By Emma Murphy, contributing writer
Memorial Day weekend is here! I’m planning to get out of Manhattan and head to Connecticut, so I’ll have the opportunity (and the green space) to fire up my Weber and celebrate the arrival of summertime. For those of you who’ll be in the city for the weekend and aren’t lucky enough to possess backyards, check out these officially sanctioned city park areas for grilling, so you can get your grill on too.
Yesterday, I picked up a terrific carne asada recipe at Dean & DeLuca’s Grilling Season Kick Off with Brandt Beef and Edible Manhattan. Brandt Beef’s executive chef Tom McAliney was grilling up a storm at Dean & DeLuca on Madison Avenue and plying folks (myself included) with free samples.
Chef Tom’s flat iron steak was grilled beautifully… it was perfectly pink in the middle and oh so tender and moist. It was served sliced thinly between two pillowy slices of French bread with cheddar cheese and an avocado salsa. I’m going to try to replicate Chef Tom’s recipe this weekend and share it with friends and family. If you’re going to be grilling this long weekend too, give the recipe a try.
Carne Asada Steak Sandwich With Salsa
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
4 pounds Brandt Beef flat iron steaks
2 French baguettes
1/2 pound cheddar cheese, sliced paper thin
Rub:
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
6 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon ground pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons onion powder
3 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon ground dried thyme leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
Salsa:
3 ripe but firm avocados, peeled, pitted & cut into chunks
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 large red bell pepper diced
1 red onion diced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves, chopped
2 tomatoes, seeds & chopped
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt & fresh ground black pepper
Directions:
Make the rub: Combine all rub ingredients and blend together well. Place in a zip lock bag. Add steaks and let marinate six hours.
Make the salsa: Combine all salsa ingredients and mix gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set salsa aside.
Grill the steak: Prepare charcoal grill to medium-high heat (or preheat a heavy grill pan over medium-high heat on stove). Cook steak approximately four minutes per side and check for doneness using an instant read thermometer (135 degrees for medium rare). Once cooked to desired doneness, remove from grill and let rest for 5 minutes.
Slice baguettes lengthwise and place on grill cut side down. Toast for one minute then remove from heat and place sliced cheddar cheese on cut sides. Allow cheese to melt.
Slice Brandt Beef flat iron steaks across the grain, place on baguette and top with salsa. Enjoy!
