Weeknight London Broil

I don’t remember the first time I had London Broil.  I remember liking it, but it was one of those things never made at home. If I recall correctly I only encountered it in restaurants and at catered affairs.  In essence it’s simply a thick cheaper cut of beef that’s been chemically tenderized and then cooked at high temperatures.  The result is crusty rare to medium rare slices of heaven.  It all sounds great, but I work and something like London Broil has to be marinated, but not over marinated. It has to be broiled to just at rare to medium rare. The whole thing can be a bit of a fuss.   Then, however, I started thinking and toying around; I figured that since I could not leave it in the marinade the 9 hours I was at work I could salt it ahead of time.  In theory, other things could be added so it would be like a rub, but there will be more on rubs next week (hint pork shoulder).  The salt would help tenderize the meat while I was at work, without over seasoning it like leaving it in the marinade would.  Once home, I whipped up the marinade. The flavors are pretty strong, but the steak would not be in the marinade long. Then I cooked it, by broiling to obtain a crust, and then roasting it to desired level of doneness.  

Ingredients:

1½ -2 pounds London Broil  (Top Round steak, at least 1 inch thick)

¼ cup coarse Sea Salt or Kosher salt

¼ cup cooking oil

¼ cup Worcestershire Sauce

¼ cup white or red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon garlic power

1 teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon black pepper

Step One:

On a cutting board pat half of the salt onto the topside of the steak. Flip it over and salt the other side with the remaining salt.   Place the steak into a sealable container or a zip top bag (ensure the bag doesn’t leak).  Refrigerate the salted steak for 6-9 hours.

Step Two:

In a small bowl add the remaining ingredients and whisk them together to combine well.  Open the container with the steak and pour in the marinade. Reseal and move the container around to ensure the marinade is evenly distributed.  Refrigerate for 30 - 45 minutes.

Step Three:  

Preheat the broiler (grill, or grill pan) on high.  Remove the steak from the marinade and discard the marinade.  Place the steak under the broiler for 10 minutes.  Afterwards flip the steak over and cook for another ten minutes.  At this point a brown crust should appear, but the inside is very rare. It perhaps may only register 120 degrees.

 

Step Four:  

Turn the broiler off and turn the oven on to 400-425  to roast the steak the rest of the way towards the desired level of doneness.  A great tool to use is an in oven probe thermometer.  These can be set to the desired temperature and it will alert you when that temperature has been reached.  Remove the steak from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes. 

Black Eye Peas with Turkey Bacon and Chilies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup dry Black Eye Peas

10 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons oil divided

5 slices of thick turkey bacon cut in to 1/4" pieces

1 1/2 cups diced onion

1/4 cup diced hot chili peppers

1 tablespoon pressed garlic

1 teaspoon black pepper

Step One:
Pour the black eye peas into a colander and rinse. Dried beans can contain stones, and other debris.  Transfer the beans to a large pot and fill it with 6 cups cold water. Add salt and bring the water to a boil for 3 minutes. Remove  from the heat and cover for 3 hours.









Step Two:
Remove the turkey bacon from package and cut  it into 1/4" pieces. The bacon here is the thicker cut kind of turkey bacon. If your grocery only carries the thin kind, then you can use that, but you'll need 8 slices.  Thick cut pork bacon can be used as well. Another posibility here would be to use smoked poultry or meat products. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to a 6-quart pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat and render the bacon. Remove it from the pan and reserve. Continue using the same pot for the next steps.












Step Three:
Reduce the temperature to medium. Add one teaspoon of oil. Add the onion to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes or until the onion is soft and golden. Add in the chili peppers and cook until they too are soft stirring occasionally.

Step Four:
Add the garlic and the reserved bacon to the onion and chili mixture. Stir frequently for about 1 minute until garlic is fragrant. Add the beans and 4 cups of water to the mixture and bring it to a boil.  Remove mixture from the heat. Pour the bean mixture into a slower cooker. Set the slow cooker to medium (or low depending on your model) and cook for 6 hours.

Sole with Lemon Caper Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 cup diced shallot
1 tablespoon butter
1 lemon juiced
1/2 teaspoon capers
1 pound sole filets  (appox 4 or 5)
1 teaspoon cooking oil or cooking spray

Step one:

Melt the butter over medium heat in a sauce pan; be careful not to let the butter burn. Add the shallots and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for five minutes stirring occasionally until shallots are translucent and slightly browned. Stir in the lemon juice and capers and lid the pan.




Step two:


Add oil to a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the sole filets to the pan. Do not crowd the pan. Cook the sole for 3-5 minutes per side (depending on thickness). Using a fish turner (pictured below) turn the fish over to the other side to finish cooking.  Sole is notorious for falling apart so a fish turner is very  useful.

Step Three:

Place a filet on a plate and spoon the shallot lemon caper sauce over and enjoy.

Salmon Salad

Ingredients

1 14.5oz can pink salmon drained, bones and skin removed

¼ cup diced red onion

¼ cup diced salmon lox or nova trim

½ cup mayonnaise

1/8 teaspoon dried dill

Salt and Pepper to taste

Step One :

Open the canned salmon and drain the canning fluid and discard.  Empty the salmon into a large bowl. Remove the bones and skin and discard.  Dice the onion, and add the onion to the bowl.

Step Two:

Dice the lox or nova trim and add it to the large bowl.  Add the mayonnaise, dill, salt and pepper.

Step Three: 

Combine the mixture well to incorporate all the ingredients, and place it into the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. After the resting period the salad can be served over greens, as a dip, or used in the preparation of a salmon salad sandwich.