El Yaqui Perron tacos

Funny how people in this country buy flank steak and actually pay extra for it. It's considered a low-brow cheap piece of meat in most countries.

"A fool and his money is soon parted."

I like a Japanese style flank steak marinade.

Soy sauce, rice vinegar, mirin (sweet rice wine), miso, ginger.

You may not own all these ingredients (I didn’t) but once you buy them you’ll use them because it’s amazing.

1 Tbl Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbl lemon juice
2 Tbl soy sauce
1 Tbl honey
1 Tbl Montreal steak seasoning
1 Tbl garlic
1 tsp dijon mustard
Black pepper
3 Tbl Olive oil
Marinate flank steak 4 hrs minimum

Anonymous wrote:Equal parts grapefruit juice and soy sauce, plus a small bit of olive oil. If you're feeling fancy, add some chopped garlic and fresh ginger.

Similar, we sub juice with wine or beer -+ touch of honey

My goto
¼ cup oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp chopped onion
Clove garlic
1 tsp celery salt
1 tsp pepper

I like to use a drier marinade/rub like Baba's Lala Sauce. It's locally made and doesn't get my meat too wet to brown. I use it as a marinade and then afterwards as a finishing sauce.

This is my all time favorite steak marinade:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/the-best-steak-marinade/

Takes five minutes and is absolutely delicious.

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like acid in flank steak marinades because I think it gives a mushy, overtenderized texture to the outside portion of the meat. I prefer some herbs, etc. blended with oil, e.g. shalloy, garlic, and rosemary, crushed and mixed with oil. This also makes browning easy.

You do not need to marinate flank steak for tenderness. You need to cook it exactly medium rare and cut it across the grain. If you do both of these, it will be tender without marinade. If you don't do either, it won't be tender even with marinade. So the marinade is superfluous.

Yes, I totally agree. A dry rub is also good but no marinade if you want a proper sear.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please speak to the differences (and pros/cons) of flank steak, flat iron steak, and skirt steak? I intend to grill, slice, and serve atop salad, and would love to know which would work best. TIA!

I'd use flank for salad. Use the others for fajitas and stuff like that.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please speak to the differences (and pros/cons) of flank steak, flat iron steak, and skirt steak? I intend to grill, slice, and serve atop salad, and would love to know which would work best. TIA!

True skirt steak is from the abdominal area of the cow (hangar and onglet come from a similar area). It is tough but deeply flavorful. Depending on the type of skirt steak, you need to remove a membrane from one side, which requires decent knife skills. Skirt steak needs to be marinated with a tenderizing marinade and sliced against the grain. It is the ideal cut of meat for dishes where meat is marinated and then either cooked very hot and sliced, or sliced and then cooked very hot. For example, it is a much better fajita and Asian stir fry cut than flank steak. It also has enough membrane and fat to be cooked in braises.

Flank steak is also from the belly of the cow, but farther back. It is not-infrequently-mislabeled as skirt steak, particularly when it is cut very thin. It can be labeled as London Broil when cut thicker (though London Broil can also be an entirely different cut). It is not as flavorful as skirt steak but is leaner. You normally want to grill, sear, or broil it. It is a decent option for cooking between rare and medium rare, slicing very thin, and serving on top of a salad, for example a Thai beef salad or a pub salad with fried onions and blue cheese. Some people think you can braise it well, but I don't agree. I think its major selling point is that it is an economical and relatively healthy cut of meat.

Flat iron steak is a chuck steak cut from the shoulder of the cow to look a bit like a skirt steak or flank steak. The marbling in it allows it to be tender enough that restaurants can get away with cooking it as they would other grilled steaks and serving it unsliced. It is used primary by upscale restaurants as a way of offering a <$30 steak option on their menu. I like this steak, but it is not my first choice for home cooking, both because restaurants hog the best of it and because its already possible to serve large cuts of steak at home for less than $30 - just buy some strip steaks and sear them.

OJ, soy sauce, grated ginger, orange zest.

Can someone please speak to the differences (and pros/cons) of flank steak, flat iron steak, and skirt steak? I intend to grill, slice, and serve atop salad, and would love to know which would work best. TIA!

I don't really like acid in flank steak marinades because I think it gives a mushy, overtenderized texture to the outside portion of the meat. I prefer some herbs, etc. blended with oil, e.g. shalloy, garlic, and rosemary, crushed and mixed with oil. This also makes browning easy.

You do not need to marinate flank steak for tenderness. You need to cook it exactly medium rare and cut it across the grain. If you do both of these, it will be tender without marinade. If you don't do either, it won't be tender even with marinade. So the marinade is superfluous.