Meaty Monday Redux: Quick Sweet & Smoky Grilled London Broil

The grilling season is upon us and I just HAD to bring this oldie but goodie back. Meaty Monday is back, although I am working on ice cream recipes right now... I thought this was a great way to launch the season since we are just about at Memorial Day. Hello, Grill!!!

Quick Sweet & Smoky Grilled London Broil

First off, this whole business of calling top round "London Broil" really irks me. Somewhat of a traditionalist at heart, real London Broil, in my heart-of-hearts will always be flank steak. This new nomenclature, calling top round steak London Broil was foisted off on us supposedly by supermarket meat departments (according to my butcher) because there are only a couple of flank steaks on a steer, but a whole lotta top round. Yes, I know it's leaner, and cheaper, but it's not as tender or tasty. So if you have one of these, as I did lurking in the freezer, you need to boost the flavor, hugely. 

Whew, now that I got that off my chest, I have to say that top round can be fabulous. I picked this one up back in May, a nice grass-fed piece of beef top round while it was on sale at my local Whole Foods. Since we just returned from a vacation at the beach, and I haven't had a chance to do any marketing, it just leaped out of the freezer into my hands. Yes, it did.  So I did what any smart girl would do: I thawed it out, and dolled it up.

This wet rub has big flavor, and it's all likely to be things that live in your fridge and pantry all the time. Plain chili powder, cinnamon, black pepper, smoked paprika, jarred garlic, salt and a lime. The cinnamon makes it taste sweet without adding any sugar, and the smoked paprika adds a smoky zing. Like I said, I didn't have time to shop and we still want a good meal. Good for low carbers and paleo eaters as well as everyone else who likes good meat.

Because this meat is so lean, after grilling, a finishing drizzle of really good extra virgin olive oil, flavored olive oil or a pat of butter (flavored or not) would be nice. If you are eating Paleo, or just lazy like me, go for the olive oil. But if you have some minced green garlic scapes in your freezer, or can mince some garden garlic chives, toss them on the meat, drizzle on the oil, add a squeeze of fresh lime and dig in. This rub works really well on flank and skirt steak, too, so keep it up your sleeve.

Note: Top round isn't as tender as flank for London broil, so be sure to slice it thinly, 1/4" or thinner, with a sharp knife against the grain.

Quick Sweet & Smoky Grilled London Broil

Ingredients:

1 tsp. mild chili powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika (pimenton)
1T crushed garlic (fresh or jarred is fine)
1/2 tsp. fine sea salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black paper
zest of 1 lime
juice from 1/2 lime
1-2 T extra virgin olive oil
1.25 lb. Top Round London Broil

Garnish:

2T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1T minced garlic scapes, or garlic chives
juice from 1/2 lime

Instructions:

In a small bowl, mix everything through the olive oil, and then rub evenly over both sides of the London broil. Place the meat in a zip bag and chill for at least 2 hours and up to 10 hours. Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking.

Pretty much all from the pantry and fridge.

When you are ready to cook, preheat your grill to 550ºF. Oil the grill, and then place the meat on the grill and close the top. Cook for 3 minutes, then turn and cook for 4 minutes on the other side for medium rare. Let the meat stand for 5 minutes before slicing thinly across the grain. 

To serve, sprinkle over the garlic scapes or garlic chives, drizzle with the olive oil and squeeze over the lime.

Serves 3-4.

Meaty Monday, Again: Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

This is a command performance. It's required by unnamed members of my household that we have this instead of the leftover chicken, so you all will have to have it again, too.


Some Mondays, its about all I can do to get myself out the door, fully dressed and caffeinated.  Not always, but on some of them, I am impressively organized and have dinner prepped and even some laundry done before I jump in the car to commute. Unfortunately,  my zombie-like Monday mornings probably outnumber the organized Mondays three to one. You too?

Those frazzled days are also the ones I'm most likely to need a good fast dinner that's both totally delicious and totally idiot proof. This succulent pork tenderloin is one of those meals. While I'm on the subject of pork tenderloin I want to complain about how they come packed from most supermarkets. Why the heck, when  they almost always pack unflavored pork tenderloins in pairs, are they so different in size and weight? Most of us will usually cook them both, and one is usually at least double the size of the other, thus letting most of us, drastically over or undercook at least one of the tenderloins? Remember, this cut is comparatively the same as a beef tenderloin. A pork tenderloin is not the same thing as a pork loin. It makes me livid when I see slow cooker recipes for pork tenderloin --after all, you wouldn't toss a filet mignon into the crock, would you?

