Food & Wine (January 2010)
We always feel a little bit like we're cheating when we cook a skirt steak. How can something be this cheap, this tasty and this quick to prepare? It's like we've stumbled onto an ancient secret in the supermarket: How does everyone not know about this?!
Perhaps we're exaggerating. But only a little. The fact is, skirt steak is a great meal to have up your sleeve (not literally; that would be messy) for a lightning-quick midweek dinner. Take last night: We had a skirt steak in the fridge. We walked in from work, sliced up an onion and a bell pepper, sauteed everything in some oil and an easy Asian steak sauce we'd made earlier in the week. And we were sitting down to eat literally 12 minutes -- 12 minutes! -- after we'd walked in the door.
Bottom line: Skirt steak is a great thing to have on hand. And if you want to make it just a little more special, look no further than this recipe for Skirt Steak with Paprika Butter.
Truth is, other than the paprika butter, this recipe is like any other preparation for skirt steak. Oil the steak (or the pan), sear for 3 minutes a side; let rest for 5 minutes; slice; eat. (How this recipe thinks you're going to fill up 30 minutes of prep time, we have no idea.)
But the paprika butter really does make take this steak up a notch. It douses the steak in this golden richness with a terrific warm, smoky heat.
All in all, it's a relatively simple dish, but one that we really, really loved.
We were dying to serve this skirt steak with the magazine's suggested side dish: Sunchoke-Kale Hash with Farro. We had sunchokes, but there was no kale or farro to be found. Where does one buy farro, anyhow? If Whole Foods doesn't carry it, who does?
Skirt Steak with Paprika Butter
Food & Wine (January 2010)
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(This photo: Food & Wine)
• TOTAL TIME: 30 MIN
• SERVINGS: 10
Ingredients
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked hot paprika
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• Salt
• 5 pounds skirt steaks
• Vegetable oil, for rubbing
• Freshly ground pepper
Directions
1. Light a grill or heat a grill pan. In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook over low heat, stirring, until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the paprika and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season with salt; keep warm.
2. Rub the skirt steaks with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until nicely charred and medium-rare, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the steaks to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Thinly slice the steaks across the grain. Spoon the Sunchoke-Kale Hash with Farro onto a large platter and top with the steak. Spoon the paprika butter over the steak and serve right away.
Make Ahead
1. The paprika butter can stand at room temperature for up to 4 hours; reheat the butter gently.
