Grilled striploin with asparagus and peppers in oyster sauce
Tuesday, March 7th, 2006
I stopped by Meat on the Beach, my local butcher, the other day to satisfy a red meat craving I was having [map below]. I saw an absolutely amazing t-bone under the glass. It was about 1⅔ inches thick and had perfect fine marbling of fat through the striploin side. The tenderloin side was a little small but I’m not a huge fan of it anyway. I ordered it up and brought it home. I excitedly unwrapped it so I could get it curing in salt (thanks simone for the tip, though I too couldn’t wait 24 hours for the full cure). Setting aside the butcher paper revealed two striploins. I had fallen victim to an honest mixup at the butcher shop. They looked okay. A little too red, as if they hadn’t been aged enough. The marbling was a little weak too – but whatever, it would still surely satiate my hankering.
We go on holidays next week so my fridge was starting to look a little barren. I did however have some fresh asparagus and bell peppers which I thought I would grill up to accompany the beef.
I apologize in advance as I took little mental note as to the quantity for the following ingredients so you’ll have to use your best guess along with the photos if you’re interested in this one – though it’s tough to mess up.
Here’s what you’ll need: [photo 1]
- Striploins – or any cut that looks good from your butcher
- Bunch of asparagus – cut an inch or two off the bottom
- Bell peppers – red, orange, green, whatever
- Sesame seeds
- Soy sauce – about a ¼ cup
- Oyster Sauce – about a ½ cup
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
- Olive oil
Start by salting the steaks on both sides [photo 2]. If you have the time try leaving it salted for 24 hours in your refrigerator. I was only able to do so for about 3 hours. Regardless of how long you salt the beef for pat it dry before doing any more prep work.
Get your grill going. The hotter the better (mine was about 550˚F – i can’t get it much hotter in the winter). Make sure the grill is nice and clean – don’t oil it.
If you don’t have a plate warming drawer preheat your oven and put a couple of plates in there. Set it as low as it will go. Usually around 170˚F.
Clean and cut the vegetables. Leave them really big as you’re going to be placing them directly on the grill, the bigger they are the less chance you’ll lose any. Place them in a large bowl and cover them with the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame seeds, olive oil and fresh ground pepper [photo 3]. Incorporate the ingredients well. use your hands so you don’t damage or bruise any of the vegetables [photo 4].
Make sure your steaks are dry. Drizzle and rub some olive oil onto them and place on the grill. Just before the steaks are done put the vegetables on the grill. Try not to stack them, and try not to take too long – you want the heat that has built up in the BBQ to stay there. Cook the steak to your desired doneness.
When the steaks feel done place them on the hot plates and tent some foil over them. Let rest for 10 minutes. While your steak is resting check on the vegetables, they’ll need to be turned once or twice. The are done when they have a nice char. Plate it all together and bon appetite [photos 5+6].
!/images/stk2/stk6.jpg!fin
-c2e84cc44332025d8c3a848c516b8ba2->