Anyway, this couldn't be a simpler, more toothsome dish to make quickly at the end of a busy day.
This grilling technique called "7-6-5" is featured in Fine Cooking Magazine; it really is pretty much idiot proof, and I suggest you take a look at the original. It really does prevent overcooking this lovely, tender cut of pork.  We prefer ours a little less done, more of a pinkish medium rare, at just over 140ºF so we cook ours 6-5-5. The original timing should bring it to above 145º after the cooking is completed. Oh, and pork is safe to eat and juicy at 140º, even if your Mom, like mine, tended to cook it to death.

The balsamic glaze is wonderful, and you need very little per serving --just a tablespoon or two, but if you are eating paleo or primal, or counting carbs, you may want to limit how much sauce you use, or choose something else like a bit of mayonnaise mixed with a bit of Dijon mustard.

Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

Serves 2-3

A 1-1/4 to 1-1/3 lb. pork tenderloin (NOT pork loin)
kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper

For the Sweet Balsamic Glaze:

1/2 cup all-fruit apricot or seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
pinch of salt

1. Preheat your grill to high. Unwrap tenderloin, and liberally coat with pepper and salt.

2. Place all the balsamic glaze ingredients in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, stirring. As soon as the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, in about a minute, set it aside and keep warm.

3. Oil the grill, and then place the tenderloin on the grill and close the cover. Cook on one side for 7 minutes for medium cooked pork, just 6 minutes for medium rare. Open the lid and turn the meat over, and recover the grill. Cook on the second side for 6 minutes for medium meat, and 5 for medium rare. next, shut off the heat and do NOT open the grill for 5 minutes. If you really like well-done (and dry!) pork, leave  the tenderloin in the closed grill for 7 minutes after turning off the heat. Test with an instant read thermometer for doneness if desired.

4. Place the meat on a cutting board and let stand for 5 minutes before slicoing. Serve with the balsamic glaze drizzled over each serving.

Meaty Monday: Molasses Soy Mushrooms and Steak

Ok, I know it really should be steak and mushrooms, not mushrooms and steak. But the mushrooms that are supposed to be the side with the beef are so delicious and savory they have to have equal star  billing.

The marinade is an easy homemade teriyaki that uses molasses to give it a big, deep flavor. i like blackstrap  molasses, but you can have whatever kind you have in the pantry. Most of us have unsulphured molasses and that will do fine. I like to use molasses because it packs a punch flavor-wise, but lets me sugar content in this marinade way down, and still promotes good browning and flavor. The molasses caramelizes as it cooks with the soy, making both the mushrooms and the steak absolutely swoonworthy.

The beef this week was a nice, grass fed, top round  steak cut as a London Broil. You all have heard me go on about how flank is the only true London broil, but if I had to buy a grass fed flank steak, not on sale, I'd have need a second job to pay for it.  Since we eat much less beef now than before, I try to buy only grass fed, not feed lot beef. Better for us and for the environment. Tastes better too. Helps when you can find it on sale, too.

Note: This is a reasonably low carb dish using stevia and molasses, as the molasses adds very little sugar to the marinade, and most of it is not actually eaten. If you are not watching sugar too closely, go with the honey. You'd have to bend the rules a bit to call this Paleo, though.

Molasses Soy Mushrooms and Steak

Molasses Soy Mushrooms and Steak

Serves 4

2T Molasses, blackstrap or unsulphured
1/3 cup gluten free tamari soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic (jarred ok)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (jarred ok)
1/2 teaspoon Asian chili garlic paste or hot sauce
Liquid stevia, sugar or honey, equivalent to 1 tablespoon
1/4 cup dry sherry
Approx. 1.75 lb. beef top round London broil, grass fed preferred
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb. sliced baby portabella (cremini) mushrooms

1. Mix all ingredients through the sherry in a small bowl, and then set aside 1/4 cup of the mixture in a small, covered container in the fridge. Place the meat in a zip top bag, and pour over the remaining marinade, turn the meat a few times, and chill for at least 8 hours and up to 24.

2. About 2 minutes before you want to eat, remove the meat from the fridge, discard the marinade in the zip bag, and preheat a grill to high. In a 12" fry pan, preferably non stick, heat the olive oil, and add the sliced mushrooms. Stir to coat with the hot oil, and turn the heat under the pan to medium. Cook the mushrooms in the oil until they give up their liquid, and when that has nearly evaporated, add the 1/4 cup of reserved marinade. Stir until its nearly evaporated, and then cover, turn off the heat and set aside in a warm spot.

3. Grill the meat over high heat about 4 minutes per side for rare or longer  to your taste. Let the meat rest about 5 -7 minutes before slicing thinly against the grain. Reheat the mushrooms if necessary, and serve with the beef. Enjoy!

