fruits of labor: not your grandma's flank steak

not your grandma's flank steak
you can use any size flank steak you like- here i used a 2lbs. one for the 4th of July barbecue -


Marinade - combine all of these in a separate bowl and stir until brown sugar is dissolved

• 6 tablespoons strong brewed coffee
• 3 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1.75 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns, crushed
• 3 -4 bay leaves

Dry RUB - combine all in a bowl and stir until well blended

• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder or coriander powder
  
• 1tbsp chili powder
• 3tsp cumin
• 5 or 6 small passes on the grater of nutmeg approx. 1/16 of a teaspoon

i love the way that the inside of the nutmeg looks! so pretty -

• 2lb flank steak
  
• 1/2 lemon
• salt and ground pepper
• olive oil

lay out the flank steak flat in a baking dish. squeeze some fresh lemon juice on both sides. season both sides with salt and lightly with pepper (remember its already in the marinade) sprinkle half of the dry rub on to the first side of the meat - rub it in with your finger tips then flip the meat over and do the same thing with the rest of the rub.


then slowly pour the marinade over the top of the flank steak - be sure to get all the bits out of the bowl and on to the flank steak - flip the meat over a few times to make sure it is well coated. Finally drizzle some olive oil over the top of the flank steak before covering and putting it in the fridge. this prep can be done up to 24 hours ahead of time and as little at 1hour before cooking time - probably even less ive just never tried it less than one hour before. when you are ready to cook the steak bring your grill up to medium high heat. Cook the flank steak 4 minutes on each side or 4 on one and 3 on the other for a little bit rarer. the key to this steak is NOT to over cook it or it will be tough. let it rest at lest 10 min and then slice it against the grain the string-like bands that run through the meat, for maximum tenderness. because a flank steak is so thin, it should be sliced on an angle. Hold the knife at a 45-degree angle to the meat to get nice, wide slices


enjoy!