a pan
• once the oil begins to smoke, sear 1 side of the steak for 10 sec
• flip it and sear the other side for another 10 sec
• cook to desired doneness (2 10 sec for each side for ours to medium-rare)
• plate the steak and let it rest for at least 5 minutes

it is easy to overcook the steak with its low moisture content. be careful with the timing.

the effort is so worth it. the meat is unbelievably flavourful and tender.

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