Meaty Monday: Speedy Simple Soy Garlic London Broil & Leftovers

You know those stories about how you can cook once and eat twice? You know what word they never use? Leftovers. Leftovers sound so unglamorous, like a week old tuna sandwich deserted in the office fridge. Truly, there are two kinds of meals, the kind that produce leftovers that really should be forgotten in the office icebox, and then there are the kind that are so good you HOPE there will really be enough for another great meal. This is the kind of grilled meat that will  make you fervently hope there will be leftovers, if you just stop chowing it down at the first meal.

You all know my preference for flank steak over top round for grilled London Broil. That said, you can use whatever steak your budget and your tastebuds prefer. Flank used to be a cheap cut, but, at least around here, its pretty pricey. This marinade is very simple to whip up. I do it in the morning while the coffee is brewing, and let the steak loll in its tasty bath all day. It will help to flip the meat in its bag during the day; but if the meat is mostly submerged, don't worry about it too much. If you can, try to remember to turn it over just before you run out the door. This amount of marinade will cover a flank steak,  however, if you are using top round, and your meat is more than 1-1/2" thick, just double the ingredients, so the meat is covered in the flavorful liquid.

     Speedy Simple Soy Garlic London Broil

Speedy Simple Soy Garlic London Broil

Serves 4 or 2 with great leftovers


1-1/2 to 1-3/4 lb. beef flank steak or top round cut for London broil (approx 1-1/2" thick)

Marinade ingredients:

1/2  cup gluten-free tamari soy ( I prefer lower sodium)
1/4 cup gluten free  Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons crushed garlic (jarred is fine)
2 tablespoons honey or 3 tablespoons granular erythritol
1/2 cup dry red wine

Score the meat, about 1/4" deep with parallel cuts about 1" apart on both sides of the meat. Place the meat in a zip top plastic bag or a container just large enough to hold the meat flat.

Mix all the marinade ingredients and pour over the meat in the bag or container. Turn the meat to coat it well on both sides, although the meat should be just about submerged in the marinade. Chill for at least 6 hours and up to 12 hours.

Heat your grill to high heat, about 550º, remove the meat from the marinade, and discard the marinade. Grill a flank steak for about 3 to 4 minutes a side for rare to medium rare, a round steak about 4 to 5 minutes a side. Cook longer to your own liking as desired.

Chimichurri Rojo (Red) with Chicken

Chimichurri seems to be quite the darling of the food magazines and blogging set this season. As a marinade or a sauce, it's a wonderful thing. The most common one is green, made with lots of parsley or cilantro. It's really such a versatile sauce, easy to make, and will last a long time in the fridge. There are as many versions of this sauce as there are food writers and chefs, and just about all are good. But no one hardly ever talks about the red sauce.

Well, you know me. I'm a bit off the norm. I like the green version, but I LOVE the red  sauce more --Chimichurri Rojo.  Spicy and a little sweet and herby, the sauce also keeps well in the fridge and is one of my favorite marinades for plain old boneless, skinless chicken breasts. After a good soak in the sauce, and grilling, you'll have the tenderest, tastiest chicken around. Keep it around to splash on whatever you feel like eating in this heat ---shrimp, steak, or even grilled vegetables.

Chicken Marinated in Chimichurri Rojo (red) 

Chimichurri Rojo (Red) with Chicken

Mildly spiced, up the cayenne for a more authentic  flavor

 2 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken breast, flattened to 1/2" thick

1/3 cup sherry or red wine vinegar vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika (pimenton)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 scallions, trimmed in 1" pieces

2T sugar or equivalent Stevia

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup finely chopped  Italian flat leaf parsley or cilantro

Puree all ingredients up to parsley in a blender or mini processor until smooth.  Add the parsley or cilantro and just pulse the machine, leaving the herbs fairly chunky.

Pour half of the chimichurri sauce over the chicken, in either a zip top bag, or covered container, and chill for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours. Refrigerate the rest of the sauce in a separate container.

Preheat your grill or frying pan to medium high, and grill or pan grill the chicken for 5 to 7 minutes per side to desired doneness. You can also bake the breasts right in the marinade. Serve the additional reserved chimichurri on the side as desired.

Meaty Monday: Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

Some Mondays, its about all I can do to get myself out the door, fully dressed and caffeinated.  Not always, but on some of them, I am impressively organized and have dinner prepped and even some laundry done before I jump in the car to commute. Unfortunately,  my zombie-like Monday mornings probably outnumber the organized Mondays three to one. You too?

