Recipe: The Perfect Steak

My dinner
- a bit overcooked tonight as I was on the phone!

I love a good steak. While The Boy's comfort food is pizza, a home-cooked steak and some bits of rocket do it for me every single time. Eating out, when I was down, I used to mosey to The Well in Clerkenwell for one of their steak frites and a glass of house red. But steaks are as easy to make at home as they are to order.

My all-time favourite is the porterhouse steak (in the US, it is known as a striploin or, as I'm supposed to call it, a Kansas City strip - the porterhouse steak is something else in Americanese), perfectly marbled. That's the bit just behind the rib. It's firm, tender, and fatty all at the same time. My dad likes a good T-bone steak - that's the striploin plus a bit of the tenderloin. The steak in the picture above is a rump steak - the best of Tesco!

British cuts of beef

American cuts of beef

The secret to a perfect steak is to get a good fresh cut of meat (and a charcoal grill - but that's a whole different level of home cooking). The Ginger Pig at Borough Market has served me well these years, but nowadays you can get some fine cow at Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury's etc.. The perfect steak is slightly burnt on the edges, slightly red in the middle, and juicy juicy juicy. And it's so easy and quick too!


RECIPE: THE PERFECT STEAK

Steak
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Rocket
Virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar

1. Marinate steak on both sides with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper. Leave for 1/2 hour.
2. Heat cast iron pan (or any grill or frying pan) on high heat for a few minutes. Fry each side of the steak for 1 minute on high (warning: it will and must sizzle and spit) and 2 minutes on medium heat. This will yield a medium-rare steak. 1+4 minutes for a well-done steak.
3. Serve with some rocket dressed with virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.


What's your favourite comfort food?
What's your favourite cut of steak?