Those frazzled days are also the ones I'm most likely to need a good fast dinner that's both totally delicious and totally idiot proof. This succulent pork tenderloin is one of those meals. While I'm on the subject of pork tenderloin I want to complain about how they come packed from most supermarkets. Why the heck, when  they almost always pack unflavored pork tenderloins in pairs, are they so different in size and weight? Most of us will usually cook them both, and one is usually at least double the size of the other, thus letting most of us, drastically over or undercook at least one of the tenderloins? Remember, this cut is comparatively the same as a beef tenderloin. A pork tenderloin is not the same thing as a pork loin. It makes me livid when I see slow cooker recipes for pork tenderloin --after all, you wouldn't toss a filet mignon into the crock, would you?

Anyway, this couldn't be a simpler, more toothsome dish to make quickly at the end of a busy day.
This grilling technique called "7-6-5" is featured in Fine Cooking Magazine; it really is pretty much idiot proof, and I suggest you take a look at the original. It really does prevent overcooking this lovely, tender cut of pork.  We prefer ours a little less done, more of a pinkish medium rare, at just over 140ºF so we cook ours 6-5-5. The original timing should bring it to above 145º after the cooking is completed. Oh, and pork is safe to eat and juicy at 140º, even if your Mom, like mine, tended to cook it to death.

The balsamic glaze is wonderful, and you need very little per serving --just a tablespoon or two, but if you are eating paleo or primal, or counting carbs, you may want to limit how much sauce you use, or choose something else like a bit of mayonnaise mixed with a bit of Dijon mustard.

Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

Quick Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Balsamic Glaze

Serves 2-3

A 1-1/4 to 1-1/3 lb. pork tenderloin (NOT pork loin)
kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper

For the Sweet Balsamic Glaze:

1/2 cup all-fruit apricot or seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
pinch of salt

1. Preheat your grill to high. Unwrap tenderloin, and liberally coat with pepper and salt.

2. Place all the balsamic glaze ingredients in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, stirring. As soon as the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, in about a minute, set it aside and keep warm.

3. Oil the grill, and then place the tenderloin on the grill and close the cover. Cook on one side for 7 minutes for medium cooked pork, just 6 minutes for medium rare. Open the lid and turn the meat over, and recover the grill. Cook on the second side for 6 minutes for medium meat, and 5 for medium rare. next, shut off the heat and do NOT open the grill for 5 minutes. If you really like well-done (and dry!) pork, leave  the tenderloin in the closed grill for 7 minutes after turning off the heat. Test with an instant read thermometer for doneness if desired.

4. Place the meat on a cutting board and let stand for 5 minutes before slicoing. Serve with the balsamic glaze drizzled over each serving.

Meaty Monday: Quick Maple Bourbon London Broil

Mondays. The day of the week when you know the weekend is over and nothing is missing from your To-Do list yet. Ugh. That's how it is for me, and when I get home from work I'm starving and about the last thing I really want to do is fuss with a meal. This is a really quick meal to cook --I actually start my gas grill on the way from the driveway to the house so the grill will be ready to use as soon as I toss my purse onto a chair and get the marinated meat out of the fridge.

I like to make London Broil, and although I'm a cranky girl and really prefer to use flank steak for London Broil over top round, either one will do fine for this recipe. The maple makes it sweet, the soy makes it a little salty and beefier and the bourbon makes it, for some reason a little more succulent. Don't leave out the anchovy paste, it's your secret umami ingredient and I promise your food will not taste fishy, just great. What would be better for dinner after a beastly day than this? Not much.

You can throw this marinade together the night before, or in the morning of the day you plan to soak the meat in it. Or even a couple of hours before, although its better for the meat to have at least 4 hours, and up to 24 hours in the marinade for the most flavor. Other than that there is no work on your part other than to heat the grill to high, and cook the beef to your desired doneness. We like ours nearly rare, and that's about 3 minutes per side on a really hot grill. For medium rare, leave the meat on the grill about 4 -5 minutes a side, for a beef steak that's about 1 " to 1-1/2" thick. Remember if you are cooking Primal or Paleo, to skip the tamari and substitute coconut aminoes, and preferably choose grass fed beef.

Now. To crank this up to a whole other level of deliciousness, you can steal an idea from Chef Adam Perry Lang like I did, and make a "board sauce" for this steak. Essentially, what you'll do is place some minced or finely chopped aromatics, and some olive oil on the cutting board or plate on which you're planning to drop the hot cooked meat for it's standing period before you carve it. The heat releases all sorts of goodness, and as you slice the meat you just mix all the flavorful ingredients into the meat like a sauce.  If you are short on time or too pooped to do the board sauce, the London broil is wonderful without it, but use a little judicious sea salt, pepper and a thin drizzle of high quality extra virgin olive oil after you slice it.

Quick Maple Bourbon London Broil

Quick Maple Bourbon London Broil
Serves 4-6 or (2 with good leftovers)

Be sure to slice either the cooked flank steak or top round thinly (1/2" or thinner) against the grain of the steak for the tenderest bite.

2 lb. beef flank steak or top round steak, about 1 to 1-1/2" thick
1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
1/4 cup plus 2  tablespoons dark maple syrup
1/4 cup wheat free tamari soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground dried ginger
4 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced
1 teaspoon of coarse black pepper
1 teaspoon of anchovy paste

1. With the tip of a sharp knife, score the steak diagonally about 1/4" deep in parallel cuts about 1/8" to 1/4" deep. Repeat on the other side. This will help let the marinade get into the meat.

2. Mix all of the remaining ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl. Place the meat into a zip top bag and pour the marinade over the meat.  Zip top and place in a shallow pan in case it leaks. Chill for at least 4 hours and up to 24. Turn the bag occasionally to redistribute the marinade.

3. Heat your grill to about 550ºF, oil the grill and cook the meat to your desired doneness. Remove the meat to a cutting board or platter and let it stand 5 minutes before slicing. Drizzle with oil and season as desired.

If you want to make a board sauce:
While the grill is heating,  grate  about a tablespoon of fresh ginger, two cloves of garlic, and mince a scallion and a small handful of cilantro. Feel free to add or leave out whatever you'd like here. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Place it all on the  cutting board or platter you have ready for the cooked meat. When the beef is cooked, lay it right on top of the bed of aromatics and let it rest for 5 minutes to the juices can settle. The heat will also release an enormous amount of flavor from the ginger, garlic and herbs. After you slice the meat, mix the herb mixture through the hot meat, and season as needed. Drizzle with more olive oil if you like it.

Smoked Grilled Chicken with Bourbon Peach Glaze: First, The Brine

By the time our big family BBQ rolls around tomorrow, I intend to be lolling on the patio with a glass of Amy's and Janey's Sangria in my hand. I'll post that too, soon. That's my intention, although it probably won't actually happen until everyone has been totally stuffed. Usually I'm up half the night before the party, tending briskets in the smoker, but this year's smaller group will feast on juicy, plump smoked  and grilled chicken glistening with peach bourbon glaze. It's a big plus for me or for any party because you can brine them one day, smoke the next, chill and grill and glaze the day of the party. If you don't have a smoker, you can smoke-grill the chicken all in one shot.

Brining is the best way I know to assure your smoked and / or grilled meat and poultry stay moist during the cooking process. Plus, they are perfectly seasoned throughout. When you smoke food, the salt and sugar from the brine, when dry on the surface, allow the smoke to stick to the skin and meat.

The boiling brine actually smells good enough to eat.
 But don't.

I am a BIG  fan of Michael Ruhlman's tips on brining and I use his basic 5% brine for just about everything that goes into the smoker. I do switch up the flavor profile and add my own seasonings. Use a good digital kitchen scale to weigh the Morton's kosher salt  and go metric for the water.  You can measure it all, but it's not as accurate as compounding a recipe by weight. The honey-lemon flavor in the brine melds perfectly with the bourbon and peaches in the glaze. Sooo delicious. Bet there won't be any leftovers.

I currently have about 9 pounds of chicken parts soaking in this brine concoction overnight right now and will smoke them after they get to dry out a bit and form a pellicle. More on that in another post. Let's just get to the brining. You see in the picture that the whole deal is in a 2.5 gallon zip top bag resting in a big bowl in the fridge. The chicken parts will stay in there about 10-12 hours, depending on when my caffeine kicks in and I set up my smoker.

A savory beauty bath for chicken before grilling or smoking.

Here's how to make your brine. You can probably get up to about 10 pounds of chicken into this remarkable stuff. You can use any type of UN-iodized plain salt if you are weighing. Just stick to the 200 g.

Honey Lemon Smoked Chicken Brine

4 liters of water
200 g. Morton's Kosher salt
Zest of one large lemon in long strips (use a veg. peeler)
5 big garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1/3 cup honey
10 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme

Mix everything in a big pot and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt. Let cool to room temperature, and then chill. Pour the cold brine over the chicken in a big bag, or in a non-reactive bowl. Weigh the chicken down with a heavy plate  if you are using a bowl so it stays submerged. Place the whole kaboodle in the fridge and let it soak for 8 -12 hours before grilling or smoking.